Capture, Annotate & Share Screenshots Instantly with ShareX

// Before you start

What you need

Windows 10 or Windows 11 PC
Admin rights to install software
An internet connection (for uploads)
Optional: an account on Imgur, Google Drive, or another upload destination

Step 1 of 7

Download the ShareX installer

2 min

Go to the official ShareX website and grab the latest installer. This is a standard Windows .exe file — nothing unusual. Avoid third-party download sites; always use the official source.

Terminal · mac

$ https://getsharex.com — click the big 'Download' button and save the .exe file

What you should see

A file named something like ShareX-16.x.x-setup.exe appears in your Downloads folder.

This might happen

Browser warns the file is 'not commonly downloaded'

Click 'Keep' or 'Keep anyway'. ShareX is safe and well-known; this is a generic browser caution for any .exe file.

Step 2 of 7

Install ShareX on your PC

3 min

Run the installer you just downloaded. It walks you through a standard Windows setup wizard. Accept the defaults — they are sensible. ShareX will launch automatically when the installer finishes.

Terminal · mac

$ Double-click ShareX-16.x.x-setup.exe → click Next → accept the license → click Install → click Finish

What you should see

ShareX opens and a small camera icon appears in your Windows system tray (bottom-right corner of the taskbar).

This might happen

Windows UAC (User Account Control) blocks the installer

Right-click the .exe and choose 'Run as administrator', then click Yes when prompted.

Step 3 of 7

Take your first screenshot

1 min

ShareX is already running in your system tray. Press the default capture hotkey to grab a region of your screen. Your mouse cursor will turn into a crosshair — click and drag to select any area, then release.

Terminal · mac

$ Press Ctrl + Print Screen on your keyboard, then click and drag to select a screen area, then release the mouse button

What you should see

A thumbnail of your capture pops up in the bottom-right corner. The image is automatically saved to your Pictures\ShareX folder.

This might happen

Nothing happens when you press the hotkey

Make sure ShareX is running — look for its icon in the system tray. If it is not there, open ShareX from the Start menu first.

Step 4 of 7

Annotate the screenshot with arrows and text

3 min

ShareX has a built-in image editor. After a capture, click the thumbnail that appears in the corner (or right-click any capture in the main ShareX window and choose 'Open in image editor'). You can add arrows, boxes, text, blur sensitive areas, and more — no external app needed.

Terminal · mac

$ Click the capture thumbnail → in the editor toolbar, pick a tool (arrow, rectangle, text, etc.) → draw on the image → click the Save icon or press Ctrl + S

What you should see

Your annotated image is saved over the original (or as a new file if you choose Save As).

This might happen

The thumbnail disappears before you can click it

Open the main ShareX window, find the capture in the list, right-click it, and choose 'Open in image editor'.

Step 5 of 7

Set up an upload destination (Imgur is the easiest)

5 min

By default ShareX saves files locally. To get a shareable link automatically after every capture, tell ShareX where to upload. Imgur requires no account for anonymous uploads, making it the fastest option to test.

Terminal · mac

$ In ShareX main window → click 'Destinations' in the left menu → click 'Image uploader' → select 'Imgur' → then go to 'Destination settings' → click 'Imgur' tab → click 'Create anonymous Imgur account link' if you want no login

What you should see

Imgur is highlighted as the active image uploader. Future screenshots will automatically upload and a shareable URL will be copied to your clipboard.

This might happen

Imgur uploads fail or return an error

Imgur occasionally rate-limits anonymous uploads. Create a free Imgur account and click 'Authorize' in the Imgur destination settings to authenticate properly.

Step 6 of 7

Capture your screen and get a shareable link in one step

1 min

Now that an uploader is configured, every capture automatically uploads and puts the link on your clipboard. Take a screenshot the same way as before — within a few seconds the link is ready to paste anywhere.

Terminal · mac

$ Press Ctrl + Print Screen → select your region → wait 2-3 seconds → paste the link anywhere with Ctrl + V

What you should see

A URL like https://i.imgur.com/xxxxxxx.png is on your clipboard and ready to share.

This might happen

The link is not copied to clipboard

In ShareX main window go to 'After capture tasks' (gear icon or top menu) and make sure 'Copy URL to clipboard' is checked.

Step 7 of 7

Record your screen as a GIF or video

3 min

ShareX can also record a region of your screen as a GIF or MP4. This is great for showing someone a process without writing instructions. Use the Capture menu to start a screen recording.

Terminal · mac

$ In ShareX main window → click 'Capture' in the top menu → click 'Screen recording' (for MP4) or 'Screen recording (GIF)' → drag to select the area → click the stop button in the tray when done

What you should see

A GIF or MP4 file is saved to your Pictures\ShareX folder (and uploaded if you set a video/file destination).

This might happen

Screen recording option is greyed out

ShareX needs FFmpeg for video recording. Go to 'Application settings' → 'Integration' → click 'Download FFmpeg'. It downloads automatically.

// Status

cooked. baked. worked.

ShareX installed and running on your Windows PC, able to capture any screen region with one hotkey, annotate it, and automatically upload it to Imgur with a shareable link copied to your clipboard.

// the honest bit

The honest part

ShareX is Windows-only — it does not run on Mac or Linux. The tool is genuinely powerful but has a lot of menus; it can feel overwhelming at first. Stick to the basics (capture + upload) and explore advanced features like scrolling screenshots, OCR, and custom workflows only after you are comfortable. Cloud upload destinations like Google Drive or S3 require extra account setup beyond this guide.