qgn / vs / lightshot
A Lightshot alternative that never uploads.
Lightshot got one thing very right: press a key, drag, done. QGN keeps that, drops the upload button, and adds what Lightshot never did.
Lightshot is popular for a good reason. It is fast and it stays out of the way. If that is all you need and you never touch the upload button, keep it.
The trouble is that button. Upload a capture and it gets a short public link on prnt.sc. Anyone with the link can open it, and those links are short enough that people have made a hobby of guessing them. That is a bad place for a screenshot of a dashboard, an invoice or a chat.
QGN has no upload feature at all. There is nothing to click by mistake, because there is nowhere for the image to go except your clipboard and, if you want, a folder on your disk.
side by side
| Lightshot | QGN | |
|---|---|---|
| capture | region, by hotkey | region, window, or full display |
| to clipboard | after you confirm | the moment you release |
| editor | pen, line, arrow, box, marker, text | arrows, shapes, text, callouts, redaction, crop, all editable later |
| backgrounds and frames | no | gradients, wallpapers, browser and window frames |
| screen recording | no | yes, with mic and system audio, MP4 to GIF |
| cloud upload | yes, public prnt.sc links | none |
| source | closed | open, MIT |
| price | free | free |
| platforms | Windows, Mac | Windows only |
what you gain
- Window capture. Hover a window, it gets outlined and named. Click it and you get exactly that window, no sloppy edges. Edges snap while you drag, too.
- Floating cards. Each capture sits in the corner for a moment. Drag it straight into Slack or an email, pin it, copy it again. See floating previews.
- An editor that keeps your marks editable.Place an arrow, move it later. Redact with a solid block that can't be peeled back. See annotation.
- Recording. ctrl+shift+q records a region. Trim it, add zooms from your own clicks, export a GIF for the pull request. See screen recording.
what you give up
- Sharing by link. If you want a URL to paste, Lightshot gives you one and QGN does not.
- A Mac version. QGN is Windows only.
- A small download. QGN is an Electron app, about 85 MB. Lightshot is far smaller.
- "Search similar images on Google". QGN has nothing like it.
switching
Lightshot takes PrtSc. QGN uses ctrl+q, so both can run side by side while you decide. Any hotkey can be rebound in QGN's settings.
questions
Is QGN as simple as Lightshot?
Yes. Press Ctrl+Q, drag, release, and the capture is on your clipboard. There is nothing to confirm and no toolbar to dismiss. The editor is there when you open it, not before.
Does QGN upload screenshots like Lightshot's prnt.sc?
No. QGN has no upload feature and no server to upload to. Captures go to your clipboard, and to a folder if you turn on auto-save.
Is QGN free like Lightshot?
Yes, and it is also open source under the MIT license. There is no paid tier.
Does QGN run on Mac?
No. Lightshot has a Mac version, QGN is Windows 10 and 11 only.