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Updated: June 12, 2021 Home » Freeware and Software Reviews

You can take screenshots directly in Windows and paste them onto Microsoft Paint, having said that, if you are looking for something feature rich, you will need a third party tool. Why pay for a software when there are plenty of open source and freeware available? After going through a number of these screen capturing tools, we’ve shortlisted these 10 tools and tricks as the best for your daily productivity.

7 Free Dual Monitor Tools & Multi Computer Screen For Windows. 4 Free Tools To Test RAM Memory For Windows, Linux and Mac. 13 Free Tools To Create Bootable USB Windows 10 & Linux With ISO Files. 11 Free Software for Video Capturing, Game Broadcasting and Online Streaming. Debut Video Capture Software for Mac is a screen recording app that allows you to easily record and capture video from any webcam, recording device, or screen. Whether creating a professional video recording for work or a video for personal use, Debut Screen Recorder has an array of production features that will help to create a flawless screen. Best free screen capture software for mac Mac OS X: Skitch is our favorite screen capture tool on the Mac and although it's free, there are a lot of neat features you get with the paid version. Currently, if you purchase it on the Mac App Store you can get those features for half off.Mac OS X only: Dead simple screenshot and image-sharing.

😭 😍 😂 11 Free Software for Video Capturing, Game Broadcasting and Online Streaming

↓ 01 – Edge’s Web Note | Microsoft Edge Browser

Surprisingly the best screen capture tool for websites is none other than Microsoft Edge in Windows 10. What makes Edge the best is with a click on a button, you have the screen captured and a ‘pen’ tool to scribble. Pros: It’s a built-in function that is easily accessible. Cons: Annotating options are limited and it captures only the visible things.

Microsoft Edge is the only browser that lets you take notes, write, doodle, and highlight directly on webpages. Then you can save and share your handiwork in all the usual ways. Make notes on recipes, send your partner “subtle hints” about birthday gifts, or just draw mustaches on celebrities—the web is your canvas.

↓ 02 – Microsoft Windows | Windows

The other method is none other than the ‘Print Screen’ button. Hit the ‘Print Screen’ button and ‘Paste’ it to an image editor such as Photoshop. To capture a perfect window without the background, use the combination “Alt+Print”.

↓ 03 – ShareX | Windows

If you’re looking for something powerful yet free, ShareX is the answer. It is free, open source, lightweight and free from advertisements! It comes with advanced screenshot capture, screen recorder, file sharing and productivity tool with features such as capturing screenshots including full screen, window, monitor, region, freehand, scrolling, and more. It also contains tools like a screen color picker, an image editor, a ruler, a DNS changer, a QR code generator, a directory indexer and more.

↓ 04 – TechSmith Jing | Windows | macOS

Jing is a computer service that lets you capture basic video, animation, and still images, and share them on the web. The always-ready program that allows you to instantly capture images and videos—then share them with anyone. Jing is a great tool for adding basic visual elements to all of your online conversations.

• Capture what you see – Capture an image of what you see on your computer screen with Jing. Simply select any window or region that you want to capture, mark up your screenshot with a text box, arrow, highlight or picture caption, and decide how you want to share it.
• Record what you’re doing – Select any window or region that you would like to record, and Jing will capture everything that happens in that area. From simple mouse movements to a fully narrated tutorial, Jing records everything you see and do. Jing videos are limited to five minutes for instant, focused communication.
• Send your video or screenshot – Send your screenshots and videos all over the web. As soon as you’re done with your screen capture or screen recording, it’s ready to upload to Screencast.com and share through IM, email, social media, and more.

↓ 05 – Windows Snipping Tool | Windows

You can use the Snipping Tool to capture a screenshot, or snip, of any object on your screen, and then annotate, save, or share the image. Simply use a mouse or tablet pen to capture any of the following types of snips:

• Free-form Snip. Draw an irregular line, such as a circle or a triangle, around an object.
• Rectangular Snip. Draw a precise line by dragging the cursor around an object to form a rectangle.
• Window Snip. Select a window, such as a browser window or dialog box, that you want to capture.
• Full-screen Snip. Capture the entire screen when you select this type of snip.

After you capture a snip, it’s automatically copied to the mark-up window, where you can annotate, save, or share the snip.

↓ 06 – Lightshot | Windows | macOS | Chrome | Firefox

Lightshot – easy screenshot tool, is screen capture tool for Windows that works very much like the Snipping tool in Windows Vista and 7, with the added advantage of automatically uploading it online for sharing or editing. Available also as Firefox addon, Chrome extension and IE addon besides Desktop application.

• Fast screenshot of selected area – Our app allows you to select any area on your desktop and take its screenshot with 2 button-clicks.
• Easy-to-use application – Simple and intuitive user interface makes your work with the app easier and faster.
• Share screenshots via Internet – Upload your screenshot to the server and get its short link right away.
• Powerful editors – You can edit screenshots instantly when taking them or later using a powerful online editor.
• Similar image search – Find similar images. Select any image on your screen and find dozens similar images.

↓ 07 – Lightscreen | Windows | Linux

Lightscreen is a simple tool to automate the tedious process of saving and cataloging screenshots, it operates as a hidden background process that is invoked with one (or multiple) hotkeys and then saves a screenshot file to disk according to the user’s preferences.

↓ 08 – Greenshot | Windows

Being easy to understand and configurable, Greenshot is an efficient tool for project managers, software developers, technical writers, testers and anyone else creating screenshots. Greenshot is a light-weight screenshot software tool for Windows with the following key features:

• Quickly create screenshots of a selected region, window or fullscreen; you can even capture complete (scrolling) web pages from Internet Explorer.
• Easily annotate, highlight or obfuscate parts of the screenshot.
• Export the screenshot in various ways: save to file, send to printer, copy to clipboard, attach to email, send Office programs or upload to photo sites like Flickr or Picasa, and others.

↓ 09 – DuckCapture | Windows | macOS

DuckCapture allows you to capture a window or region on your screen, or the contents of a tall web page that scrolls. You can change your captured area or add more areas to one image, add annotations. When finished, you can save to file, copy to clipboard or print out directly.

DuckCapture comes with four capture modes that make screen capture easy! Capture a window on your screen, region of your screen, or the contents of a tall web page that scrolls. You can easily edit, and share a screenshot. Don’t waste time cropping your captures. DuckCapture is exactly what you need.

↓ 10 – PicPick | Windows | macOS

Specially designed for the home user and aiming at giving as much flexibility as possible during the work. It even includes some features never to be found in Photoshop. PicPick, besides being a very easy to use image editor, also sports graphic capture options and a set of hotkeys and options some similar editors would envy.

• Capture anything – Take screenshots of an entire screen, an active window, the scrolling windows and any specific region of your desktop, etc.
• Edit your images – Annotate and highlight your images: text, arrows, shapes and more with the built-in image editor that includes the latest Ribbon style menu.
• Enhance with effects – Easily add effects to your images: drop shadows, frames, watermarks, mosaic, motion blur, brightness control and more.
• Share everywhere – Save, share, or send your images via Web, email, ftp, Dropbox, Google Drive, SkyDrive, Box, Evernote, Facebook, Twitter and more.
• Graphic Accessories – Variety of graphic design accessories including color picker, color palette, pixel ruler, protractor, crosshair, magnifier, whiteboard.
• Customizable setting – With highly advanced settings, you can customize hotkeys, file naming, image quality, and many other options that fits your needs.

↓ 11 – Shutter [ Discontinued ] | Linux

Shutter is a feature-rich screenshot program for Linux based operating systems such as Ubuntu. You can take a screenshot of a specific area, window, your whole screen, or even of a website – apply different effects to it, draw on it to highlight points, and then upload to an image hosting site, all within one window.

• Capture – Shutter allows you to capture nearly anything on your screen without losing control over your screenshots (tabbed interface).
• Edit – Especially if you are taking screenshots for writing tutorials or manuals you need to edit the image, e.g. highlighting some part of it. With Shutter you don’t need to open an external graphics editor like GIMP, because Shutter ships with its own built-in editor.
• Share – We all spend much of our time in forums, wikis, chats etc. From time to time we need to do some screenshots and upload them so we can share them with other people.
• Plugins – Shutter ships with a great variety of plugins that allow you to add impressive effects to your screenshots.

Looking to capture images, video clips, or your favorite websites? We’ll help you pick the right snipping tool for Mac.

You’re probably familiar with the incredibly handy Windows snipping tool. It’s awesome, right? Wouldn’t it be amazing if you could have a similar tool on your Mac?

We have some good news. We’ve covered how to capture screenshots on a Mac using snipping tool shortcuts before:

CMD + SHIFT + 3
makes capture a full-screen screenshot

CMD + SHIFT + 4
helps you capture selected area as a screenshot

CMD + SHIFT + 5
captures only an active window that you choose

Today, we’ll go over some of the best snipping tools for Mac to make taking screenshots easy as pie. They include:

Best Snipping Tools for Mac in 2020

Snipping tools enable you to capture much of what you do every day on your computer screen. Some of the reasons you might need a snipping tool include:

• Making visual tutorials
• Sharing your screen with friends
• Sending screenshots for work
• Keep a record of important documents that you cannot download.

If you’re looking for the perfect snipping tool Mac, check out our list below.

1. Snagit

We have to admit, Snagit is the gold standard of screen capture software. It’s very popular with corporate customers for its aesthetic interface and powerful features. The editing and screen recording capabilities are pretty impressive. One of the highlights of the app is the intuitive user interface.

A small control panel appears at the top of your screen. It allows you to capture screenshots, change settings, and customize hotkeys. The editor features nifty tools like callouts, arrows, blur, and others. You can also create animated gifs and videos straight from the app. The process of capturing and editing images and videos is so seamless the average Mac user will take to it like a duck to water.

Snagit allows you to capture your screen in several ways. You can capture the entire screen, a specific region, or a specific application. You can also import images from scanners and cameras. One of the coolest features of this snipping tool for Mac is the ability to capture text from an image and paste it into a text editor. To access the full range of features, you have to pay $50, which is a tad expensive when compared to other tools.

So, what’s our verdict?

We love Snagit. It’s hands down the best Mac snipping tool on the market. The software comes with tons of features and is easy to use. It’s our macOS snipping tool of choice.

✅ PROS:

• Easy to use
• Feature-rich

⛔️ CONS:

• Video editing is cumbersome.

2. Lightshot

Lightshot is an extremely lightweight screen capture tool. It’s also one of the easiest to use. If you’re worried about how to use snipping tool on Mac, then this is the right tool for you. All you do is press the print screen button on your keyboard and select your area of interest. The app will do the rest.

You can edit your screenshots by adding text, colors, shapes, and others. The software has a simple interface that you only interact with on the screen capture screen itself. The most outstanding feature is the ease with which you can capture, save, and upload screenshots. In fact, it’s the only tool that allows you to take one screenshot after the other in quick succession. The tool is completely free and enables you to:

• Print screenshots
• Search for a similar image on Google
• Upload images to Prntscr.com
• Copy and save

So, what’s our verdict?

Lightshot is a great snipping tool on macOS. It can be used by any person with a basic knowledge of computers. Even though it’s not as feature-rich as some of the options on our list, it’s still useful and convenient. The app even earned a place in our list of top 10 snipping tools in 2020.

✅ PROS:

• Lightweight and easy to use
• It’s fast
• It’s free
• Ability to save to social media or the cloud

⛔️ CONS:

• Does not have capture modes.
• Doesn’t have a separate editing screen with advanced tools.

3. SnapNDrag

SbapNDrag is a handy MacBook snipping tool that allows you to grab a snapshot of the full screen, a window, or a specific section of the screen without worrying about key combinations.

You can use the free version or fork out $10 for the pro version. The pro version allows you to resize images, assign global hotkeys, and turn off adverts. Some of the features in the pro version include:

• A library for our screenshots
• Sharing your screenshots to Twitter, Facebook, email, and more.
• Annotate your screenshots
• Multiple output formats (PNG, JPEG or TIFF)
• Border and scaling
• Batch rename
• Custom keyboard shortcuts.

If you use screenshots in your work, then the paid version would be a perfect choice.

✅ PROS:

• Easy to use
• Free version available

⛔️ CONS:

• Limited features on the free version.

4. Monosnap

Monosnap is an online service that doubles as cloud storage, a secure content management system, and snipping tool for Mac. It also works on Windows and Chrome. Using Monosnap, you can instantly capture your entire screen or a portion of it and then use the built-in editing tools to mock-up and share your masterpiece.

Earning 4.3 stars in the Apple App Store, Monosnap might just be the best snipping tool out there for mac.

✅ PROS:

• Customizable hotkeys
• Rich editing tools
• Hide private information with a blur tool
• Free cloud storage space
• Create video and animated GIFs
• Multiple save and share options

⛔️ CONS:

• A possibly overwhelming user interface for some users
• Pushy upgrade ads
• Users complain that it stops working and locks up

5. Greenshot

Greenshot is a popular screen capture tool. It includes dozens of useful features like hotkey combinations, the ability to copy your image to the clipboard, or send it directly to a cloud-based program like Confluence, Box.com, Dropbox, Flick, Imgur, JIRA, Picasa-Web, or your printer. You can even edit screenshots on the fly with the built-in editor. To make this sweet package even better, Greenshot allows you to blur areas of your screenshot to keep things private. You can customize and personalize many of the default settings and use your own hotkey combinations for better functionality.

The program installs quickly, and the interface is easy to use. After you select your area, it turns green, and then you hear a shutter sound, so you know it took the shot. You can even choose your image format (BMP, GIF, JPEG, and PNG) and then mark it up with the built-in tools.

Greenshot was primarily a Windows-based application, but they recently released a snip tool for Mac as well. Although users rave about the Windows version, they are less impressed with the macOS alternative. So, for now, no one will be calling Greenshot the best free snipping tool for Mac, but you never know what the future holds.

✅ PROS:

• Open Source
• Easy to Use
• Freezes Screen When You Capture
• Allows Annotating, Highlighting and Obfuscating Screenshots

⛔️ CONS:

• Rarely Updated

6. Loom Screen Recorder

Loom Screen Recorder allows you to communicate quickly and effectively by taking screenshots or shooting quick videos to send to colleagues, friends, or family. In the time it takes you to type an email or mock-up an idea, you can create a video or screenshot to say it all. Loom offers both a free and paid version. Loom works on Windows, Chrome, Mac, and iOS.

If you are looking for the best free snipping tool for Mac that also records video, look no further, Loom is it! Using quick video recordings and screenshots, you can improve productivity, streamline your workflow, and boost customer satisfaction all at once.

✅ PROS:

• Rich interface with many options
• Supports multiple platforms and even has a Google Chrome extension
• Simple, lightweight, and easy to use
• Screen recording to create quick tutorials on how to do something
• Create videos, screen shares, and even GIFs on the fly

⛔️ CONS:

• Can’t add audio or music separately
• Users complain that it is glitchy at times
• Can’t customize the interface

7. CloudApp’s Mac Screenshot App and CloudApp for iOS

Another option in our Mac snipping tool lineup is CloudApp’s screenshot App. CloudApp is a heavy hitter when it comes to software. They provide solutions for designers, developers, executives, marketing professionals, sales, support, and even production people. You can use CloudApp on the web, or download it to Mac, Windows, Linux and even use it on iOS devices.

Across the board, CloudApp gets high marks from reviewers and users. It’s a sophisticated product that allows you to capture and share your screen using an enterprise-level app. As a bonus, use the built-in analytical tools, white-label capabilities, and secure sharing along with controlled access features.

✅ PROS:

• Excellent support
• Easy to use and learn
• Quick GIF or video creation
• Uploads screenshots and videos automatically to the cloud
• Share links included

⛔️ CONS:

• No full-screen, screen capture, have to select an area
• Some users experienced lock-ups or glitchy video
• Saving to the desktop could be easier
• Needs more powerful annotation tools
• No video editing features

8. Skitch

If you are in the business of taking screenshots and marking them up for your team, Skitch is going to be the best snipping tool for Mac that you can find. Skitch was designed by and is owned by Evernote. If you don’t use Evernote, you won’t enjoy the push to integrate the two. That being said, Skitch is a simple, elegant, effective snipping tool and markup editor for macOS, Windows, Android, and iOS. It has only seven tools, but honestly, why would you need more?

You can quickly add text, shapes, arrows, highlighting, color, draw on your image, and even add blurring to obscure areas. It’s so easy to use; you can figure it out within seconds. When taking a screenshot, you select your area, which lights up, making it easy to see what will and will not be included.

The only drawbacks are the color chooser is limited to only eight colors. There aren’t any special effects or filters, and you cannot save files locally. You must choose between emailing them, sending them as a text message, pulling them into Evernote, or sending them to your photos app. Other than that, we give Skitch a big thumbs up!

✅ PROS:

• Integrates with Evernote
• Supports PNG, JPEG, TIFF, GIF, BMP, and PDF formats

⛔️ CONS:

• Doesn’t offer to save a note when quitting the app

9. Recordit

Recordit is a simple, plugin-style Mac snipping tool that you install on your Mac or Windows machine to create quick screencasts of your entire screen or just a portion. Users love the simplicity and lightweight model, affording you the ability to multi-task while screencasting.

Easily showcase software or tutorials right on your desktop and then share them with your entire office. You can download the free version or pay for the full version for even more features.

✅ PROS:

• Minimalistic snip tool for Mac using virtually no memory
• Lives in the taskbar on Mac
• Dozens of upload and share options
• Customizable hotkeys
• Free cloud storage and management of screenshots
• GIF, and Twitter support

⛔️ CONS:

• Limited to 5 minutes of recording time with the free version
• It requires an internet connection
• The free version is feature-limited

How to Snip on Mac

When you transition from a Windows PC to a Mac, one question that might have you stumped is how to take a screenshot on the Mac. The Mac keyboard doesn't have a Print Screen button but don't worry; there are still plenty of tricks to take a screenshot when you need one fast.

Screen Grab Software

CMD + SHIFT + 3

Probably the fastest way to take a screenshot, especially when time is limited, and you are trying to capture something temporary, is to use the CMD + SHIFT + 3 method. Hold down all three keys simultaneously; you will hear a camera sound and a screenshot of your entire screen will instantly be created and copied directly to your desktop. In macOS, these keyboard shortcuts are the Mac snipping tool, similar to the one used in Windows.

After you hear the camera sound, you will see a thumbnail preview of your screenshot in the lower, right-hand corner of the screen. If you click this tiny image, it brings up the entire snipping tool for Mac, and you can edit, annotate, rotate and make other changes to the image before it saves to your desktop.

CMD + SHIFT + 4

Another convenient way to take a screenshot on the Mac with even more precision is to use CMD + SHIFT + 4. This method allows you to select an area around the portion of the screen that you need to capture. You can get very specific about exactly what you want to be copied to the desktop. To use this method, follow the steps below:

Free Screen Grab Software Mac

1. Hold down the CMD + SHIFT + 4 keys simultaneously. You will see a tiny bullseye on the screen.
2. Now use your mouse or trackpad to click the top-left corner of the area you want to select.
3. Hold and drag until you draw a rectangle around the entire area you want to be selected.
4. Let go of the mouse, you will hear the camera sound, and the screenshot will copy to your desktop.

Again, you will see a tiny preview of the screenshot in the lower, right-hand corner of your screen. You have a couple of seconds to click that image to open up the snipping tool and make edits. If you make a mistake, close the box, and the original will be copied to your desktop.

You might have to try this method a few times until you get good at it, but it's worth it for the precision it offers.

If you have a MacBook Pro with Touch Bar, you can use the Touch Bar to choose Selected Portion, Window, or Entire Screen and designate where to save the copy.

CMD + SHIFT + 5

New to macOS Mojave, is the CMD + SHIFT + 5 feature. When you use this option, it pops open an overlay window so you can choose full-screen, a window, or a selection screenshot.

Free Screen Grab Software Mac Pro

This cool new feature also allows you to record a video of your whole screen or just a portion of it. Two additional options are that you can select where to save the file, and you can also set a handy delay of 5 or 10 seconds to line things up quickly before the screenshot takes a picture.

One More Hidden Trick - Preview Screenshot

So now you know how to use the snipping tool on the Mac. But there is also one more hidden trick we want to share. Buried in the Preview menu, there is a screenshot option. With a PDF or image file open in Preview, simply select File, Take a Screenshot, and then choose 'From Selection,' 'From Window,' or 'From Entire Screen.'

These menu items replace the keyboard shortcuts, but after that, you will have the same options and follow the same instructions above.

Learn more about snipping tools or screen capture software and check out the list of the best snipping tools for Mac to take screenshots of images, video clips, or your favorite websites as easy as pie.

Free Screen Capture Software Mac

That’s it! Now you are an expert at taking screenshots on a Mac.

Conclusion

Grab App For Mac

Taking screenshots on your Mac need not be complicated. You don’t even have to memorize shortcuts. Our carefully selected list of tools will help you get the job done without breaking a sweat.

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