Chrome has no built-in setting to automatically screenshot a Chrome tab on a repeating timer. In Tab Automation, add **Take a Screenshot**, leave **Repeat** on, and click **Start**.

Chrome must show that tab. The PNG lands under **Downloads**. The image is the visible viewport, not a full-page crop.

## Set up a repeating screenshot in the side panel

1. Open the tab you want a record of — a status board, a queue, or another page you leave running.
2. Open Tab Automation from its toolbar action. The extension opens in Chrome's side panel.
3. Click **New Automation** and pick the open tab under **Select a Tab**.
4. Click **Add Step**, then choose [Take a Screenshot](/steps/take-a-screenshot).
5. Click **Test screenshot** to prove Chrome can photograph that tab before you rely on a run. Test uses the same capture and download path as a live run.
6. Configure [Repeat](/steps/repeat) at the End block. A new automation starts with a 30-second **Fixed** wait. You can choose **No wait**, **Fixed**, or **Random range**, in seconds from 0 to 3600 where allowed.
7. Click **Start**.

The graph runs, photographs the showing tab, reaches Repeat, waits, and begins the next cycle. **Pause** stops the current run until you **Resume** it. **Remove Automation** deletes it.

Repeat can also stop after a set number of cycles or after a duration. Turn Repeat off when you want one PNG. The End block controls another cycle; it does not take the screenshot by itself.

This step [switches the assigned tab to the front](https://developer.chrome.com/docs/extensions/reference/api/tabs#method-captureVisibleTab). Chrome can only photograph the tab that is showing. A repeating screenshot keeps bringing that tab forward on each cycle.

## Reload, then photograph

A status board often needs a fresh load before the PNG is worth keeping.

1. Add [Refresh Page](/steps/refresh-page) first.
2. Add [Wait / Delay](/steps/wait-delay) as a **Delay** so charts or the queue can finish painting.
3. Add **Take a Screenshot**.
4. Leave **Repeat** on so the graph starts again after the wait.

This still photographs one assigned tab. It does not rotate a wallboard through multiple tabs. Matching a wait to load time is the [dashboard guide](/blog/auto-refresh-dashboard-chrome).

If capture fails, [Activity](/steps/activity) records a warning and the rest of the run still finishes. The PNG is not stored in Activity.

## Walk a list, then photograph

To keep a PNG of each URL on a listing page, collect the links first, then screenshot the page the hop reaches.

1. Add [For Each Link on Page](/steps/for-each-link) and pick the repeated links, or paste a list.
2. Add **Take a Screenshot** inside Each Link.
3. Leave **Repeat** on if you want another pass after the wait.

The walk uses one assigned tab. It opens a link there, photographs that page, then opens the next link in the same tab. Collecting the list is [walking through links](/blog/walk-through-links-in-chrome).

## Content below the fold

**Take a Screenshot** captures the visible viewport. It does not stitch content below the fold or crop one element.

Add [Scroll Page](/steps/scroll-page) first when the wanted region is off-screen. Scroll can jump to the top, the bottom, by a distance, or to a picked element. **Bottom of page** is one jump to the current end. It does not keep scrolling while an infinite-scroll page loads more.

## Where the file goes

The file lands under **Downloads / folder** as `host-timestamp.png`. The default folder is `tab-automation`. Change that in **Settings** (the gear on the masthead), under **Screenshots**, or leave a **Folder override** on this step.

Chrome can only write under Downloads — this is a subfolder name, not a full disk path. Use letters, numbers, hyphens, underscores, or `/` for nested folders. Chrome may uniquify the name if a file already exists. The image is not stored in Activity or under [Values](/steps/values).

The extension needs the `downloads` permission for this step. Screenshots stay on this computer.

## Limits to know before you start

- **Chrome must stay open.** Extension alarms do not fire after you quit Chrome. Running automations are rescheduled when Chrome starts again.
- **The tab must be showing.** This step switches to that tab and window. It does not photograph a hidden tab in the background.
- **Only http(s) pages.** Chrome UI pages, extension pages, and the Chrome Web Store cannot be captured.
- **One visible frame.** The step does not crop an element, attach the PNG to [Send Alert](/steps/send-alert), or write outside Downloads.
- **Browser support is limited.** Desktop Chrome, Edge, Brave, and Opera can install the Chrome Web Store listing. Firefox, Safari, and mobile are not supported.

Automations stay in `chrome.storage.local` on this computer. Read the [privacy policy](/privacy) for permissions and data handling.