qgn / vs / cleanshot x
CleanShot X doesn't run on Windows. This does.
If you moved from a Mac to a Windows machine and miss CleanShot X, start here.
CleanShot X is the screenshot tool Mac people talk about. Capture, a little preview in the corner, a quick annotate, a nice background, a recording when you need one. It is very good.
It is also Mac only. It needs macOS 13 or newer, and CleanShot's FAQ says plainly that there is no Windows version and no plans for one. So people search for "CleanShot X for Windows" and find a list of tools that each do a third of it.
QGN covers most of that flow on Windows 10 and 11. It is not a clone and it does not look like one. But the shape is the same: press a key, drag, the capture is on your clipboard and on a card in the corner, and the editor is one click away.
side by side
| CleanShot X | QGN | |
|---|---|---|
| platforms | macOS 13 and newer | Windows 10 and 11 |
| capture | region, window, full screen, scrolling | region, window, or full display |
| preview after capture | overlay in the corner | a floating card: drag out, pin, copy again |
| editor | annotate, blur, highlight, crop | arrows, shapes, text, callouts, redaction, crop, all editable later |
| backgrounds | yes | gradients, wallpapers, browser and window frames |
| screen recording | yes, video and GIF | yes, with mic and system audio, MP4, WebM, GIF, WebP |
| text grab (OCR) | yes | no |
| cloud sharing | CleanShot Cloud | none |
| source | closed | open, MIT |
| price | $35 once, or Pro at $10 a month | free |
what carries over
- The corner card. Every capture appears on a small card. Drag it into Slack, Figma or an email. Pin it and it stays, even across a reboot. The last twelve are in the tray menu. See floating previews.
- The pretty screenshot. Compose frames a capture on a gradient or wallpaper, in a browser or window frame, with padding, rounding, shadow and a fixed aspect ratio. See mockups.
- Annotation that stays editable. Arrows, shapes, text, numbered callouts, redaction and crop, every mark movable after you place it. See annotation.
- Recordings with zoom. Record a region with mic and system audio, trim it, and let QGN make zoom keyframes from your clicks. Export MP4, WebM, GIF or animated WebP. See screen recording.
what you give up
- Scrolling capture and OCR. CleanShot X has both. QGN has neither.
- Cloud links. CleanShot Cloud gives you a URL to share. QGN uploads nothing.
- Mac polish. CleanShot X is native and small. QGN is Electron, about 85 MB.
- A company behind it. QGN is a one-person open source project, still at 0.1.x.
- Code signing. QGN isn't signed yet, so SmartScreen warns on first install.
the keys
ctrl+q captures. Click a window to take exactly that window. space takes the whole display. ctrl+shift+q records. All of them can be rebound.
questions
Is there a CleanShot X for Windows?
No. CleanShot's own FAQ says there is no Windows version and no plans to release one. It requires macOS 13 or newer.
What is the closest CleanShot X alternative on Windows?
QGN was built for that gap: one hotkey to the clipboard, a floating preview card after every capture, an editor with backgrounds and frames, and screen recording with zooms. It is free and open source.
Does QGN have a cloud like CleanShot Cloud?
No. QGN has no cloud and no upload feature. Captures stay on your machine.
How much does CleanShot X cost compared to QGN?
CleanShot X Basic is $35 once, with a year of updates and optional renewals at $19 a year. CleanShot Pro is $10 per user per month, billed yearly. QGN is free.