# Xnip review (2026): is the free plan enough? > Mac screenshot tool with scrolling capture and annotation Checked Nov 13, 2026 ยท graded Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA. Xnip is a Mac screenshot app that captures regions, windows and scrolling pages and opens each capture for markup straight away. It recognizes text on screen with an on-device engine and can pin images above other windows. The free version adds a watermark that paid options remove. - **Category:** Desktop Utilities - **Made by:** Xnip - **Website:** https://xnipapp.com/ - **Runs on:** macOS - **Who should skip it:** Not for you if you want clean screenshots without paying, since the free version adds a watermark. - **Facts last checked:** Nov 13, 2026 ## Pricing As of Nov 13, 2026, Xnip has a free plan, and paid plans start at $4.99 per year (Xnip Pro). - **Pricing model:** Free plan - **Free plan:** Free download from the Mac App Store; screenshots carry a watermark that the paid options remove. - **Free trial:** None listed. | Plan | Price | What you get | | --- | --- | --- | | Free | $0 | Screenshot capture and annotation; screenshots carry a watermark. | | Xnip Pro Yearly Subscription | $4.99 per year, auto-renewing | Removes the watermark and includes access to features in future updates. | | No watermark & Edit window | $7.99 one-time; a second purchase of that name shows $9.99 | In-app purchase listed twice under one name at $7.99 and $9.99; the listing does not say how they differ. | Read from https://apps.apple.com/us/app/xnip-screenshot-annotation/id1221250572 on Nov 13, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Xnip before buying. ## Key features - **Scrolling capture:** Captures webpages, long chats, documents and code that extend past the screen into a single screenshot. - **Window capture:** Captures a window with its natural macOS shadow; holding Shift selects several windows to capture at once. - **Annotation on capture:** Markup, draw, pixelate, step-number and highlight tools open right after a capture, and the capture area can be resized while you work. - **Text recognition:** Recognizes text anywhere on screen with an on-device engine; the vendor describes the app as fully offline. - **Pinned images:** Pins an image as an always-on-top floating window so a reference stays visible while you work in other apps. ## Good for - Mac users who need scrolling screenshots of long pages - Quick capture and markup from a single shortcut - People who want OCR that runs on the Mac, not in the cloud ## Worth knowing - Mac only; the App Store listing says it requires macOS 13.5 or later. - Free screenshots carry a watermark; removing it needs a paid in-app purchase. - The listing shows two purchases with the same name at $7.99 and $9.99 and does not explain the difference. ## ToolGPA grades **GPA: 2.4 out of 4**, graded Nov 13, 2026. Xnip is a Mac screenshot app for regions, windows and scrolling pages, with markup and on-device text recognition. Free screenshots carry a watermark, and the listing shows two purchases with the same name at different prices. - **Value for money: A.** Xnip Pro is $4.99 a year, below 60% of the cheapest quarter of this category's subscriptions. The no-watermark in-app purchase is $7.99 once. - **Free plan and trial: C.** Free to download, but every screenshot carries a watermark until you pay. - **Features: C.** Scrolling and window capture, annotation, text recognition and pinned images. It does the capture job fully, which is a smaller job than a recorder-and-editor suite. - **Ease of use: B.** No store rating is on record, but it is a program you install and start using with nothing to set up. - **Platforms and integrations: D.** Mac only. The listing says macOS 13.5 or later and shows no Windows, phone or web version. These are ToolGPA's own grades. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Xnip's own pages on 13 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. ## Where it stands among desktop utilities - Xnip's GPA of 2.4 is higher than 35 of the 186 other desktop utilities we grade, and level with 33. - It stands best on value for money (A, above 55 of 186) and worst on platforms and integrations (D, above 0). - Its paid plans start at $0.42 a month when paid by the year, against a middle price of $2.99 for the category: 2 of the 36 others that charge start lower. - On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.0 out of 4. 23 tools score higher and cost less. The category's chart of price against score: https://toolgpa.com/charts/utilities ## Keep it, or make your own? **Your call.** It depends on the utility: a converter or a calculator is an afternoon. Xnip sits between: not beyond making, and not a weekend's work either. What you would give up is listed below. Whether that is worth the price is your call. At $4.99 a year it costs less than the weekend it would take to replace, which is the argument for keeping it. - You could not: Capture tools hooked into the operating system. - You could not: A real app for macOS. Something home-made would be a web page. A judgement by ToolGPA from this listing, by rules that are the same for every tool. Nothing was built to test it. **Tags:** Screenshots, Works offline ## Alternatives - [Shottr](https://toolgpa.com/tools/shottr): Small Mac screenshot tool with annotation, OCR and a ruler. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/shottr-vs-xnip) - [TextSniper](https://toolgpa.com/tools/textsniper): Mac menu bar tool that copies text from any part of the screen. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/textsniper-vs-xnip) - [Snipaste](https://toolgpa.com/tools/snipaste): Screenshot tool that pins images to the screen as floating windows. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/snipaste-vs-xnip) - [Lightshot](https://toolgpa.com/tools/lightshot): Screenshot tool for selecting an area and sharing a link. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/lightshot-vs-xnip) - [Flameshot](https://toolgpa.com/tools/flameshot): Free, open-source screenshot tool with on-screen annotation. [Compare](https://toolgpa.com/compare/flameshot-vs-xnip) ## Sources The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 13, 2026: - https://xnipapp.com/ - https://xnipapp.com/help/ - https://apps.apple.com/us/app/xnip-screenshot-annotation/id1221250572 Page: https://toolgpa.com/tools/xnip Listed by ToolGPA (toolgpa.com).