Taking screenshots on Windows 11 is something we're all used to doing, and the built-in Snipping Tool generally does the job pretty well. It even supports screen recording now, so it's a fairly solid offering.

But what if you wanted something better? You may have heard of ShareX before, but if you haven't, it's an alternative screenshot tool for Windows, and it's the one you should be using if you want the most features. Here are a few features that should make you consider using ShareX for all your screenshot needs.

5 Precise capture

Screenshot things perfectly

The first and potentially smallest reason here is just how easy ShareX makes it to capture perfect screenshots. When you begin your selection, you'll see a very zoomed in view around your cursor so you can see down to the exact pixel what you're selecting. If you want to have perfect screenshots without wasting time cropping them after the fact, this really does make it a lot easier to do so.

Of course, ShareX can also automatically capture a specific window, so if that's your goal, you don't have to manually measure anything. It just makes it that much easier to capture more unusual regions and shapes.

4 Multi-region captures

Everything you need, nothing you don't

Another interesting features in ShareX is the ability to capture multiple separate regions on your desktop without capturing the entire screen. Say you want to capture multiple windows or parts of the screen, but leave out sensitive information or reduce visual clutter. Multi-region capture lets you select multiple regions to capture at once, and then press Enter to capture them all into the same file.

The standard capture mode is still to capture a single region, since it's much faster. But for more specific capturing needs, multi-region mode is definitely an interesting feature to have.

3 Advanced annotation features

Step guidance, arrows, and more

A screenshot tool is as good as its ability to annotate said screenshots for the purposes you need. Any screenshot tool will let you add things like arrows, boxes, and freeform lines, but ShareX has some extra features that really help it stand out.

In addition to text annotations and speech bubbles, ShareX lets you add things like step counters, so if you're creating a tutorial, all you need top do is click the areas you want someone to interact with, and the numbers will appear in order. You can move numbers around or make them point to a specific area if you want to provide more specific guidance. You can also add a fake mouse cursor to further indicate that users should click a specific area, which is helpful since screenshots usually don't capture the mouse cursor.

2 Record videos and GIFs

Make sharing easier

Screenshot tools often let you record videos too, and ShareX is no exception, but it takes things to the next level. For one thing, you have a ton of control over encoding options for both the video and the audio, if you choose to enable it. More efficient encoding can help you get higher quality video with lower storage requirements, so it can be worth it to play around with these options to get the best quality possible.

What's even more interesting, though, is that ShareX can also record GIFs directly in the app. These can be easier to upload to specific platforms, so it can make sense to record GIFs this way as opposed to recording a typical video. Both options are always available, so it's just up to what you prefer.

1 Easily upload and share files

Built-in uploads

Most of the time you're taking a screenshot, you're doing it to share it with others, so having an easier way to do so is a great idea. ShareX covers every aspect of sharing a screenshot, starting with a built-in upload tool that sends your images or videos onto a dedicated website for sharing.

Once it's uploaded, you can easily copy the URL, shorten it for easier sharing, or send it directly through a variety of services you can sign into, such as Facebook, Twitter, and even things like PushBullet. There are a lot more options for sharing, though realistically, the ability to copy the URL should make it possible to share the image essentially anywhere. What's more, you can use Google Lens to analyze a screenshot directly from within the app, too, so you can more easily find information about a product or something you may be interested in.

There's even more to ShareX

No matter who you are, ShareX is an amazing tool for capturing screenshots and screen recordings, with tons of features and customization options. It offers so much while also being a snappy tool that often works much faster than using the built-in Snipping Tool.

Even beyond the screenshot tools, ShareX offers a ton of other features for image editing. You can combine and split images, apply "beautify" effects to an image, and more. If you haven't yet, check out ShareX below.

• ShareX

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