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Help / Capture & annotate
Use Cropped as your screenshot tool
Cropped can replace the screenshot tool that comes with your computer. You keep the keys you already know, and every capture is optimized, copied and ready to annotate.
Change a capture shortcut
- Open the Studio and go to Preferences › Capture (or press ⌘ Command + ,, Windows Ctrl + ,, and pick Capture).
- Under Shortcuts, click the key next to an action. It says Record key when nothing is set.
- Press the keys you want, such as ⌥ Option + ⇧ Shift + S.
| Action | What it does | Mac default | Windows default |
|---|---|---|---|
| Area | Drag an area, adjust it, then capture or record | ⇧ Shift + ⌘ Command + 8 | Ctrl + Shift + 8 |
| Window | Click a window to capture it | None | None |
| Full screen | Capture the whole screen | ⇧ Shift + ⌘ Command + 9 | Ctrl + Shift + 9 |
| Repeat last area | Capture the same area again | None | None |
| Record / stop | Start a recording, press again to stop | ⇧ Shift + ⌘ Command + 0 | Ctrl + Shift + 0 |
| Capture bar | Show the Drop Zone with every capture option | None | None |
Rules for keys:
- Use a letter, number, punctuation key, Space or F1–F20, together with at least one of ⌘ Command, ⌃ Control or ⌥ Option (Windows: Ctrl, Alt or the Windows key). Function keys can be used on their own.
- Press Delete while recording a key to clear it, or Esc to keep the current one. You can also hover the key and click its small ✕.
- Giving a key to one action takes it away from any other action that had it.
If Cropped shows "macOS still uses this key" or "Another app already uses this key", the key is taken. Pick another, or turn the other app's shortcut off.
Take over the Mac screenshot keys
Turn on Use the Mac screenshot keys in Preferences › Capture. Cropped then answers:
| Keys | Cropped does |
|---|---|
| ⇧ Shift + ⌘ Command + 3 | Full screen |
| ⇧ Shift + ⌘ Command + 4 | Area |
| ⇧ Shift + ⌘ Command + 5 | Capture bar |
The Mac still owns these keys until you turn its own versions off:
- Click Keyboard Shortcuts next to the setting (or open System Settings › Keyboard › Keyboard Shortcuts › Screenshots).
- Turn off "Save picture of screen as a file", "Save picture of selected area as a file" and "Screenshot and recording options".
- Press ⇧ Shift + ⌘ Command + 4. Cropped's area picker should appear.
To go back, turn Use the Mac screenshot keys off. Cropped returns to ⇧ Shift + ⌘ Command + 8 and ⇧ Shift + ⌘ Command + 9, and you can turn the Mac's own keys back on in System Settings.
Why use Cropped for screenshots
- Smaller files, automatically. In our own test, a 1.26 MB screenshot of a web page became a 37 KB WebP, so it uploads fast and fits in chats and tickets.
- Annotate in one click. Arrows, boxes, text, highlight and hide. See Annotate screenshots.
- Drag straight out. Drop the result into Slack, Mail, a browser upload or a folder from the Drop Zone.
- Record too. The same picker records video, with sound and up to 120 fps on 120 Hz screens. See Screen recording.
- Private. Nothing is uploaded. Captures stay on your computer.
Still stuck? Click the ? button at the bottom left of the Cropped Studio to ask, send us a message, or request a feature.