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Taking a screenshot is one of those things you don't think much about until it's time to do it. Both smartphones and computers have basic screen capturing built in, and that'll be enough for some people—but once your requirements get a little more advanced, it's time to turn to specialized tools.
Some let you grab full web pages, while others focus on the strength of their automation or editing features. You'll also find timers, screen and webcam recording, integration with other software or online services, and other options designed to make the capturing process more useful and powerful.
The majority of screen capture apps are designed to run on Windows, although there are one or two good options for Mac owners, plus a few that run in a browser. The majority are free or donation-supported, at least for the basic version, but you'll need to pay for the high-end ones. Below, we rounded up some of the best.
This video capture is a best combination of screen recording and video editing. It's more than a simple screen recorder, but gives you the tools you need to truly customize and edit your videos. This is the most professional and the best of these three screen recorders, but also costs the most, about 100 US dollars.
Our Top Picks![]() Best for Professionals: Snagit
Long the gold standard in screen capture software, Snagit remains popular with corporate customers due to its powerful features and simple usability.
Available for MacOS and Windows, Snagit is an attractive app that's easy to get to grips with. A small control panel at the top of the screen lets you start a screen capture or change settings, or you can also press the PrtScr button or a user-defined hotkey instead.
A timer of up to 60 seconds makes it easier to grab menus and tooltips in your screenshots, and the clipping tool itself has advanced features like forcing the aspect ratio and scrolling around the highlighted area to help capture the exact part you need.
The editor has dozens of useful tools like callouts, blur, arrows, and more. Creating screen recordings is as straightforward as capturing static images, and you can easily create videos and animated GIFs straight from the app.
Sharing can be done in a multitude of ways, including cloud storage and direct integration with Microsoft Office apps.
Best Video Capture Software For Mac Os X
While Snagit is more expensive than most of the competition, if you're regularly taking and sharing screenshots and recordings, especially in a business environment, the extras are likely well worth the money.
Best for Capturing Web Pages: Fireshot
Grabbing a quick screen capture is easy when everything fits on one screen, but what if it doesn't? Web pages are a prime example—it's painful and time-consuming to keep taking screenshots as you scroll down the page, and then try to combine them all into one long image at the end.
A few of the better screen capture tools automate this process, and one of our favorites is Fireshot. Running in Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Internet Explorer, and other browsers, Fireshot makes it quick and easy to capture as much or as little of a web page as you need.
You can edit and annotate the captured page, save it as a .PDF or various image types, and share it via email, cloud storage such as Google Drive and Dropbox, or tools like Evernote.
Most people will get by just fine with the free Lite or Standard versions of the app, but more advanced features are available in the paid Pro version.
Best for Flexibility: Screenshot Captor
Taking partial or full-screen screenshots is one thing, but how about grabbing the content from your webcam, scanner, or any scrolling window? Screenshot Captor is one of the very few apps that can do the latter, but the features don't stop there.
Best Video Capture App For Windows 10
You can automate several aspects of the capture process, including creating file names, uploading to image hosting services, and more. This is particularly useful if you need to capture many screenshots in a row—with a little setup, the software will manage everything behind the scenes and stay out of your way.
Screenshot Captor sits in the taskbar when not in use, and you can activate it with a range of hotkeys or by clicking on the icon. Annotation and enhancement tools are built in, with useful extras like watermarking and easily blacking out usernames and passwords.
This Windows-only tool is supported by donations rather than ads, although you'll need to request a free license key to get started.
Best for Automation: ShareX
When it comes to screen capture software, there's plenty to like about ShareX. As well as being free and open source, this Windows app is packed full of useful tools. As long as you can work your way around the slightly messy interface, you'll find pretty much every feature you could hope for buried somewhere in ShareX.
There are over a dozen different capture techniques, including choosing specific monitors, windows, and regions, with a variety of shapes available so you can grab the exact area you need. Several annotations and editing tools let you crop and pixelate the image, and add shapes, text, and more.
ShareX's automation features are particularly strong, letting you do anything from copying, uploading, and watermarking captured images to uploading them to 30+ destinations, then shortening and sharing the resulting link. If you have a particular workflow that you like to use for your screen captures or recordings, there's a good chance the app can accommodate it. Powerful, free, and regularly updated for over a decade, ShareX is well worth trying out.
Best for Optical Character Recognition (OCR): Screenpresso
There aren't many screen capture tools that include optical character recognition (OCR), but it's a useful feature. Screenpresso Pro lets you analyze any image you've captured for words and letters, and turn them into editable text.
The Windows software has many other features as well and represents good value for a lifetime license. Screenpresso Pro can capture static images and video, including both what's on the screen and what is being recorded via webcam. It's also possible to connect an Android device to the computer and record what is happening on it—an unusual and useful option.
An image editor is built into the app, which lets you add effects and watermarks as well as perform other standard editing tasks. A video editing tool is also included, but it's quite basic—you'll likely need to use something else for all but the simplest tasks.
Once you're done, it's straightforward to save and share on a variety of platforms, including Dropbox, Evernote, Google Drive, and social media.
If you don't need the features of the Pro version, a basic free option is also available, limited to image captures and watermarked video only.
Best Inbuilt Option (Windows): Snipping Tool
If you only have basic screen capture requirements, you may not need to download or install anything at all. Since Windows Vista, Microsoft's operating system has included the 'Snipping Tool,' a basic screen capture utility.
It doesn't have all the bells and whistles of some of the dedicated apps mentioned above but is fine for capturing the contents of application windows, rectangular, or free-form areas. You can set a delay of between one and five seconds, and basic editing tools like pens and highlighters are included.
When you're happy with the image, you can save it as a PNG, JPG, or GIF file, or send it by e-mail. It's also possible to copy the screenshot and paste it into your editing app of choice, or open it directly in Paint or Paint 3D, depending on your version of Windows.
To use the Snipping Tool, press the Windows key, type 'snipping,' and click the app icon. For even more basic screen capturing, press the Print Screen button on your keyboard to capture the entire screen, Alt-Print Screen to capture the active app window, or the Windows key and S to select a rectangular area.
Best Built-In Option (Mac): Screenshot
Ever wondered why there aren't many good screen capture apps for MacOS? The answer is simple: because Apple's inbuilt version already does most of the things you need.
If you're running at least OS X Mojave, pressing the Command, Shift, and 5 keys simultaneously opens up Screenshot, a more-than-useful screen capture utility. A small toolbar at the bottom of the screen lets you select from full-screen, window, or rectangular area screenshots, as well as recording full-screen or windowed video.
If that's not enough, the Options menu lets you set a capture timer (five or ten seconds), choose whether to show the mouse pointer in the captured image, pick a save location, and more.
Other keyboard shortcuts are available, which also work on earlier versions of MacOS. Try Command — Shift — 3 to capture the entire screen, Command — Shift — 4 to capture an app window or selected area, or Command — Shift — 6 to grab a screenshot of the touchbar if your Mac has one.
Once the image is captured, you can click on it to get basic editing options, do nothing to let it save to the default location, or press Control and click it to do things like choosing an app to open it with.
Our writers spent 9 hours researching the most popular screen capture software on the market. Before making their final recommendations, they considered 12 different software overall, read over 15 user reviews (both positive and negative), and tested 3 of the software themselves. All of this research adds up to recommendations you can trust.
The Rundown
Our Top PicksBest From Hobbyist to Pro: Final Cut Pro X
If you want a video editing software that you can use even if you don’t have much experience (and you plan on growing as a video editor while using it), then Final Cut Pro X is well worth your consideration. It may take a few tutorial videos to really get yourself ready to start doing much, but once you get your feet wet, you can do basic editing and learn more and more advanced tricks over time.
While Final Cut Pro X is a professional video editing tool, it’s approachable enough for hobbyist videographers to get on board with. And it has a bit more reasonable price than some of the other serious pro video editing software. As a pro software, it comes packed with handy features to help you realize your vision.
The latest version of Final Cut Pro X has the multi-track timeline needed for editing but brings in the future of video and pro features. It supports 360-degree video, graphics, and effects. You can edit together video from multi-cam recording setups and easily switching between multiple angles. And, you can create HDR content. That’s just the tip of the iceberg.
Apple offers a free trial so you can see if this one is up your alley before you dive all the way in.
Most Accessible Apple editor: Apple iMovie
If you really just want to get started editing videos on your Mac, or even on your iPhone or iPad, then the easiest way is to get Apple iMovie. This is Apple’s free video editing software, and it runs on both Mac OS and iOS platforms, so you can do you video editing just about wherever you go.
For hobbyist and amateur filmmakers, Apple iMovie will have approachable tools to help you easily take your footage and edit a video with a clear flow. You’ll be able to combine multiple video files, layer different video and audio tracks, and add title screens to your video without much fuss. It even includes video filters and some special effects, including picture-in-picture.
The latest version of Apple iMovie keeps up with the trends in video, supporting 4K video editing. So, all that 4K video you capture on your iPhone can be turned into a movie in iMovie. If you haven’t done video editing before, this is a good place to get started before moving on to more serious software.
Best for Pros: Adobe Premiere Pro CC
Adobe’s Premiere Pro CC (Creative Cloud) software is a powerful video editor for professionals putting out movies, short films, and the like. Of course, it’s also a viable option for hobbyists looking to sharpen their teeth on a video editor that gets used in professional positions. If you’re not trying to go professional with your editing quite yet, you may want to check out the next pick.
Adobe Premiere Pro CC is a constantly evolving video editing software, as Adobe rolls out updates over time. Rather than buying a single edition of the software, you pay for a subscription as long as you’re using it. An added perk is that the software isn’t exclusive to Mac, so you can switch between different computers with different operating systems if you need to.
That subscription gives you access to Premiere Pro for editing all sorts of video, from 3D and even 8K. You’ll also be able to handle audio tracks, add graphics, manage light and color, and effectively put together whatever video you can imagine. If you use Adobe’s other software, like Photoshop or Illustrator, then Premiere Pro will be a great option for easily integrating different workflows.
Easiest-to-Use Cross-Platform Editor: Adobe Premiere Elements 2018![]()
Adobe Premiere Elements 2018 is almost exactly what it sounds like. It’s a stripped down version of the pro Premiere software. This does make it a little less capable, and new features aren’t constantly rolling out to it, but it works as an easily approachable video editing software for those just getting started. And, without a subscription model, you can pay for the software once and you’re set.
If you’re an amateur just getting started with video editing, and especially if you’re not planning on going pro, then Premiere Elements 2018 will be an excellent pick for you. While Premiere Elements does give you plenty of tools for putting together multiple video, image, and audio files into one complete video, it also has some tools to help you make a better video if you’re not a savvy editor already. Plus, the software is available on both Mac and PC.
Premier Elements 2018 helps you organize the files you’ll be using in your video, and it can guide you through the editing process from beginning to end. It will also let you add in some fun little effects to spice up your video. And, in keeping with the times, it supports 4K video.
Best Open-Source Software: Shotcut
Shotcut is highly versatile free video editing software available on Mac and PC. Once you get past the somewhat steep learning curve, you’ll find you can do quite a lot with Shotcut. And, since it’s a free software, you have the option of seeing whether or not you like it without having to pay a cent.
Shotcut is a multi-track editing software like any other serious software, and you can readily rearrange the workspace to suit your editing needs. Shotcut supports a wide variety of file types for both input and output, including 4K video. Plus, you can edit audio, color, and lighting effects in Shotcut.
Though Shotcut isn’t the easiest software to just pick up and start editing videos with, the nature of being a free software means plenty of people are using it and making incredibly helpful tutorial videos or guides on how to use it. And, if you want a readily portable option, Shotcut is it, since you can run it directly off an external storage drive.
Best Starter Freeware: Lightworks
Lightworks blends the offerings of a free editing software with a paid one. Compared to Shotcut, it has an easier learning curve, but some of the features that you’ll want may be part of the paid Lightworks Pro version, such as the ability to export your final product in more video formats and higher resolutions.
Whether or not you need the free or paid versions is a question you can answer for yourself later on though, as either will let you import a wide range of file formats, easily edit together multiple files, manage your audio, add titles, and tweak your visuals.
The free version of Lightworks will be a fine option for anyone who isn’t concerned much about video resolution, as you’ll still be able to output web-ready 720p videos. But, if you try out Lightworks, like how it works, and want to stick with it as your video editor of choice, you can upgrade to the Pro software and start putting out high-quality video. Plus, Lightworks is available on Windows, Mac, and Linux, so you’ll be able to stick with Lightworks even if you stop using a Mac later on.
Best Freeware: DaVinci Resolve 15
If you’re ready to get started editing all kinds of videos and putting out the final product in a high-quality, 4K format without having to pay a cent to do so, then DaVinci Resolve 15 is a great option. While there is a paid Studio version, you’ll really only need to go with that if you’re planning to do some collaboration or want access to a few of the software’s more advanced tools and effects.
For the most part, DaVinci Resolve 15 is going to give you plenty of functionality to take your footage, organize it with data to help you find what you need, and edit it all together. Best mac apps for school assignments. Once you’re done, you can output in just about any format you need, whether you want the highest quality or something that’s ready to upload quickly to YouTube.
Best Video Capture App For Mac
If you want a video editing software you can get serious with, then DaVinci Resolve 15 fits the bill. It’s just a bonus that the free version is so capable because it’ll give you a chance to try it for yourself and see if it feels like something you can really use.
Best for Tutorial and Presentation Videos: Camtasia
Camtasia is particularly handy if you’re planning to make videos that will use footage captured from your computer screen. That’s because it’s a screen recorder and video editor built into one product.
With Camtasia, you’ll be able to record the screen and audio of your computer or even your iOS device. If you’re putting together tutorial videos, this capability will be incredibly useful. Plus, you have the option of adding webcam footage on top of the screen-captured video.
Free App For Mac
Beyond screen-capture, Camtasia also gives you multi-track timeline editing and tools for transitions, animations, audio and video effects, and annotations. If you want to make a presentation video, you can also add in a PowerPoint. So, whether you’re an educator, business professional, or just trying to put some tutorials up on YouTube, Camtasia offers tools you can use to capture and edit the video you need. A free trial will give you a chance to see if its tool and features a good fit for you.
What to Look for in Video Editing Software for a Mac
Free vs. paid - If you’re a beginner just dipping your toes into the world of video editing, a free software program is probably your best bet. If you have more advanced needs, you’ll likely need to pay to access the features you’ll need. However, most software programs have free trials that let you try them before you buy them.
File compatibility - Before you commit to a new program, make sure it’s compatible with the type of video you’ll be shooting. While some programs support 4K video, others don’t, and yet others will support 3D and 4K. Be sure to consider both the input and output formats you’ll need.
Extra features - Most video editing programs can handle the basics—merging clips, adding transitions, and laying down audio—but the extra features are what will take your video from amateur to expert. Look for handy features like multi-track timelines, filters, special effects, and more.
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