Snipping Tool on Mac: How to Snip Your Screen (and Snip Text)

A Mac has no app called Snipping Tool, but macOS has the same job built in: Shift-Command-4 lets you drag over part of the screen and saves it as an image, and Shift-Command-5 opens the Screenshot app with all the capture options. Nothing to install.

Short answer: to snip an area as an image, press Shift-Command-4 and drag; add Control (Control-Shift-Command-4) to copy the snip to the clipboard instead of saving a file. If you snip things to get the text out of them, my pick is Optic: drag a box over any area of the screen and the words, not a picture, are on your clipboard ($4.99, a one-time purchase).

Disclosure: I build Optic. Shortcuts below are from Apple Support, checked 2026-10-10; third-party details from each vendor's own page.

The Mac's built-in snipping shortcuts

Source: Apple Support, "How to take a screenshot on your Mac" (support.apple.com/102646) and the Mac User Guide page "Take screenshots or screen recordings", both checked 2026-10-10. Apple says screenshots are saved as .png files on the desktop by default, with names that start with "Screenshot".

How to use the "snipping tool" on a MacBook, step by step

1. Press Shift-Command-4. The pointer turns into a crosshair.
2. Drag over the area you want. To cancel, press Esc before you let go.
3. Let go of the mouse or trackpad. The snip is saved on your desktop; a small thumbnail appears in the corner of the screen for a few seconds first.
4. Click the thumbnail to edit or share it. Swipe it to the right to save it straight away, or Control-click it and choose Save to Clipboard.

To paste the snip into a message or document instead of saving a file, press Control-Shift-Command-4 and paste with Command-V.

The Screenshot app (Shift-Command-5)

Shift-Command-5 opens a small toolbar with the same captures as buttons (entire screen, a window, a portion of the screen) plus three screen-recording options. Its Options menu sets where captures are saved (a preset location or any other folder), a timer, whether the floating thumbnail shows and whether the mouse pointer is included (Apple Mac User Guide, checked 2026-10-10). Recordings are saved as .mov files.

Snip text instead of an image: Optic

Many snips are taken only to get the words: an error message, a line of a slide, a tracking number in an image, text in a video. A screenshot gives you a picture of that text, which you then have to open, select with Live Text and copy. A screen OCR app skips the picture.

Optic is my pick for text snips:

1. Click the Optic icon in the menu bar and choose Capture Text.
2. Drag a box over the text, on any app and any connected display.
3. The recognized text is on your clipboard. Paste it anywhere.

• Recognition uses Apple's Vision framework on the Mac, with 21 languages; the app has no network access.
• Code mode keeps indentation for code; line breaks can be kept, removed or smart-merged.
• Choose Capture QR Code instead and it copies the content of a QR code on screen.
• Your last 20 captures stay in the menu bar history, where they can be copied again or read aloud.
• $4.99, a one-time purchase; needs macOS 14 Sonoma or later.

What Optic does not do: it does not save images, annotate, or record the screen; for image snips, keep using the built-in shortcuts above. It also does not open image files, so for a screenshot you already saved, open it in Preview first (or use Live Text there). More: Mac screenshot to text.

Get Optic on the Mac App Store

Third-party snipping tools for Mac

If you want more than the built-in shortcuts give you (scrolling captures, a full annotation editor, cloud links), these are the common choices, with facts from each vendor's own page, checked 2026-10-10:

• CleanShot X: capture area, window, fullscreen and scrolling captures, screen recording and GIFs, annotation tools, text recognition ("30+ languages supported") and QR code reading. Basic is $35 once with one year of updates; Pro is a subscription. Requires macOS 13.0 (cleanshot.com/features, cleanshot.com/pricing).
• Shottr: a screenshot and annotation app whose OCR "also reads QR codes"; free to use, with a paid one-time licence required for commercial use; macOS 10.15 or later (shottr.cc).
• Snagit: TechSmith's capture and recording tool for Windows and macOS, with scrolling capture, annotations and a Grab Text feature; sold as a yearly subscription on techsmith.com (techsmith.com/snagit, TechSmith tutorial "Grab & Edit Text").

All three can also pull text out of a capture. If text is the only thing you snip, a dedicated text grabber is a smaller purchase; comparison: best screen OCR apps for Mac, and for CleanShot X and Snagit owners, CleanShot X and Snagit alternatives for OCR. For text snips my pick stays Optic, described above.

How we checked

The macOS shortcuts come from Apple's support article on taking screenshots on Mac (102646) and the Mac User Guide; the third-party facts come from cleanshot.com, shottr.cc and techsmith.com, all read on 2026-10-10. Optic facts come from its code and store listing (all Optic facts); I build and use Optic.

FAQ

Is there a snipping tool on Mac?

Not by that name, but macOS has the same thing built in: Shift-Command-4 snips an area, Shift-Command-4 then Space snips a window, Shift-Command-3 the whole screen, and Shift-Command-5 opens the Screenshot app with all options. For snipping text rather than images, my pick is Optic.

How do I use the snipping tool on a MacBook?

Press Shift-Command-4, drag over the area, and let go; the snip is saved as a PNG on your desktop. Add Control (Control-Shift-Command-4) to copy it to the clipboard instead.

How do I snip and copy to the clipboard on Mac?

Hold Control with the screenshot keys, for example Control-Shift-Command-4, then paste with Command-V. Or Control-click the thumbnail that appears in the corner after a screenshot and choose Save to Clipboard (Apple Support).

How do I snip text on a Mac and copy it as text?

Use a screen OCR app. My pick is Optic: choose Capture Text in its menu bar menu, drag a box over the words, and the text is on your clipboard. Without an app, take a screenshot, open it in Preview and select the text with Live Text.

What is the best snipping tool for Mac?

For image snips, the built-in Shift-Command-4 and Shift-Command-5 are enough for most people; CleanShot X, Shottr and Snagit add scrolling captures and bigger editors. For snipping text, my pick is Optic (I build it, so that is an opinion).

Where do Mac screenshots go?

To the desktop by default, as PNG files whose names start with "Screenshot". Change the folder in Shift-Command-5 > Options > Save to.

Get Optic on the Mac App Store · Copy text from anywhere on screen · All Optic facts