But at the end of the day, if you were to choose between Snagit and ShareX, which one should you pick? Should you go with ShareX because it’s doesn’t have a license fee? Or, is it the other way around? This post will compare Snagit and ShareX to find the better screenshot tool for Windows users. Since it will be a long one, let’s get right to the point.
User Interface
With time the user interface of Snagit has evolved a lot, and the new version of Snagit offers a clean and minimal user interface. All the tools for image editing and image annotations are housed cleverly, thereby making them easy to access. The toolbar at the top has almost all the basic tools just as Selection, Fill, Shape, etc. The tool properties are on the right panel. This design makes it easy and convenient to access. At the same time, you can access important functions like History or Rotate & Resize at the top. Snagit also has a nifty tray icon that you can attach to your screen’s side. It comes in handy if you are not comfortable with keyboard shortcuts. When it comes to ShareX, it can seem a little overwhelming for beginners. All the options and settings are clamped together on a left panel. But the good news is that once you get to know your way around, it becomes a tad easy to understand. ShareX works a tad differently than Snagit when editing an image. Here, all your recent images and screenshots are displayed on the left panel, and you will need to right-click and select Edit. Once in, all the tools will be displayed on the top. The interface of ShareX looks a bit dated. And while it has the majority of the essential tools, finding the right one does take a little time.
Ease of Use
As noted earlier, ShareX has all the options and settings on the left and may seem a bit overwhelming initially. All the settings are there right there. Plus, it supports several keyboard shortcuts to take screenshots: the whole screen or a particular region. In contrast, Snagit has the look and feel of a typical Windows app. While the ones you may frequently use are at the top and sides, the other advanced features are tucked away in menus. It may take a bit of time to get accustomed to all the menus. Nevertheless, the learning curve isn’t too steep. You can either take a screenshot by pressing the right combination of keyboard shortcuts or click on the right tray menu icon. That said, Snagit comes with ready presets to upload your screenshots to frequently used apps such as MS Word, Slack, Powerpoint, and the likes. Though there are no set keyboard shortcuts for the same, you can access them via the Share menu at the top. And needless to say, this makes it incredibly easy to document tutorials.
File Uploads
Snagit and ShareX let you upload screenshots and images to make it easier to access them online. This comes into the picture of you are collaborating with a colleague online. When it comes to Snagit, you can either use an FTP server to transfer the file. Or, you can utilize the built-in Screencast option to share the files. Do note that you will have to log in to Screencast before accessing the file or the URL. On the other hand, ShareX keeps things simple. It uploads files and folders to Pastebin. The upload is fast and quick, and it uploads the files publicly. And this might be an issue if you work on sensitive documents.
After-Capture Tools
Now, comes the important part of both the tools. At first glance, ShareX gives you plenty of options to tweak and modify the screenshots further. For example, you can highlight a part, add text bubbles, add arrows & stickers, among others. A handy addition is the Step feature, which highlights the number of steps automatically. At the same time, you can modify the default sizes and pixel counts of the tools. Another nifty feature for pro users is the set of ‘After capture tasks’. As suggestive of its name, you can dictate the tasks which need to be followed automatically once a screenshot is captured. The list is exhaustive and requires a bit of an effort to know all about the different tasks and tools. The upside is that if you are looking for editing and annotations, it lets you do them in an instant. In contrast, Snagit has a more diverse toolset in its arsenal. For instance, there are different styles for arrows and text. The best part is that you can mark a specific color or style as a Favorite. Last but not least, the toolbar is customizable and you can set it to some extent as per your requirement.
Pricing
As noted earlier, ShareX is open-source software and is available for free for Windows users. If you are happy with the toolset, you can also support them via Patreon. Get ShareX As opposed to it, Snagit is available for a trial of seven days for Windows 7 users and higher. Once the trial is over, you will have to shell out around $49.95 for a single non-commercial license Get Snagit.
ShareX vs. Snagit: Which One Should You Use
So should you pick Snagit over ShareX? Well, it depends on your type of work. If you are looking for a screen capture tool that you’d use occasionally, then ShareX would be the one for you. It has all the basic tools for image editing and text annotations. While it does have plenty of options, you’ll need to invest time to learn them. And you’ll need to be careful about the Upload option from the security point of view. It doesn’t need any credentials, and the upload is almost instantaneous. On the other hand, Snagit is the one for you if you look for more than a screenshot tool. The editing tools are far more polished, and you get a diverse range. Besides that, nifty features such as Batch Processings and Screencasting make your job a walk in the park. Like any other tool, it comes with a slight learning curve, but once you get past that, the going gets easier.
