How to Search the Text Inside Screenshots on Mac

Screenshots are how we remember things now: an error message, a payment confirmation, a quote, a tracking number. The problem is that macOS names them all Screenshot 2026-10-12 at 14.03.11.png. After a few months you have hundreds, and no idea which one says what.

Here's how to search the text inside your screenshots on a Mac, and copy that text out.

First: put screenshots in one place

By default, screenshots land on your Desktop. Press ⌘⇧5 → Options → Save to and pick a dedicated Screenshots folder. Your Desktop stays clear and everything is in one place.

Option 1: Live Text (built in, one screenshot at a time)

macOS can read text inside images. Open a screenshot in Preview or press Space for Quick Look, then select the text with your cursor and copy it. Phone numbers, dates and links become clickable.

Limit: it works on one image at a time. It doesn't search across all your screenshots.

Option 2: Spotlight and Photos

If your screenshots are in the Photos app, you can search for words that appear in them inside Photos, and Spotlight can show matching photos too.

Limit: this only covers your Photos library, not the screenshots in your Finder folders, and you can't combine it with "last week" or "from Slack".

Option 3: Screenshot apps with OCR

CleanShot X and Shottr can capture text straight from the screen (OCR), and TextSniper is a dedicated text-capture app.

Limit: they're great for grabbing text now. They don't help you find an old screenshot you took months ago.

Option 4: Search every screenshot at once with Trailback

Trailback reads the text in every screenshot on your Mac, on your computer, offline. Then you search them like documents:

• "the screenshot where it said payment failed"
• "error screenshot from last week"
• "tracking number"

Results show the matching words highlighted, next to your files and web pages. When you take a new screenshot, a small card offers "Copy all text". For any older image, open Grab text to copy amounts, dates, links and reference numbers with one click.

Before you share a screenshot, Trailback's Hide private info blurs card numbers, emails and phone numbers. That runs offline too.

Which option should you use?

Avoid online OCR websites for private screenshots

Free "image to text" websites upload your image. That's a bad idea for bank details, IDs or work chats. Every option in this guide runs on your Mac. More in the best privacy apps for Mac.

Related guides

• How to find a file on Mac when you can't remember the name
• Best Spotlight alternatives for Mac
• Top 10 Mac apps in 2026

Written by Pavan GK

Pavan is the founder of Trailback, a private, offline app for Mac and Windows that helps you find anything on your computer by describing it. He builds it at Hara Infotech in Hyderabad.