CleanShot X Review, Pricing & Features

CleanShot X is a Mac screenshot and screen recording app with annotation, scrolling capture, GIF recording, and optional cloud sharing tools.

Category
Photo Editing
Pricing
One-time purchase + optional subscription (Cloud), from $29 one-time
Verified
Not yet
Last updated
July 18, 2026
TemplatesMac

Overview

CleanShot X is a macOS-only screenshot and screen-recording app created by developer Luke Oslizlo and a small team based in Poland. It's designed as a more capable replacement for macOS's built-in capture tools, adding annotation, scrolling capture, OCR, and screen recording in a single app.

The app has built a strong following among Mac users through word of mouth, reviews, and its presence in the Setapp app bundle, despite the company not publishing formal corporate history or funding details.

Key Features

Core capture features include a floating quick-access overlay after each screenshot, extensive annotation tools, automatic scrolling capture for full pages or long documents, and built-in OCR to extract text from an image.

Screen recording can be saved as a video file or an optimized GIF, and the app can automatically hide desktop icons and clutter so captures look clean without manual setup.

AI-assisted features include a smart blur tool that automatically detects and redacts sensitive data like emails, credit card numbers, and tokens, AI-generated alt text for accessibility, and a 'clean up' tool for removing background clutter from a screenshot.

Pricing

The core CleanShot X app is sold as a one-time $29 lifetime license per Mac, including one year of free updates, with an optional $19/year renewal to keep receiving updates after that.

CleanShot Cloud, the optional sharing and hosting service, includes a Basic tier (1GB storage) bundled with the app purchase and a Pro tier at $8/month billed annually ($10/month billed monthly) adding unlimited storage, custom domain branding, password-protected links, and team features. CleanShot X is also available through the Setapp app bundle.

Key Features

Pros & Cons

Pros

  • One-time purchase option instead of a mandatory subscription for the core app
  • Extensive annotation and AI-assisted editing tools beyond macOS's default screenshot tool
  • Scrolling capture and OCR built directly into the app
  • 30-day money-back guarantee reduces purchase risk

Cons

  • Mac-only; no Windows version
  • No official company background or founding date published
  • Unlimited cloud storage and team features require an ongoing Cloud Pro subscription
  • Update access beyond the first year requires an annual renewal fee

Pricing

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does CleanShot X cost?

The core Mac app is a one-time $29 lifetime license per Mac, including one year of free updates, with an optional $19/year renewal for continued updates.

Is CleanShot X available on Windows?

No, CleanShot X is built exclusively for macOS and requires macOS 10.15 or newer.

What is CleanShot Cloud?

CleanShot Cloud is an optional hosting and sharing service for screenshots, GIFs, and videos, with a Basic tier bundled into the app purchase and a paid Pro tier for unlimited storage and team features.

Is there a free trial of CleanShot X?

There is no dedicated standalone free trial, but purchases are covered by a 30-day money-back guarantee, and the app can also be tried through a Setapp subscription trial.

Who makes CleanShot X?

CleanShot X is developed by Luke Oslizlo and a small team based in Poland; the company does not publish detailed corporate background information.

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