macOS is full of great native utilities, like the built-in Screenshot app, but third-party software can often provide a better experience than what you'll get with Apple's default apps. I'm constantly searching for new must-have macOS apps to improve my daily workflow on the best Macs, and I recently decided to give CleanShot X a try. At its core, CleanShot X is a paid screenshot utility that offers a more robust feature set than what macOS' Screenshot can provide.

After using CleanShot X, calling the app a screenshot utility feels a bit unfair. It's also an excellent markup tool, screen recorder, and GIF creator. It has quickly become one of the most versatile third-party apps I have installed on my MacBook Air and iMac, and I think you should try it. I've always envied a few of the Windows 11 Snipping Tool's features, but CleanShot X puts that program to shame too.

I take screenshots all the time for work, saving important information, and sharing things quickly with friends or social media platforms, and the process got a lot simpler with CleanShot X. Here are the five features that pulled me away from the Screenshot app and convinced me to pay for a third-party screenshot app.

5 More than just screenshots

CleanShot X can handle screen recordings and GIFs, too

After installing CleanShot X, the app will appear in your Mac's menu bar, which we'll discuss in more detail next. However, when you start exploring the CleanShot X settings menu and menu bar module, you'll see that the app can do far more than just take a screenshot. It can start a screen recording, and even delay the start of the screen recording to give you time to prepare. This isn't that different from how macOS handles screen recording natively, though that timer can come in handy more than you might expect.

My favorite surprise feature that came with CleanShot X is easily the GIF creator. You can make a GIF of what you're doing on your Mac just as easily as you would start a screen recording or take a screenshot. For me, converting videos to GIFs was always an annoying task, and it's never been easier thanks to CleanShot X. You might end up using a more varied mix of screenshots, screen recordings, and GIFs thanks to how simple it is to capture all three formats with this app.

4 Menu bar module

You can access any of CleanShot X's functions from anywhere — no keyboard commands required

The menu bar module is a key perk of using CleanShot X, for a few reasons. You can swap the default macOS screenshot commands in order to map them to CleanShot X utilities, but the useful and persistent module means you don't have to. It's possible to quickly take a screenshot or screen recording straight from the menu bar, and this is great if you want to keep the native Screenshot app in play, too. Choosing the All-in-one option in the CleanShot X menu bar module will open the app's overlay, and from there, you can start using any of the app's functions.

There are other neat features that can be accessed from the menu bar, like Capture history. This will open up recent screenshots that have already been dismissed, which can come in handy if you accidentally closed out an image without saving it. Considering how easy it is to lose a screenshot that was taken with the native macOS screenshot utility, this is an impactful benefit of using CleanShot X.

3 Useful quick access

Screenshots won't disappear automatically anymore

When you take a screenshot with the built-in macOS program, it will stay in the bottom-right corner of the screen before disappearing after a few seconds. CleanShot X sends just-captured screenshots to the bottom-left corner of the screen, and gives you quick access to the screenshots you recently took. Fortunately, this app doesn't dismiss screenshots until you've interacted with them. The tiny preview lets you open up a larger view of the screenshot, use markup tools to edit it, save it, or copy it.

There are a few reasons I like the quick access of CleanShot X screenshots more than native macOS screenshots. For starters, I haven't had a screenshot taken with CleanShot X disappear on me yet, and I definitely can't say the same about macOS screenshots. Additionally, I love that screenshots aren't saved by default, as this helps reduce clutter on your desktop.

2 Powerful markup tools

Screenshot and Preview might be a good start, but CleanShot X is on another level

The built-in Screenshot app integrates nicely with Preview, a viewer and markup program that most people don't use to its full potential. I'm a big fan of Preview, but the simple fact is that CleanShot X has a markup tool that's better and easier to use. Just take a look at the CleanShot X toolbar when the markup utility is opened, as depicted in the gallery above. There is an expansive allotment of utilities — probably more than users know what to do with. Aside from the basics, a neat CleanShot X markup feature can add a custom background to your screenshot to make it more lively.

1 Auto-clipped screenshots

CleanShot X brings my favorite Snipping Tool feature to macOS

The feature that absolutely sold me as a CleanShot X user was the ability to choose exactly what happens to a screenshot after you take it. I use a mix of macOS and Windows devices, and I've been asking for an option for macOS screenshots to be automatically added to the clipboard for what feels like forever. It's how the Snipping Tool works on Windows 11, and it's how the Screenshot app should work on macOS. Thankfully, CleanShot X can automatically clip your screenshots, and do a whole lot more.

There's a list of options that you can pick from in the CleanShot X settings menu that will determine what happens to screenshots, screen recordings, and GIFs. For example, you could have screenshots automatically saved, added to the clipboard, or opened up in the markup window. Or, they could be pinned to the screen and launched into the video editor. It's possible to select more than one option, so you can dictate precisely how you want CleanShot X to behave.

Do you need to pay for CleanShot X?

CleanShot X has no official free trial, and a lifetime license costs $29. As such, you'll want to be sure that you will make use of CleanShot X before you try it. Not everyone will see the utility of a third-party screenshot app, but people that capture and edit their screen's contents regularly might see this app as a workflow-altering addition.

Personally, I can't imagine going back to the default macOS screenshot utility after seeing what CleanShot X has to offer. I'll probably save more than enough time over weeks and months of using this app to justify the cost, and you might benefit in a similar way.