Frostshot vs the built-in macOS screenshot tool
Every Mac already takes screenshots: Shift-Command-3, Shift-Command-4, and the Screenshot app on Shift-Command-5. It’s free, it’s always there, and for an occasional shot it’s all you need. Frostshot is for when you capture many times a day and paste the result somewhere. Here’s an honest look at both.
The short answer
- Stay with the macOS tool if you take a screenshot now and then, need a timer, or want to record your screen.
- Pick Frostshot if you capture, mark up and paste all day, want to copy text straight from the screen, blur private details, or keep captures for later without a desktop full of files.
Side by side
| Feature | Frostshot | macOS screenshot tool |
|---|---|---|
| Area, window and full screen | Yes: ⌥⇧1, ⌥⇧2 and ⌥⇧3 | Yes: Shift-Command-4, Shift-Command-4 then Space, and Shift-Command-3 |
| Copy to the clipboard | Press Return after you capture | Add Control to the shortcut, or Control-click the thumbnail |
| Mark up | The tools rise under your selection, before you copy | Click the thumbnail to open it in Markup |
| Copy text from the screen | Copy Text (⌥⇧⌘T): drag over any text | Live Text, once the image is open in Preview or Quick Look |
| Blur private details | Blur tool, plus optional auto-blur of emails, API keys, phone and card numbers and IP addresses (off by default) | No automatic blur |
| Keep captures for later | Kept for Later in the notch, Recent Captures (⌥⇧H) and pins | Files on your desktop or in a folder you choose |
| Combine captures | Yes, plus Join seamlessly for two overlapping captures of one page | No |
| Timer | No | Yes |
| Screen recording | No | Yes |
| How you pay | Pay once, no subscription, on the Mac App Store | Included with macOS |
What Frostshot does differently
Return and it’s copied
Press ⌥⇧1 and drag. A glass island rises under your selection with the arrow, box, highlighter, text and blur tools. Press Return and the marked-up shot is on your clipboard, with no file left on your desktop.
Text, not a picture of text
Copy Text (⌥⇧⌘T) turns any text on screen into text on your clipboard, from a paused video, an error dialog or a PDF. Code keeps its indentation.
Private details can blur themselves
Turn on auto-blur and Frostshot finds emails, API keys, phone and card numbers and IP addresses in each capture and blurs them. It’s off by default and runs on your Mac.
A place for captures you’re not done with
Press ⌥Return and the capture slips into the notch, in Kept for Later, which never expires. What you copy or discard waits in Recent Captures (⌥⇧H), and a pin keeps a capture floating above every window.
What Frostshot doesn’t do
Frostshot has no timer and no screen recording. If you need either, the Screenshot app on Shift-Command-5 does both, and it’s already on your Mac.
FAQ
Is Frostshot better than the Mac screenshot tool?
It depends on how often you capture. For an occasional screenshot the built-in tool is enough. If you capture, mark up and paste many times a day, Frostshot saves steps.
Can the Mac screenshot tool copy to the clipboard?
Yes. Add Control to the shortcut, such as Control-Shift-Command-4, or Control-click the thumbnail and choose Save to Clipboard.
Can Frostshot record the screen?
No. Frostshot doesn’t record video. For screen recording, use the Screenshot app on Shift-Command-5.
Does Frostshot replace Shift-Command-4?
It can. Frostshot uses ⌥⇧1 by default, and every shortcut can be changed in Settings.
More comparisons and guides
Frostshot is coming soon to the Mac App Store, as a one-time purchase with no subscription. Try the island at frostshot.app and follow @frostshotapp for launch day.
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