Greenshot is a powerful, free, and lightweight screenshot tool designed to make screen capturing effortless. Whether you need to capture an entire screen, a specific window, or a selected region, Greenshot provides a fast and efficient solution. With built-in annotation, editing, and sharing features, it’s perfect for professionals, educators, and everyday users. The tool also integrates seamlessly with cloud services, making it easy to store and share your screenshots instantly. In this guide, we’ll explore how Greenshot can enhance your workflow and simplify your screen capture needs.
Table of Contents
Features of Greenshot Screenshot Tool
Following are the key features of Greeenshot tool.
✅ Fast and Flexible Screen Capture
- Capture the entire screen, a specific window, or a selected region with ease.
🎨 Built-in Annotation & Editing Tools
- Add text, arrows, highlights, and shapes to enhance your screenshots instantly.
📋 Quick Copy to Clipboard
- Copy screenshots directly to the clipboard for easy pasting into emails, documents, or chat apps.
💾 Multiple Save Options
- Save captured images in various formats like PNG, JPG, BMP, and GIF.
🌐 Seamless Cloud & Online Sharing
- Upload screenshots to cloud services, attach them to emails, or share them via direct links.
🔍 Optical Character Recognition (OCR) Support
- Extract text from images using OCR for quick text copying and editing.
⌨️ Customizable Hotkeys
- Assign custom keyboard shortcuts for faster and more efficient screen capturing.
🔥 Lightweight & Resource-Friendly
- Runs smoothly in the background without slowing down your system.
🔄 Easy Integration with Third-Party Apps
- Directly export screenshots to Microsoft Office, Jira, Confluence, and other productivity tools.
Getting Started with Greenshot
Quick Facts
Website: https://getgreenshot.org/
Supported Operating System
- Windows
- Mac OS
How to Download and Install Greenshot?
You can download Greenshot from its official downloads page.
Step 1: Download Greenshot
Visit the official website of Greenshot and download the compatible version of Greenshot as per your Operating System.
Step 2: Install Greenshot
Once the download is complete, run the installer and follow the on-screen instructions to install Greenshot on your device. This will ask you for selecting the components to install along with Greenshot. If you are not sure, let the default components be installed.
Step 3: Launch Greenshot
Once the installation is complete, Greenshot will use the Print Screen key by default for taking screenshot of the screen.
How to Take Screenshots with Greenshot
1️⃣Use Keyboard Shortcuts to Capture Screenshots
- Capture Full Screen: Press
Print Screento capture the entire screen. - Capture a Selected Region: Press
Shift + Print Screen, then click and drag to select an area. - Capture a Specific Window: Press
Alt + Print Screenand click on the window you want to capture. - Capture the Last Selected Region: Press
Ctrl + Print Screento repeat your last screenshot selection.
2️⃣ Edit and Annotate the Screenshot (Optional)
- Once captured, the image can be opened in Greenshot’s built-in editor.
- Use annotation tools like text, arrows, highlights, and shapes to enhance your screenshot.
3️⃣ Save or Share Your Screenshot
- Save the screenshot in formats like PNG, JPG, BMP, or GIF.
- Copy it to the clipboard (
Ctrl + C) for quick pasting. - Directly upload to cloud services or send via email.
Greenshot Context Menu
When Greenshot starts (upon windows launch or manually started by user), it sits in the system tray. If you will right click the Greenshot icon in the system tray, you will see the following context menu.
Understanding the Greenshot Context Menu
The Greenshot Context Menu provides quick access to essential features and settings, allowing users to customize and manage their screenshot-taking experience effortlessly.
Key Options in the Greenshot Context Menu
✅ Capture Region – Lets you manually select a portion of the screen to capture.
✅ Capture Last Region – Quickly re-captures the last selected area without reselecting it.
✅ Capture Window – Allows you to take a screenshot of an active or specific window.
✅ Capture Full Screen – Instantly captures the entire screen.
✅ Open Image from Clipboard – Opens a copied image directly in the Greenshot Editor for annotation.
✅ Open Image from File – Load an image file into Greenshot Editor for further editing.
✅ Preferences – Access settings to customize hotkeys, output formats, capture behavior, and integrations.
✅ Help & About – Provides information about Greenshot, including documentation and version details.
✅ Exit Greenshot – Closes Greenshot, removing it from the system tray until restarted.
The Greenshot Context Menu is a convenient way to manage screenshots efficiently, ensuring a faster and more productive screen capture experience.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1️⃣ How do I take a screenshot using Greenshot?
You can use the following keyboard shortcuts:
- Print Screen – Capture the entire screen.
- Shift + Print Screen – Capture a selected region.
- Alt + Print Screen – Capture an active window.
- Ctrl + Print Screen – Capture the last selected region.
2️⃣ Can I edit my screenshots in Greenshot?
Yes! Greenshot includes a built-in image editor that lets you add text, highlights, arrows, and shapes to enhance your screenshots before saving or sharing them.
3️⃣ Where are my screenshots saved?
By default, Greenshot asks where to save each screenshot. You can also set a specific save location in the Preferences > Output settings section.
4️⃣ Does Greenshot support cloud uploads?
Yes, Greenshot allows you to upload screenshots directly to services like Dropbox, Imgur, and more for easy sharing.
5️⃣ Is Greenshot available for Mac?
Currently, Greenshot is primarily developed for Windows, but an older version for macOS is available with limited features.