To annotate a screenshot on a Mac, take it with ⇧⌘4, click the thumbnail that appears in the corner of the screen, and use the Markup tools to add arrows, text, shapes and highlights. Click Done to save. If the screenshot is already saved, open it in Preview and click Show Markup Toolbar. macOS has no blur tool, so to hide a password or an email address, cover it with a filled shape, or use a screenshot editor that can blur and pixelate.
Every way to annotate a screenshot on Mac
| Method | Best for | Blur or pixelate | Backgrounds | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Screenshot thumbnail and Markup | A quick arrow or note right after you capture | No | No | Free, built in |
| Quick Look and Markup | Marking up a saved file without opening an app | No | No | Free, built in |
| Preview's Markup toolbar | More control, plus crop, resize and color | No | No | Free, built in |
| Smooth Recorder | Blur, numbered steps, backgrounds and Smart Redact | Yes | Yes, 118 wallpapers | $19 once in early access |
All three built-in routes use the same Markup tools. What changes is where you open them. The steps below work in macOS 15 Sequoia, macOS 26 Tahoe and macOS 27 Golden Gate.
Method 1: Mark up a screenshot right after you take it
This is the quickest way, and it doesn't leave a stray file behind if you change your mind.
- Take the screenshot. ⇧⌘3 captures the whole screen, ⇧⌘4 lets you drag over an area, and ⇧⌘5 opens the screenshot toolbar.
- A thumbnail appears in the bottom-right corner. Click it before it slides away. Apple's screenshot guide describes this step.
- The screenshot opens in a Markup window. Add your arrows, text and shapes with the toolbar at the top.
- Click Done to save it, or use the share button to send it straight to Mail, Messages or AirDrop.
No thumbnail? It may be turned off. Press ⇧⌘5, click Options and turn on Show Floating Thumbnail. The same menu sets where screenshots are saved and adds a timer.
Method 2: Use Markup from Finder or Quick Look
For a screenshot that's already saved on your Desktop or in a folder:
- Select the file in Finder and press Space to open Quick Look.
- Click the Markup button at the top of the window.
- Annotate, then click Done.
You can also Control-click the file and choose Quick Actions > Markup. Apple lists the same tools for both in its Mark up files on Mac guide. Markup is also built into Mail, Notes, TextEdit and Photos.
Method 3: Annotate in Preview
Preview gives you the same Markup tools plus a few extras, such as resizing the image and adjusting its color.
- Open the screenshot in Preview. Double-clicking a screenshot usually opens it there.
- If you don't see the Markup tools, click the Show Markup Toolbar button.
- Pick a tool, annotate, and choose File > Save, or File > Export to save a copy in another format.
What each Markup tool does
These are Apple's names for the tools, as listed in its Mark up files guide. Which ones you see depends on the file type.
| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
| Sketch | Draw freehand in one stroke. If it looks like a standard shape, Markup swaps in a neat version. |
| Draw | Draw with pressure: press harder for a heavier line. Only on Macs with a Force Touch trackpad. |
| Shapes | Add shapes such as lines, arrows, rectangles and ovals, plus Highlight and Loupe. |
| Text | Add a text box and drag it into place. |
| Shape Style | Change line thickness and type, or add a shadow. |
| Border Color and Fill Color | Set the line color and the color inside a shape. |
| Text Style | Change the font, style and color of text. |
| Sign | Add a signature made with your trackpad, camera, or a nearby iPhone or iPad. |
| Crop | Drag the corner handles, then click Crop to cut away the edges. |
| Rotate | Turn the image left or right. |
Add an arrow to a screenshot
- Click Shapes and choose the arrow.
- Drag the arrow over the spot you want to point at. Drag its ends to change its length and direction.
- Click Shape Style to make the line thicker, and Border Color to change its color. Red or a bright color stands out on most screenshots.
Or choose Sketch and draw a rough arrow. Markup often turns it into a clean one.
Add text, a box or a highlight
- Text: click Text, type, and drag the box where you want it. Use Text Style for a bigger font or a different color.
- A box around something: choose the rectangle in Shapes, then set Fill Color to none so only the outline shows.
- Highlight: choose Highlight in Shapes to dim everything except one area, and drag its handles to resize it.
- Magnify a detail: choose Loupe in Shapes. The green handle changes how much it zooms, and the blue handle changes its size.
Draw on a screenshot
Choose Sketch to draw freehand with your mouse or trackpad. On a Mac with a Force Touch trackpad, Draw gives you a line that gets heavier as you press harder. Use Shape Style and Border Color to set the line's thickness and color first.
With an iPhone or iPad nearby, you can also use Continuity Markup: mark up the file on your iPhone or iPad, even with Apple Pencil, and the changes show up on your Mac.
How to blur part of a screenshot on a Mac
Markup and Preview don't have a blur or pixelate tool, on any version of macOS. Here's the workaround, plus the better option.
The free workaround: cover it with a filled shape
- Open the screenshot in Preview and show the Markup toolbar.
- Click Shapes and choose the rectangle.
- Drag it over the email address, name or number you want to hide.
- Click Fill Color and pick a solid color, such as black or a gray that matches the page.
- Save. On an image file, the box becomes part of the picture, so the hidden text is gone from the saved file.
It's not pretty, but for passwords, keys and account numbers, a solid box is the safest choice anyway. Preview's Redaction tool, by the way, works on text in PDFs, not on screenshots.
The better way: a real blur or pixelate tool
A screenshot editor can blur or pixelate just the area you drag over, which looks cleaner than a black box. Smooth Recorder does both, and its Smart Redact finds private details on your Mac, such as email addresses, phone numbers, links, card numbers, API keys and passwords, IP addresses, money amounts and faces, and covers them for you. CleanShot X and Shottr also have blur and pixelate tools.
How to add a background to a screenshot on Mac
macOS can't add a background to a screenshot. The closest built-in result is a window screenshot with its shadow: press ⇧⌘4, then Space, and click a window. That gives you just the window, with its shadow. Hold Option while you click to leave the shadow out.
For a screenshot on a colored or wallpaper background, with padding and rounded corners, the kind you see in product posts and docs, you need an app. Smooth Recorder, CleanShot X, Shottr and Xnapper all have background tools.
Annotate a screenshot with Smooth Recorder
Markup covers the basics. If you annotate screenshots every day, a dedicated editor saves steps and adds tools macOS doesn't have.
- Press ⌥1 to open the capture overlay.
- Pick an area, a window or the screen, then press Return to take the screenshot.
- Click Edit on the card that appears after the capture to open the screenshot editor.
- Annotate, then save or copy the result.
The editor has:
- Arrows, text, callouts and shapes for pointing at things and labeling them.
- Pen and marker, for drawing freehand.
- Numbered steps, for walking someone through a process in order: 1, 2, 3.
- Spotlight and magnifier, to make one part of the screen stand out or blow up a small detail.
- Blur and pixelate, for anything private.
- Smart Redact, which finds emails, phone numbers, links, card numbers, API keys and passwords, IP addresses, money amounts and faces, and covers them with a blur, pixelation or a black bar. After you hide them, the button turns into Show so you can take the covers off again.
- Crop, to cut the screenshot down to what matters.
- Backgrounds, including 118 bundled wallpapers, so a screenshot looks finished on a slide or in a post.
- 3D tilt, to set the screenshot at an angle for a more polished look.
- Motion, which turns the screenshot into a short video. Open in Studio brings it into the video editor with Motion's zooms already in place.
The same overlay takes scrolling screenshots (S), copies text from the screen (T), and records video (R) and GIFs (G). Smooth Recorder is a native Mac app for macOS 15 Sequoia and later, $19 once during early access ($49 regular), with no subscription and no account. If you're weighing it against another screenshot app, see Smooth Recorder vs CleanShot X.
Tips for screenshots people can read at a glance
- One idea per screenshot. If you need five arrows, you probably need two screenshots, or numbered steps.
- Crop first, then annotate. Cut away the menu bar, the Dock and empty space so the arrow has less to compete with.
- Pick one color and stick to it. One bright color for all arrows and boxes reads better than a rainbow.
- Keep text short. "Click here" next to an arrow beats a paragraph. Put the explanation in your message.
- Hide private details every time. Names, emails, order numbers and browser tabs slip into screenshots all the time.
- Check it at real size. Zoom to 100% before you send it, so thin lines and small text are still clear.
When a screenshot can't show the problem because it only happens as you click or scroll, record it instead. Our guide to recording a bug report video covers that. And if you need the words in a screenshot rather than the picture, see how to copy text from your screen on Mac.
Troubleshooting
The thumbnail doesn't appear. Press ⇧⌘5, click Options and make sure Show Floating Thumbnail is on. If you took the screenshot with ⌃ held down, it went to the clipboard instead; paste it into Preview with File > New from Clipboard.
The thumbnail disappears before I can click it. It stays for a few seconds. If you miss it, open the saved file from your Desktop (or wherever your screenshots go) in Preview.
I can't find the Draw tool. Draw appears only on Macs with a Force Touch trackpad. Use Sketch instead.
I can't move or delete an annotation. If the image was saved after you annotated it, the marks are now part of the picture. Start from a copy of the original. Next time, duplicate the file before you mark it up.
The arrow came out wobbly. You likely used Sketch or Draw. Use the arrow from the Shapes menu for a straight one.
The text is too small to read. Select the text box, click Text Style and pick a larger size. On a high-resolution display, screenshots are large images, so text often needs to be bigger than you'd expect.