Windows’ built-in screenshot tools (Snip & Sketch, the classic Snipping Tool and the newer Snipping Tool) handle quick captures, but they’re limited when it comes to editing, sharing and resizing. Greenshot is a free, open-source capture tool and image editor that lets you take a screenshot, edit it and send it to another app or folder in one flow. You set a hotkey, choose what happens after the capture, and the rest can be automated.
Why the built-in Windows tools slow you down
Most screenshot tools give you full-screen, partial-screen and window captures, some basic annotation, and a way to save to a folder. The trouble starts after the capture.
You often have to open the image in a separate editor, then open another app to insert it, then share or save it. Greenshot combines those steps inside one app. That makes it useful for home users, developers and teams who manage work in tools like Jira or Confluence.
Set up the 3-click capture workflow
The basic idea is capture, edit if you need to, then send the image where it belongs. How many clicks it takes depends on what you set up, and every part of it can be changed.
- Set a hotkey for the kind of capture you want (full screen, region or window).
- Choose whether Greenshot should open the capture in its image editor after you take it.
- Choose your output: an export or share option, a save folder, or a script that runs a third-party action for you.
With that in place, you press your hotkey, click an export or share option, and click to save it in your chosen folder.
Send captures straight to Word, Jira and other apps
Greenshot comes with predefined export options for Jira, Confluence, Box, Dropbox, Imgur, Word, Excel, Outlook, OneNote and other applications. You can also send a capture to your current PowerPoint presentation or Excel spreadsheet. Thunderbird is another preinstalled option if you’re using the unstable release.
- Jira: select the Jira plugin to add a screenshot to a report or status update without capturing, saving, opening Jira and inserting it by hand.
- Confluence: the capture is placed where your cursor sits in the doc.
- Word: the capture goes to your cursor position in the open document.
- OneNote: handy for quick reference notes.
- Outlook: useful when you need a fast screen grab for an email.
There’s also a Windows Share option, but it may not work for you, because Windows security updates keep changing how sharing behaves. One workaround is a script that opens the save folder in Explorer, where you can click Share yourself.
Run your own apps and scripts after a capture
Greenshot’s Configure external commands option lets you add third-party apps it can launch directly after a capture. You can also point it at a command or a batch file, which can open a specific app, place the image, and let you finish your work there.
Some things you can do with a batch file or external command:
- Send files to cloud or remote storage with WinSCP.
- Save each capture to two locations at once.
- Send captures to a cloud-managed platform, a CMS or anything else a script can reach.
- Open a sharing option such as Facebook through a script.
- Load the capture straight into Inkscape for advanced editing.
Open captures in Inkscape automatically
For simpler setups, the Edit external commands option is the easiest route for home users. Point Greenshot at a small batch file that launches Inkscape, and each capture opens there for annotation, watermarking or blurring private details.
You can also make the batch file wait until you close Inkscape before Greenshot finishes its process. For most everyday edits, though, Greenshot’s built-in editor is enough.
Add third-party plugins (for developers)
Third-party plugins work like external commands, except they load when Greenshot starts and show up in its options. Adding one requires Visual Studio, so this is aimed at developers and workflow teams, though you can do it at home if you have the skills.
The DeepWiki Greenshot plugin pages cover the plugin process in detail, including how to modify .csproj, .props and other files.
Change the file naming pattern
Greenshot names each file from a pattern you can edit, which keeps a batch of screenshots organized. The default pattern is:
${capturetime:d"yyyy-MM-dd HH_mm_ss"}-${title}
That produces a filename like 2026-09-14 18_52_42-Document2 - Word.png. The title part is always the window or tab you captured, even for a region capture.
Say you’re capturing a Trello page for a project and want the project name at the front without the hour, minute and second. Change the pattern to:
Project X-${capturetime:d"yyyy-MM-dd "}-${title}
Your file then saves as Project X-2026-09-14-Trello - Brave.png. If you only need one screenshot, use the Save as dialog and name it yourself.
Save captures to cloud storage
You have two ways to get screenshots into a cloud service such as pCloud:
- Use a batch file that saves the capture into a folder your cloud app uploads automatically.
- Use a WinSCP upload script that sends the file straight to a set location on the cloud server.
The same approach works with other cloud storage, or any other place you want captures to land.
Fully automate saving when you don’t need to edit
If you don’t need to edit a capture, you can take yourself out of the loop entirely.
- Set Greenshot to save automatically to a folder on your PC. A sync folder works well.
- Press your custom hotkey for the capture type you want.
Greenshot saves the file to that folder using your file naming pattern, with no further clicks.
Frequently asked questions
Is Greenshot free?
Yes. Greenshot is free and open source.
Why doesn’t the Windows Share option work in Greenshot?
Windows security updates keep changing the system, which can stop the Share option from working. As a workaround, use a script that opens the save folder in Explorer, then click Share there.
Can Greenshot send screenshots directly into Word or Jira?
Yes. Its Word plugin places the capture at your cursor in the open document, and the Jira plugin adds it to your report without you saving and inserting it by hand.
Do I need programming skills to use Greenshot’s plugins?
The built-in export options and external commands don’t need coding. Adding third-party plugins does, since it requires Visual Studio.
