The best clipping and screenshot programs for Windows

Definitely one of the most useful features that is usually not talked about much in Windows is the power feature. take screenshots. This can be of great help when you’re trying to highlight a piece of content that’s displayed on the screen, or to show how you’ve set up a section, for example. Although, if you like editing, we have a list of the best video maker with photos and music.

For this reason, we have set ourselves the task of compiling a list of the best programs that allow you to take clippings and screenshots, which are free and you can install on your windows computer. But if you need to get remote access to your computer for some reason, we have a post where we will tell you which programs are the best.

In this post, we will show you the best alternatives that you should be aware of, especially if you often need to make screen cutouts. But we will turn not only to third-party programs, but also to official alternative offered by Microsoft with the operating system.

The best programs for creating clippings and screenshots

With these tools, you can easily take screenshots in Windows.

• Cutout and Sketch
• ShareX
• PeakPeak
• green shot
• light shot
• Screenshot
• Screen recording

Before choosing any of these alternatives that we have selected, it is important that you know all of its features as some of them include features such as Hotkeys to make captures right away, you should see how they are optimized, and also whether it allows make a simple edit before saving the cut, among other features we’ll talk about next.

Cutout and Sketch

Microsoft also has its own screenshot tool.

To begin with, we’ll focus on the tool that Microsoft integrates into Windows for taking screenshots, which is quite complete and ideal for most uses.

At first it was a tool called “Scissors”, but over time will change its name to “Cutout and Sketch”. But this is not only a change in the nomenclature, but also its updating, the addition of various new functions.

The first thing we should note is that it allows you to make custom screen cutouts, as in square and round format, as well as make a full capture. But that’s not all, because it has a built-in cut programming function that you can delay for 3-10 seconds and it will be performed automatically after this time.

As soon as you take a picture, a quick image editing window will immediately open, allowing you to add arrows and any element to highlight certain parts of it. And, as if that weren’t enough, it allows you to activate the tool with a keyboard shortcut. WINDOWS + SHIFT + S.

As you can see, this is a very complete tool that will come in handy in most cases, especially because preinstalled in the operating system. But if you prefer other options, we have several alternatives.

ShareX

Without a doubt, ShareX is one of the most popular screenshot tools.

Continuing the list, we must mention ShareX, which is considered by many to be one of the best screen cutting software. Again, this is a free tool that you can install without problems. Also, it’s open sourceso that all users can view your code and even change it.

It should be noted that the visual interface of this program is not the most attractive or modern of all, but in terms of how it works, it is very perfect. The first thing to note is that unites several segments of workwhich you can view and customize to your liking.

ShareX allows you to take full-screen screenshots, as well as individual areas of the interface and even windows that are detected when they are launched. And once it has a cutout it opens simple edit windowwhich offers the possibility of drawing, adding arrows and various elements to attract attention.

Its editing section is very complete, as it even lets you blur certain areas, highlight other elements, and more. But besides this, also allows access to OCR functions for text recognition on screenshots. Without a doubt, one of the most complete.

You also need to know what it allows record videos and make gifs what is displayed on the screen. But once you have a picture, you can upload it directly to the cloud or share it on various social networks.

PeakPeak

This is one of the best screen cutting apps.

The main thing that a slicing program should comply with is that it be easy to use and PicPick does it very well..

It, like the rest of the programs on the list, was made to create clippings and screenshots, but it takes it one step further as it integrates a fairly complete image editor to do the job afterward. And, as a curious detail, said the editor has an aesthetic similar to the mythical Paint, although it surpasses it in functions.

PeakPeak offers a catalog of possibilities During slicing, it is very diverse, as it is able to take not only full-screen shots, but also individual sections, in active windows, and much more. All this can be configured directly from the program.

Later, when you made the grab, image editor opens, which allows you to highlight crop areas, add text, arrows, and more. In addition, it allows you to apply more professional effects such as blur, shadows, add watermarks and much more.

When you’ll end up editing the capture, you have the option to share it through various social media platforms or even send it via email. And you can customize its settings by adding shortcuts.

green shot

Greenshot is a free and open source screenshot tool.

Definitely a mix between powerful engine with OCR technology and a screenshot program would be an interesting and useful idea. Thus was born Greenshot, one of the most popular free alternatives.

In fact, one of the most important points of Greenshot is that allows text recognition it’s on the screen when you take a screenshot. Users can then convert from image to text faster and easier. This sets it apart from other good alternatives.

But Greenshot much more than your OCR engine, as it also allows you to take screenshots in different formats, be it full screen, specific areas, and more. The image editor then launches so you can annotate and highlight what interests you.

It’s also important to note that while Greenshot is a tool that you can install for free on Windows, its version for Apple computers is paid. You can find it directly in the App Store of your macOS and buy for $1.99.

And if you ask us if it’s worth buying, the truth is that yes, because it’s very well optimized, which means that will work fast for you to grab. You can also customize its settings, and of course we highlight its OCR engine.

light shot

Lightshot is a lightweight and fast clipping program.

Many users are simply looking for a screen capture program that is lightweight, doesn’t take up much disk space, and consume computer resources in the background. And if this is your case, then you should definitely try LightShot.

This is a free download tool that you can find for both Windows and macOS computers. Although, if you wish, you can select extension for the most popular browsers.

Like the rest of the programs on this list, you can take clippings and screenshots in LighShot, but always prioritize execution speed and the process is simple. We also have to highlight its image editor which is very complete and when you are done adding annotations or elements to highlight the capture area you can choose whether you want it to be uploaded to the cloud it offers or if you prefer share it with someone.

Screenshot

If you’re looking for a simple yet effective screenshot tool, then Screenshoter might be for you.

Not all clipping programs try to be pretentious in their functionality. In fact, tools like Secreesother stand out mainly for their simplicity.

If you are looking for a screen capture program, you can take a look at this alternative which stands out for its simplicity. However, because of this, its settings section is severely limited.

But if this is not a problem for you, then this is a good tool that allows you to choose Do you want to capture the entire screen? or, instead, from certain areas. You can then choose if you want the image to be saved in one of the most popular formats such as PNG, JPG or BMP.

Them download and install for free and its main strength, as we have already mentioned, is simplicity. So it might be one of the best programs you can use to take screenshots.

Screen recording

This application will allow you not only to take a screenshot, but also to record what is displayed

While it is true that ScreenRec is a program that stands out for its content recording function which is displayed on the screen, it also has a section that allows you to take screenshots.

ScreenRec has a function take screenshots and then open the image editor to add text boxes, arrows to point to the areas you want to draw attention to, change the color, and more. We can say that this is a fairly complete editor.

But, in addition to that, it also allows you to share them through various means. Definitely, ScreenRec is one of the best apps on this list because it not only provides the ability to take screenshots and edit them like the rest, but goes further and has a screen recording tool.

The latter can be very helpful to help someone set something up, as you can record how you do it and send it to them. Although its main use is usually to record games in PC games.

Without a doubt, one of the best tools and it’s absolutely free, something positive. considering all its functions. What are you waiting to try? It is available for Windows, macOS and Linux.