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How to Copy Text From a Screenshot on Mac (5 Ways)

Copy text from any Mac screenshot with Live Text in Preview, Quick Look or Photos, a Shortcuts action, a free browser OCR tool, or library-wide search.

6 min read
Muhammed BasilFounder & maker of Pizazoo

The fastest way to copy text from a screenshot on a Mac is Live Text: open the screenshot in Preview, drag across the words, then Control-click and choose Copy Text. Live Text has been part of macOS since Monterey (macOS 12) and is still there in macOS Tahoe 26 and macOS 27. Apple says Live Text uses on-device machine learning, "so user data is kept private."

That covers one screenshot you already have open. Below are the other four ways, for when you need text from many screenshots, from a computer that is not yours, or from a screenshot you cannot find yet.

How do I copy text from a screenshot in Preview?

Preview is the default app for screenshots, so this is the method most people need. Apple documents these steps for macOS Monterey 12 through macOS 27:

  • Double-click the screenshot to open it in Preview. Unless you changed the location, macOS saves screenshots to your desktop.
  • Hold the pointer over the text. When it turns into a text cursor, drag to select the words you want.
  • Control-click the selection and choose Copy Text, then paste it anywhere with Command-V.
  • The same menu offers Look Up, Translate and Search with your web search engine.
  • Phone numbers, email addresses and links show a small down arrow. Click it to call, send a message, compose an email or open the link.

If nothing selects, choose Tools > Text Selection in the menu bar. Apple notes the Text Selection tool may need to be turned on.

Can I copy text without opening the screenshot?

Yes, with Quick Look. Select the screenshot in Finder or on your desktop and press the Space bar. Live Text recognizes text in the Quick Look window too (MacRumors lists Safari, Photos, Preview and Quick Look among the places it works), so you can hover over the words, drag to select them and press Command-C. Press Space again to close the window.

This is the quickest route when you need a single line, such as an error code, a tracking number or a Wi-Fi password.

How do I copy text from a screenshot in Photos on Mac?

Mac screenshots do not go into the Photos app on their own, but iPhone and iPad screenshots do when you use iCloud Photos. To copy text from one of those:

  • Open Photos and double-click the screenshot.
  • Position the pointer over the text and drag to select it.
  • Control-click and choose Copy Text (or press Command-C). Share Text sends it straight to another app.

Why can't I select text in a screenshot?

Check three things:

  • Live Text is on. Open System Settings > General > Language & Region and make sure Live Text is turned on. Apple describes it as "Select text in images to copy or take action."
  • Your language is supported. Live Text is not available in all regions or languages. Apple's macOS Feature Availability page has the current list.
  • The text is legible. Tiny, blurry or heavily stylized text may not be recognized. If you can, zoom in on the source and capture it again.

How do I extract text from lots of screenshots at once?

Use the Shortcuts app. Its Extract Text from Image action uses Live Text to pull the text out of an image and is available on Mac, iPhone and iPad. Turned into a Finder Quick Action, it copies the text from any screenshot you select:

  • In Shortcuts, create a new shortcut and add Extract Text from Image, then Combine Text (useful when you select several screenshots), then Copy to Clipboard.
  • Open the shortcut's details and select Use as Quick Action.
  • Choose Apple menu > System Settings > Privacy & Security > Extensions > Finder, then turn on the shortcut.
  • In Finder, select one or more screenshots, Control-click, and choose Quick Actions > your shortcut. The text lands on your clipboard.

Apple's guide also shows how to put the same shortcut in the Services menu or give it a keyboard shortcut.

Can I extract text from an image without installing anything?

Yes. Our free Image to Text tool runs OCR inside your browser. Drop, paste or pick a screenshot, choose the text language (more than ten are offered, including English, Spanish, German, Japanese and Hindi), click Extract text, then Copy text or Download .txt. The OCR engine (Tesseract compiled to WebAssembly, about 4 MB) downloads once and then runs locally, so your image is never uploaded.

It is handy on a borrowed computer, a Windows PC or a Chromebook, where Live Text is not available. On your own Mac, Live Text is usually the quicker choice. Disclosure: we make Pizazoo and this free tool.

What if I don't know which screenshot has the text?

Live Text and Shortcuts only help once you have the right file open. With hundreds of files named "Screenshot 2026-..." on your desktop, finding it is usually the hard part.

That is the problem Pizazoo for Mac is built for. Disclosure: we make Pizazoo. It does not take screenshots. It watches the folders where the macOS screenshot tool, CleanShot X or Shottr save them, then runs Apple Vision OCR on every screenshot on your Mac. Text search across the whole library is part of the free tier:

  • Type any word you remember (an error message, an order number, a name) and the matching screenshots appear.
  • Each screenshot's recognized text sits in the inspector's Extracted Text card, with a Copy button.
  • Screenshots are also sorted into categories such as Code, Receipts, Chats and Errors automatically, on-device.

Pizazoo needs macOS 14 Sonoma or later. For the full workflow, see how to search text inside screenshots on Mac.

Which method should you use?

Method Best for Needs
Preview (Live Text) One screenshot you have open macOS 12 or later
Quick Look One line, without opening an app macOS 12 or later
Photos iPhone screenshots synced with iCloud Photos iCloud Photos turned on
Shortcuts Quick Action Several screenshots at once Shortcuts app
Image to Text web tool Any computer, nothing to install A web browser
Pizazoo search Finding the screenshot by its text first macOS 14 or later

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