What is the best free screenshot tool? It depends on your platform and what you do next
There isn't one best free screenshot tool for everyone. There's a best one for your operating system, and a best one for what you do with the image after you capture it — quick sharing, heavy annotation, or nothing more than a region grab.
This guide compares the two tools that dominate search results for this question — ShareX and Greenshot — against the built-in tools already on your computer, plus Mac, Linux, and browser-based options neither of those two pages mentions.
Quick answer, for skimmers
- Windows, want the most features: ShareX
- Windows, want something simpler: Greenshot
- Windows, just need a fast region capture and don't want to install anything: the built-in Snipping Tool
- Mac: the built-in capture shortcut (Cmd+Shift+4), no install needed
- Chromebook: the built-in screenshot tool
- Linux: your desktop environment's built-in capture tool, or an open-source utility built for Linux
- No installs allowed, any platform: a browser-based capture tool
How we judged "best"
Five things decide which free screenshot tool is actually best for a given person:
- Cost — genuinely free, or free with limits that show up later
- OS support — does it run on your actual machine
- Editing — can you annotate, crop, or mark up the image after capture
- Sharing — can you upload or share directly from the tool
- Capture modes — region, window, and full-screen, at minimum
A tool that nails editing but only runs on one OS isn't "the best" for someone on a different machine. That's the gap in most existing write-ups on this topic: they review one tool in isolation instead of against what else is available.
ShareX (Windows)
ShareX is free and open source. It covers region, window, and full-screen capture, includes a built-in image editor for annotation and markup, and supports uploading or sharing captures directly from the app.
It's built for people who want more control: more capture modes, more editing options, more destinations for where a screenshot goes after it's taken. That depth is also the tradeoff — it has more settings and screens to learn than a tool built for one quick job.
Who it's for: Windows users who take a lot of screenshots and want one tool that handles capture, editing, and sharing without switching apps.
Limits: Windows only. No Mac, Linux, or browser version.
Greenshot (Windows)
Greenshot is also free and open source, and covers the same core ground: region, window, and full-screen capture, an image editor, and upload or sharing options.
Where it differs from ShareX is simplicity. It's built around getting a screenshot, marking it up, and moving on — fewer settings, a smaller footprint, a shorter learning curve.
Who it's for: Windows users who want capture and basic annotation without a heavier feature set to configure.
Limits: Windows only, same as ShareX. If you need something beyond basic markup — more advanced editing, more capture options — ShareX covers more ground.
Built-in tools: Snipping Tool, macOS, and Chromebook
Before installing anything, check what's already on your machine. For a lot of people, it's enough.
- Windows Snipping Tool is built into Windows at no cost and handles basic region, window, and full-screen capture with simple markup. It won't match ShareX or Greenshot on editing depth or sharing options, but if you just need to grab something and paste it, there's no install required.
- macOS has a built-in capture shortcut — Cmd+Shift+4 — that lets you select a region to capture, with no app to download.
- Chromebooks include a built-in screenshot tool as part of Chrome OS, so there's no need to install anything separate there either.
If your use case is occasional, quick, low-stakes screenshots, a built-in tool is genuinely the best free option — not because it's the most capable, but because it's already there and does the job.
Mac and Linux options
Both pages currently ranking for this question are Windows-only, which leaves Mac and Linux users with no guidance at all.
On Mac, the built-in shortcut (Cmd+Shift+4) covers the basics for free. If you need more editing or annotation than that shortcut offers, look for a dedicated Mac screenshot app — but confirm what it actually includes before relying on it, since feature sets and pricing vary by app.
On Linux, the screenshot tool that ships with your desktop environment is usually enough for a quick capture, and it's free by default since it's part of the OS. Beyond that, there are open-source capture utilities built specifically for Linux; which one suits you depends on your desktop environment and how much editing you need, so it's worth checking a given tool's current feature list before installing.
Browser-based and lightweight options
If you don't want to install anything at all — maybe you're on a shared or locked-down machine — browser-based screenshot tools are the other option neither ranking page mentions. These typically run as an extension or web app, capture a page or region without a desktop install, and offer lighter editing than a full desktop tool like ShareX.
They trade some editing depth for convenience: no install, works across whatever OS you're on as long as you're using that browser, and you're up and running immediately. If your work is annotation-heavy or you need advanced editing, a dedicated desktop tool will still do more.
Free forever, or freemium in disguise?
This is the question neither ranking page actually answers: is "free" really free, or does it come with a catch later?
ShareX and Greenshot are both open source. That matters here specifically: the code itself is published and free to use, which is a structurally different arrangement from a closed-source app that's free to download but gates features, adds a watermark, or asks you to upgrade once you hit a limit. Open source tools in this category don't have a paid tier to upsell you into, because there isn't a separate paid version sitting behind the free one.
That's not true of every tool marketed as "free" screenshot software. Some are freemium — capped features or watermarks unless you pay. If you're looking at a tool outside this comparison, check its current pricing page before you install, rather than assuming "free" means no limits.
Is open source safer?
Open source code can be inspected by anyone, which is why security-conscious users treat it as a trust signal — nothing is hidden in a closed binary you can't review. That's a reasonable factor to weigh, but it isn't a guarantee on its own. If safety matters to your decision, look at how actively a tool is maintained and what others say about it, rather than relying on "open source" alone as proof.
Comparison table
| Tool | Platform | Key features | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| ShareX | Windows | Region/window/full-screen capture, image editor, upload/sharing | Free, open source |
| Greenshot | Windows | Region/window/full-screen capture, image editor, upload/sharing | Free, open source |
| Windows Snipping Tool | Windows | Built-in capture, basic markup | Free, built into Windows |
| macOS shortcut (Cmd+Shift+4) | Mac | Built-in region capture | Free, built into macOS |
| Chromebook built-in tool | Chromebook | Built-in capture | Free, built into Chrome OS |
| Browser-based tools | Any (in-browser) | Lightweight capture, no install, lighter editing | Free (check the specific tool) |
| Linux built-in/open-source tools | Linux | Capture built into your desktop environment, or a dedicated open-source app | Free, open source (varies) |
Which one should you pick?
- You're on Windows and want the most capable free tool: ShareX
- You're on Windows and want something simpler: Greenshot
- You just need an occasional quick capture: your OS's built-in tool — Snipping Tool, Cmd+Shift+4, or your Chromebook's built-in option
- You're on Linux: start with your desktop environment's built-in tool, then look at a dedicated open-source app if you need more
- You can't or don't want to install anything: a browser-based tool
- You're turning raw screenshots into polished App Store or Google Play marketing images rather than just capturing your screen, that's a different job than any tool here is built for — these tools get you the raw image, and a dedicated app store screenshot tool like AppShots takes it from there.
FAQ
Is ShareX really free? Yes. It's free and open source, with no separate paid tier sitting behind the free version.
Is Greenshot safe? It's open source, meaning its code can be publicly inspected rather than hidden in a closed app. That's a reasonable trust signal, but confirm you're downloading it from its official source rather than a third-party mirror.
What's the best free screenshot tool for Mac? The built-in shortcut (Cmd+Shift+4) covers basic region capture for free with no install. For more editing than that, look at a dedicated Mac app and check its current features and pricing before relying on it.
Do I need ShareX or Greenshot if I already have the Windows Snipping Tool? Only if you need more than basic capture and markup — more capture modes, a fuller image editor, or direct upload and sharing options. For occasional quick screenshots, the built-in tool is enough.
Are browser-based screenshot tools as good as desktop tools? They're more convenient when you don't want to install anything, but they typically offer lighter editing than a dedicated desktop tool like ShareX. Which matters more depends on whether your work is quick captures or heavier annotation.