PixPin is a powerful free screenshot tool with pinning, long capture, GIF recording, and offline OCR. Boost your workflow efficiency on Windows and MacOS today.

PixPin lets you capture freely and pin anywhere. Screen capture, screen recording, long screenshots, text recognition, pinning, and more. Built around two core features—screenshot and pin—PixPin delivers deep optimizations aimed squarely at boosting efficiency, making information handling smoother no matter what work you do on your computer.

In daily work and life, screenshot tools have long outgrown the basic "click and save" function. Researchers archiving papers need long screenshots to preserve complete experimental data, product managers drafting docs need to quickly extract on-screen text, and developers debugging issues need to record their steps... PixPin was born to address these multi-dimensional needs as an all-in-one efficiency tool. Created by the developer of the well-known offline OCR tool PearOCR, it launched in November 2023 and quickly earned the nickname "the Swiss Army knife of screenshot tools." Many users even consider it the top alternative to the legendary Snipaste.

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I. Deep Dive into Core Features

1. Intelligent Screenshot System

Pixel-perfect capture: Automatically detects window element boundaries, with mouse wheel support to switch between nested components (e.g., table cells inside a browser).

Long screenshot (vertical/horizontal): Select a region → click the "Long Screenshot" icon → scroll the page slowly, and PixPin automatically stitches together extended content. Ideal for saving chat logs, paper pages, or long tables, with seamless, natural stitching results.

Dynamic GIF recording: Record a selected screen area and save it as GIF/WebP/MP4. Though simpler than ScreenToGif, it supports real-time annotation while recording, making it great for quick tutorial creation.

2. Pinning: The Information Anchor That Transforms Your Workflow

Pinning is PixPin's "soul feature." After capturing, press Ctrl+2 and the image floats on your screen like a sticky note:

  • Multi-screen collaboration powerhouse: Pin references, code snippets, or data tables on a secondary monitor while you focus on writing on the main one.
  • Integrated OCR: On a pinned image, simply drag to select text → auto-recognize → copy. Powered by a local offline engine, sensitive content never leaves your device, with recognition accuracy approaching 98% on clean backgrounds (special symbols like "()" may occasionally be misread).

  • Advanced operations:

    • Scroll wheel to resize pins, Ctrl+scroll wheel to adjust transparency.
    • Drag image files directly into a pin (Alt+~).

3. Productivity-Boosting Annotation Tools

Far beyond basic doodling, PixPin's annotation design hits the efficiency pain points:

  • Editable annotations: Drew a wrong arrow? Click to modify its position or style—goodbye "undo and redraw."
  • Smart numbered markers: Click the "Number" tool to auto-generate step labels with arrows, speeding up tutorial creation by 50%.
  • Multi-layer annotations: Supports mosaic (pixel blur/frosted glass), spotlight focus, floating text, and custom fonts.

4. Efficiency-Focused Details

  • History recall: Quickly retrieve recent screenshots to avoid duplicate work.
  • Auto-save workspace: Reopen the app and your pins return to their exact previous positions.
  • Fully customizable hotkeys: Even mouse side buttons (X1/X2) can be bound to functions.

II. Installation and Basic Usage Guide

1. Download and Install

  • Official site: https://pixpinapp.com
  • Supported systems: Windows / MacOS
  • Size: ~30MB, ready to use after extraction, no ads or bundled software.

2. Get Started in Three Steps

  • Screenshot: Press Ctrl+1 → select region → annotate (optional) → press Enter to save or Ctrl+C to copy.
  • Pin: After capturing, press Ctrl+2 to pin to screen; or copy an image file and press Ctrl+2 to pin it directly.
  • OCR recognition: In pin mode, hold and drag to select text → auto-recognize → copy text.

3. Advanced Tips

  • Fixed-ratio capture: Alt+1 to set aspect ratio (e.g., 16:9), ensuring consistent dimensions across multiple captures.
  • Pin group management: Create multiple pin groups and switch between them with one click (e.g., a "Writing" group for paper screenshots, a "Coding" group for code snippets).
  • Fix washed-out HDR screenshots: Settings → Screenshot Mode → switch to "Performance Mode."

III. Head-to-Head Comparison: Why PixPin Is the "New King"?

Below is a feature comparison with mainstream tools (⭐ = supported):

FeaturePixPinSnipaste (Free)WeChat/QQ Screenshot
Long Screenshot⭐❌⭐ (QQ)
GIF Recording⭐❌❌
Offline OCR⭐❌⭐ (requires internet)
Pin Text Re-edit⭐❌ (paid only)❌
Numbered Markers⭐❌❌
Horizontal Scroll Capture⭐❌❌

Advantage summary:

  • Integrated feature set crushes traditional tools: Long screenshot + GIF + OCR + annotation in one, eliminating app-switching.
  • Stronger privacy: OCR runs offline—no images uploaded to the cloud.
  • Free with no compromises: Snipaste's advanced editing (e.g., arrow modification) costs 99 yuan, but PixPin offers it completely free.

Drawbacks:

  • As a newer app, stability is slightly behind Snipaste, with occasional minor lag during rapid screenshotting.
  • GIF recording is fairly basic; professional motion graphics still need ScreenToGif.

IV. Who Should Use PixPin?

  • Academic researchers: Long screenshots for full experimental data + OCR to extract paper text + pin for side-by-side writing.
  • Content creators: Numbered markers for tutorial steps + GIF recording for operational walkthroughs.
  • Programmers: Floating pin to compare code + extract error log text.
  • Administrative staff: Quickly stitch long tables + mosaic sensitive information.

💡 Developer philosophy:

"Since no tool on the market could handle screenshots, pinning, long screenshots, and GIFs all at once, I built one myself." — PixPin Author

V. Conclusion: The Ultimate Meaning of Efficiency Tools

PixPin represents more than feature stacking—it signals a workflow reconstruction. It transforms the act of "screenshotting" from an endpoint into a starting point: a screenshot is no longer just preserved evidence, but raw material for information processing—turned into reference sticky notes via pinning, into editable text via OCR, and into reorganized fragments via long screenshots...

PixPin continues to update at a very high frequency (already at v2.0.0.3 as of June 2025), with an active development community and responsive user feedback channels. If you're an efficiency tool enthusiast, a multitasker, or simply tired of switching between different screenshot apps, PixPin deserves to become the new cornerstone of your workspace.

Note: This is the English translation of the original Chinese version.