1.  [Clacky](https://clacky.app/)
2.  ›
3.  [A–Z](https://clacky.app/features/#a-z)
4.  ›
5.  [Answers](https://clacky.app/answers/)
6.  ›
7.  Shottr vs CleanShot X

Answer

# Shottr vs CleanShot X: which Mac screenshot app should you pick?

Pick Shottr if you want a small, fast screenshot tool you can use for free, with scrolling capture, text recognition, a ruler and a colour picker, and a $12 licence when you want the rest or use it for work. Pick CleanShot X if you also want screen recording with click highlights, keystrokes and a webcam, plus cloud share links, and you’re fine paying $35 once with a year of updates.

Both are Mac only and paid once at their base price. CleanShot X also has a Pro plan paid per user, monthly or yearly, and is sold through Setapp too.

[Try free for 3 days](https://clacky.app/try/)[Pricing](https://clacky.app/#pricing)

![Clacky’s Scrolling Capture at work: “Scrolling for you…”, 6,420 px so far, with Esc or Done to finish](https://clacky.app/features27/scrolling-capture-light.webp)![Clacky’s Scrolling Capture at work: “Scrolling for you…”, 6,420 px so far, with Esc or Done to finish](https://clacky.app/features27/scrolling-capture-dark.webp)

## Shottr and CleanShot X side by side

From each app’s own pages, read on 5 November 2026.

Shottr

CleanShot X

Ahead

Price

Free to use, Basic $12 once, Friends Club $30

Basic $35 once, Pro $10 per user a month billed yearly

Shottr

Updates

Not stated on its pricing page

1 year, then $19 a year if you want more

Unclear

Computers

One user, up to five computers

Extra seats in its License Manager

Shottr

Try first

Free, asks you to upgrade after 30 days

No trial, 30-day money-back

Shottr

macOS

10.15 Catalina or later

13 or later

Shottr

Screen recording

Not on its page

Yes: webcam, click highlights, keystrokes, MP4 or GIF

CleanShot X

Sharing

Upload to your own S3 storage (licence)

CleanShot Cloud links, comments, transcripts

CleanShot X

## Why pick Shottr

Shottr is a 2.4 MB download, optimized for Apple silicon. It does scrolling capture, text and QR code recognition, arrows, text, highlights, a spotlight, step counters, pixelate and object removal, a ruler with the arrow keys, a colour picker on Tab, overlays and pinned shots, and backgrounds with shadows and rounded corners. A licence is needed for commercial use, cloud upload and hiding the menu bar icon. It sends telemetry you can turn off in Preferences, and checks for updates on launch.

-   You mostly take screenshots and want them fast.
-   You want to pay little or nothing.
-   You’re on an older Mac (it runs from macOS 10.15).

## Why pick CleanShot X

CleanShot X covers screenshots and recordings in one app. It has scrolling capture, capture history, pinned shots, hiding desktop icons, markup with redaction, numbered steps and highlighted text, and 20 backgrounds. Its recorder adds a webcam bubble, click highlights, your keystrokes, voice and system audio, with Studio Mode for smart zooms and trimming. Text recognition runs on the Mac. CleanShot Cloud gives one-click links, comments, transcripts and, on the Pro plan, team sign-in with SSO and SCIM.

-   You record your screen as often as you capture it.
-   You share with a team and want links and comments.
-   You already pay for Setapp.

## A third option

Clacky’s screenshots (macOS 14 or later) have arrows, numbered steps, blur and a solid redact bar, Polish and Showcase frames, Scrolling Capture up to 20,000 pixels and Grab Text, and its recorder (macOS 15 or later) keeps live click sounds and ripples in the video. It costs $4.99 once with every update, after 3 days free. It has no cloud links. See [Clacky vs CleanShot X](https://clacky.app/vs/cleanshot-x/).

## Where these facts come from

Checked on 5 November 2026. Prices are in US dollars, before tax. Apps change, so check each page before you buy.

-   Shottr: [shottr.cc](https://shottr.cc) and [pricing](https://shottr.cc/purchase.html)
-   CleanShot X: [cleanshot.com](https://cleanshot.com) and [pricing](https://cleanshot.com/pricing)

## Questions

### Is Shottr free?

Yes, you can use it for free as long as you like. After 30 days it asks you to consider buying a licence, and a licence is required for commercial use.

### Does CleanShot X have a free trial?

No. It has a 30-day money-back guarantee instead, and it is also included in Setapp, which has its own free trial.

### Can Shottr record the screen?

Its site lists screenshot tools only. For recording, CleanShot X, QuickTime or Clacky’s recorder do it.

### Which one copies text from the screen?

Both. Shottr reads text and QR codes from an area, and CleanShot X recognizes text on the Mac. Clacky’s Grab Text does it too with Option-Shift-Command-T.

Facts checked on 5 November 2026.

## Related

-   [Clacky vs CleanShot XClacky vs CleanShot X for Mac: screen recording, captions, quick edits, screenshots, Grab Text, click sounds and price. A fair, sourced comparison.](https://clacky.app/vs/cleanshot-x/)
-   [Is the built-in Mac screenshot tool enough?For everyday shots, yes. It has no blur or redact bar, numbered steps, backgrounds or scrolling capture. Here is what it does and when you need more.](https://clacky.app/answers/mac-screenshot-tool-enough/)
-   [Scrolling CapturePick a window and Clacky scrolls it for you, stitching one tall image of the whole page.](https://clacky.app/features/scrolling-capture/)
-   [Screenshot editorGrab an area, a window or the whole screen. Mark it up with arrows, steps, text and blur, then copy or save.](https://clacky.app/features/screenshot-editor/)
-   [Copy text from an image or video on a MacUse Live Text: open the image in Preview or Photos, drag across the text, Control-click and choose Copy Text. For any screen, Clacky’s Grab Text is ⌥⇧⌘T.](https://clacky.app/answers/copy-text-from-image-mac/)
-   [Is QuickTime enough for screen recording?For quick silent recordings, yes. Before macOS 27 it can’t record Mac sound, and it has no pause, camera bubble or captions. Here is when you need more.](https://clacky.app/answers/quicktime-enough-for-screen-recording/)

[A–Z](https://clacky.app/features/#a-z)[Pricing](https://clacky.app/#pricing)[Every feature](https://clacky.app/features/)

## Make something on your Mac today.

3 days free, every feature. Then $4.99 once.

[Try free for 3 days](https://clacky.app/try/)
