Yep — free for 30 days, then a one-time $4.99 to keep it forever. No subscription, no auto-renew, no surprise charge.

Why do I need iShot when my Mac already takes screenshots?

Your Mac captures — it doesn't make captures useful. iShot pulls text off any screen, decodes QR codes, translates, annotates, redacts, records with a camera bubble, and scroll-captures long pages. Text recognition, QR, and annotation run entirely on your Mac; translation runs through the AI key you add. The built-in tool stops at the picture; iShot starts there.

Which Macs does it run on?

Any Mac on macOS 12 (Monterey) or newer. There's one Universal download that covers both Apple Silicon (M1–M4) and Intel Macs — it picks the right one automatically.

Can I grab text and links out of a screenshot?

Yes. Select any text in your capture and copy it with ⌘C, or pull everything off the screen at once with the on-device OCR panel — in a bunch of languages. Point it at a QR code and it'll decode the link, so you can open or copy it straight from the shot.

Can I record my screen with a camera bubble?

Yes. Record your screen and mic, and optionally float your webcam in a round bubble you can drag and resize — turn it off in one click. You can also drop your capture on a clean custom background and mute notifications while you record.

Does it work offline?

Mostly, yes. Grabbing text from screenshots (OCR) and scanning QR codes run entirely on your Mac, no internet needed. Only translation needs a connection.

Is my data safe? What happens to my screenshots?

They stay on your Mac. OCR and QR scanning run entirely on-device — nothing is uploaded and nothing trains a cloud model. Only translation needs an internet connection. The app is notarized by Apple, and downloads come straight from the official site.

How do I capture a long page?

Hit scroll capture, scroll down or sideways yourself at your own pace, then press your finish key. iShot stitches everything into one tall, seamless image and copies it ready to share.

Blog · AI

How to Bring Your Own Claude API Key to a Mac Screenshot Tool

Name: iShot
Brand: iShot
Price: 4.99 USD
Availability: OnlineOnly
Author: Tuan Tran

AI inside a screenshot app doesn't have to mean sharing other people's keys. Plug in your own Claude API key and you keep control of provider, privacy, and cost.

Plenty of screenshot apps tack on an AI feature that calls a model for you — which means you’re using their key, on their account, with an opaque data path. The other approach is bring-your-own-key (BYOK): you add your own Anthropic API key and the app sends your captures to the endpoint you control. Here’s what that looks like and why it matters.

What “bring your own key” means in a screenshot tool

You pick the provider. Your captures go to Anthropic’s Claude API (or any OpenAI-compatible endpoint), not some third-party middle layer.
You see the billing. Usage shows up on your own API account, so it’s transparent and capped by your own limits.
No shared pool. Your images aren’t mixed in with every other user’s traffic through the app vendor.

How to add a Claude API key in iShot

In iShot, open the Settings → AI tab, choose Claude as the provider, and paste your Anthropic API key. The model list loads automatically, and you pick a model — like Claude Sonnet for everyday answers or a faster Haiku for quick reads. Then any AI action on a capture uses your key.

The rest of iShot — OCR, annotation, scroll capture, recording — stays on your Mac and never touches the network. Only the images you hand to the AI action are sent, to the provider you chose.

Is BYOK the right choice for you?

It’s a good fit if you already use Anthropic’s API, want fine-grained control over cost and model choice, or prefer a strict data path. If you’d rather not manage a key at all, a shared-subscription app is simpler but less private. See how to ask Claude about a screenshot for the workflow, and how translation uses your key.

Frequently asked questions

What is bring-your-own-key (BYOK)?

Bring-your-own-key means you supply your own model API key — in this case an Anthropic Claude key — instead of the app using a shared key. You control the provider, the model, and the billing.

Do I need a Claude API key for OCR?

No. OCR, annotation, scroll capture, and recording all run on your Mac. You only need a key if you use the AI action to ask questions, translate, summarize, or generate text from a capture.

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