Searching

Updated 1 September 2026

Press ⌥Space anywhere to open the overlay, or use the search field in the Library window. Both search the same index.

The three modes

Exact matches the words as recognized, with prefix matching as you type — so conn finds connection before you finish the word. This is the default and the fastest.

Smart fallback runs automatically when exact search finds nothing. It allows a bounded number of character differences, so recieve still finds receive and a misread 0/O doesn’t hide the capture.

Meaning finds captures related to what you typed rather than containing it — useful when you remember what a screenshot was about but not a single word on it. Entirely on-device, like everything else.

Switch modes from the control in the overlay footer.

Keys in the overlay

• ↑ ↓ move through results
• Return copies the recognized text
• ⌘Return copies the image
• ⇧Return copies both
• Esc dismisses

When you can’t remember any of the words

Stop typing and start filtering. The things the app knows without you telling it are often faster than recall:

• Source app — “it was from Slack”
• Date range — “some time in July”
• Content type — code, terminal, error, receipt, chat, article, UI
• Has a link, has an amount, has a tracking number

See Filters & collections.

Why a screenshot isn’t found

Recognition hasn’t run yet. New captures are read within seconds, but a large backlog import takes time. The Library shows a pending state per item.

There genuinely is no text. A photo, a diagram or a chart with no labels is stored and filterable, but has nothing to match. The app marks these explicitly rather than looking broken.

The text was too small or too low-contrast when captured. Recognition is very good on screen text and imperfect on a photo of a screen. See Text recognition problems.

You’re searching a word that was cut off at the edge of the capture.

Search feels slow

It shouldn’t. Search is designed to feel instant as you type, and stays that way on a large library.

If it isn’t, the likely cause is text recognition running at the same time on a large import. Let the import finish, or pause it from Settings → Capture.

Didn't answer it? Write tosupport@screenshotinbox.com — one person reads it, and questions that land here twice become a new page.