macshot

What is macshot?

macshot is a native macOS app for screenshots and screen recordings, written in Swift and available as an open-source project on GitHub. Memory usage sits at 8 MB RAM. That is not an approximate figure but a measurable difference from Electron-based competitors, which consume several times that amount. The app is free, contains no ads and has no subscription model.

Core features

• Annotation: Screenshots can be marked up directly with arrows, shapes and text, speeding up the workflow for bug reports or technical documentation.
• Scroll capture: macshot captures long web pages or documents as a single image, without manual stitching.
• OCR: The text recognition reads text from screenshots and makes it available for further processing.
• Automatic PII redaction: The tool detects email addresses, phone numbers and API keys and automatically pixelates them before a screenshot is shared.
• Screen recording with editor: Videos are produced as MP4 or GIF, optionally with system audio. A built-in editor allows direct trimming of the recording.
• Cloud upload: macshot uploads screenshots directly to various cloud services without requiring an external client.

Who is macshot for?

Developers benefit most from the automatic redaction. Anyone who shares screenshots regularly and has API keys or personal data in the frame would otherwise rely on manual review. That step disappears. Support teams and designers who deliver feedback with annotations find all the relevant tools in one app. Content creators producing GIFs for documentation can handle recording and editing without an additional tool.

The breadth of features comes at a cost. Opening macshot for the first time requires some time to work through scroll capture, the video editor, OCR and redaction options. This applies especially to users who have previously relied only on the macOS system dialog for screenshots.

Context & alternatives

macshot competes with tools such as CleanShot X and Shottr, which sit in the same category. CleanShot X is paid and comes with an actively maintained support channel. Shottr is also native and light on resources, but offers no built-in video editor. macshot covers the full range from annotation to GIF export in a single, free package. For those who also want to avoid proprietary software, it is the only open-source option in this direct comparison.