What is macshot?
macshot is a screenshot and screen recording tool written in Swift and AppKit, which makes it the unusual one in its category: no Electron, no web views, no subscription. It covers the whole loop — capture, annotate with 19+ tools, record the screen at up to 120fps and edit the result in a built-in video editor, run OCR and translate the text, auto-redact personally identifiable information, stitch a scrolling capture, and dress a screenshot up with one of 30+ gradient backgrounds before sharing it. It is free and open source under GPL-3.0, lives in the menu bar, and is localised into 40 languages. The current stable release is 4.3.0; the 4.4.0 line is in beta.
Verified product facts
- Type
- screenshot toolEditorially reviewed
- Platform
- macOS
- Apple Silicon
- Yes
- Pricing
- Open sourceDeveloper-stated
- Open source
- Yes
- Developer
- sw33tLieDeveloper-stated
- Relationship to Nuanyue
- Third-party product — not published by NuanyueEditorially reviewed
- Licence
- GPL-3.0
- Current version
- 4.3.0Developer-stated
- Official website
- macshot.io
Last updated . Facts marked developer-stated come from the developer and are not independently confirmed; editorially reviewed marks a Nuanyue judgement.
Key features
What macshot does at a glance.
Area, window and fullscreen capture, run
From a menu bar app rather than a separate window
19+ annotation tools
Including shapes, arrows, text and a marker pen
Automatic redaction of personally identifiable information, so credentials and names are blurred without hunting for them
Screen recording
At up to 120fps, with a built-in video editor for trimming the result
OCR
Extracts text from a capture and can translate it
Scrolling capture
For assembling a long page or document into one image
Beautify
30+ gradient backgrounds and framing for presentable screenshots
Upload and share a capture directly
From the app
Written in Swift and AppKit
With no Electron or web views, so it starts and captures quickly
Localised
Into 40 languages
What you can use macshot for
- Annotating a screenshot for a bug report or a design review
- Sharing a screenshot that contains tokens, emails or names that must be redacted first
- Recording a short demo clip and trimming it without opening a video editor
- Pulling text out of an image, including text in another language
- Capturing a page longer than the screen in one image
Who is macshot for?
- Anyone who wants a screenshot tool with recording and editing built in rather than bolted on
- People who share screenshots containing sensitive data and need redaction to be automatic
- Users who would rather pay nothing and run open-source software than subscribe
Who is macshot not for?
- Anyone who needs plugin or workflow integration with a launcher such as Raycast or Alfred, which macshot does not advertise
- People on macOS 12.2 or earlier, since the current release requires macOS 12.3
- Users who want a cross-platform tool, as macshot is macOS only
Limitations
- Requires macOS 12.3 or later
- Version 4.4.0 is still in beta. The developer's signature changed at beta.3, so upgrading from 4.3.x or from beta.1/beta.2 can leave Screen Recording looking enabled while capture fails; the fix is to remove macshot in System Settings and add it back from Applications
- Licensed under GPL-3.0, which is a consideration for anyone redistributing it
- macOS only; the README lists no Windows or Linux build
- The App Store does not carry it, so installation and updates run through GitHub or the website
Strengths and trade-offs
What macshot does well, and what to weigh before choosing it. Points marked developer-stated come from the developer’s own material and have not been independently confirmed.
Strengths
- Free and open source under GPL-3.0, with no paid tier, subscription, account or telemetry.
- Native Swift and AppKit rather than Electron, so it is small and starts quickly.Developer-stated
- Screen recording includes a full video editor, so a clip can be trimmed without another app.Developer-stated
- Automatic PII redaction is unusual at any price, let alone free.Developer-stated
- Ships a universal build covering Apple Silicon and Intel, and is localised into 40 languages.
Trade-offs
- Requires macOS 12.3, so older Macs are out of support.
- The 4.4.0 line is still in beta, and upgrading to it from 4.3.x can break Screen Recording permissions until the app is removed and re-added.Developer-stated
- macOS only, and not on the App Store, so updates come from GitHub or the site.
First-use experience
What the app asks of you when you set it up. Only established facts appear here; anything we could not confirm is left out rather than guessed at.
- Installation
- Download MacShot.dmg from macshot.io or the GitHub releases page, open it and drag the app into Applications. An offline build is published alongside the standard one.
- First launch Developer-stated
- macshot asks for Screen Recording permission on first launch, and may also ask for Accessibility or Input Monitoring depending on which capture features you use.
- System integration Developer-stated
- Sits in the menu bar rather than the Dock, and registers the system permissions needed to capture the screen. It does not replace the system screenshot shortcuts unless you rebind them.
- Apple Silicon
- Supported
What it is
macshot is a screenshot and screen recording tool for macOS, and the first thing to say about it is what it is not: it is not an Electron app. The developer is explicit that it is pure Swift and AppKit, which is why it is small and why it starts and captures quickly. It lives in the menu bar and stays out of the way.
The second thing is the price. It is free and open source under GPL-3.0, with no subscription, no account and no telemetry. That is unusual for a tool that does this much.
What it does
The capture side is conventional: area, window, fullscreen. The interesting parts are what happens after. Recording goes up to 120fps and includes a video editor, so a short demo can be trimmed without opening anything else. OCR extracts text from a capture and can translate it. And PII redaction is automatic — it finds and blurs tokens, names and addresses, which is the kind of thing people otherwise do by hand before pasting a screenshot into a ticket.
Scrolling capture assembles a page taller than the screen into one image, and Beautify dresses a capture up with one of 30+ gradient backgrounds. Sharing is built in. There are 19+ annotation tools and the app is localised into 40 languages.
Requirements and the beta warning
The current stable release is 4.3.0, published 23 September 2026, and it requires macOS 12.3. There is a universal build for Apple Silicon and Intel, and an offline installer is published alongside the standard one.
Version 4.4.0 is in beta, and there is a specific warning attached to it. The app’s code signature changed at beta.3, so upgrading from 4.3.x — or from beta.1/beta.2 — can leave Screen Recording showing as enabled while capture silently fails. The developer’s fix is to remove macshot with the minus button in System Settings and add it back from Applications, then re-enable Accessibility or Input Monitoring if prompted. Settings, history and recordings survive.
macshot is not on the App Store, so installation and updates run through GitHub or macshot.io.
Release history
Dated releases recorded for macshot, newest first, each with the source it was read from.
4.3.0
Current stable release. The 4.4.0 line that follows it is still in beta.
Source: Source repository
4.2.1
Maintenance release on the 4.2 line, published a day after 4.2.0.
Source: Source repository
4.2.0
Feature release that followed a long beta series through June and July 2026.
Source: Source repository
Questions about macshot
Is macshot free?
Yes. It is free and open source under GPL-3.0, with no paid tier, subscription, account or telemetry.
Which macOS version does macshot need?
macOS 12.3 or later, according to the product site. The current release is 4.3.0, published on 23 September 2026.
Does macshot run natively on Apple Silicon?
Yes. The site states Apple Silicon and Intel support, and the release is a single universal build.
Should I upgrade to the 4.4.0 beta?
Only if you want the newest features. The developer warns that the app's code signature changed at beta.3, so upgrading from 4.3.x or from beta.1 or beta.2 can leave Screen Recording appearing enabled while capture fails. The fix is to remove macshot with the minus button in System Settings and add it back from Applications.Developer-stated
Is macshot built on Electron?
No. The developer states it is pure Swift and AppKit with no Electron and no web views, which is why it is small and fast compared with cross-platform screenshot tools.Developer-stated
What licence is macshot under?
GPL-3.0. That is a copyleft licence, which matters if you intend to redistribute it.
Competitors
Direct competitors: overlapping features aimed at the same users.
CleanShot X
Discover a superior way to capture your Mac's screen.
Both capture, annotate and share screenshots on macOS, but CleanShot X is a paid app with cloud hosting while macshot is free, open source and local.
Snipaste
Screenshot tool that pins captures as floating windows.
Both take and annotate screenshots with pinning, but Snipaste is closed source and charges for business use from version 2.0 while macshot is GPL-3.0 and free for all use.
Compared with
Head-to-head comparisons Nuanyue has published.
Shottr
Fast macOS screenshot and annotation tool with scrolling capture and OCR.
Both are Mac screenshot and annotation tools with scrolling capture and OCR, but macshot is GPL-3.0 and adds screen recording with a video editor, while Shottr is closed source with a paid commercial licence.
Links
Sources
Facts on this page are checked against the sources below. Last updated .
- macshot — official websiteGrade B
- sw33tLie — developer websiteGrade B
- macshot — source repositoryGrade D
