Sync Screenshots from iPhone to Mac Without AirDrop
By Roman Resenchuk,
To sync screenshots from iPhone to Mac without AirDrop, install CloudShots on both devices and sign in to the same iCloud account. Every new screenshot then appears in CloudShots on your Mac, iPad and Apple Watch through your private iCloud, with no CloudShots server in between.
CloudShots is a screenshot app for iPhone, iPad and Mac that reads, names and syncs your screenshots, and I build it on weekends. I made it because I was tired of sending screenshots to myself.
The old routine is familiar. You take a screenshot on the iPhone, open the share sheet, pick AirDrop, wait for the Mac, then find the file in Downloads. Do that ten times a day and the screenshots stop being useful, because moving them costs more than the information inside them. The video shows the new routine: one screenshot on the iPhone, and a moment later it is in the CloudShots feed on the Mac, the iPad and the watch.
How to sync screenshots from iPhone to Mac, step by step
- Install CloudShots on your iPhone and give it Full Access to Photos, so it can read your Screenshots album.
- Install CloudShots on your Mac and sign in to the same iCloud account as on the iPhone.
- On the Mac, choose the folder CloudShots should watch. Your Desktop is preselected.
- Take a screenshot on the iPhone. It is imported in the background and synced through your private iCloud.
- Open CloudShots on the Mac, the iPad or the watch. The screenshot is already in the feed.
The same steps work in the other direction: a screenshot taken on the Mac shows up on the iPhone and the iPad. The Mac and iPhone sync guide walks through it in more detail.
Setup takes a few minutes and happens once. After that there is nothing left to do by hand: no share sheet, no waiting for a nearby device to appear, and no Downloads folder filling up with files you meant to delete. The screenshots simply arrive where you are working.
Where the screenshots go
Screenshots travel through your private iCloud. CloudShots has no server that stores them, so there is no account to create and nothing of yours sits on a machine I run. The iCloud screenshot manager page explains how iCloud keeps your library in step across devices.
On the Mac, the iPad and the iPhone you see the full feed. On the Apple Watch you see your recent screenshots, which is enough to glance at a boarding pass or a Wi-Fi password without taking your phone out.
What changes in a normal day
Nothing needs to be sent any more. A screenshot of a receipt on the iPhone is on the Mac when you sit down to file it. A screenshot of an error on the Mac is on the iPhone when you walk away from the desk. A page of notes on the iPad is next to both.
Because every device holds the same feed, you stop asking where a screenshot is. You search for what is inside it. CloudShots reads the text in each screenshot, so a word from the picture finds it, and the search guide shows how.
Free and Pro
Syncing works on the Free plan. Free syncs and searches your whole library and opens the newest 30 screenshots; Pro opens the rest.
FAQ
How do I sync screenshots from iPhone to Mac?
Install CloudShots on both devices and sign in to the same iCloud account. New screenshots on the iPhone then appear in CloudShots on the Mac within moments, with no AirDrop.
Do I need an account or a server to sync screenshots?
No. CloudShots uses your private iCloud, so there is no CloudShots account and no CloudShots server that stores your screenshots.
Do the screenshots also reach my iPad and Apple Watch?
Yes. The iPad shows the full CloudShots feed, and the Apple Watch shows your recent screenshots.
Can I sync screenshots taken on the Mac to the iPhone?
Yes. CloudShots on the Mac watches the folder you choose, and new screenshots sync to the iPhone and the iPad the same way.
Transcript
Stop AirDropping screenshots to yourself. I take a screenshot on my iPhone and it shows up on my Mac, my iPad and my watch. No servers. Download on CloudShots.app.
More guides
- How to automatically sync screenshots between Mac, iPhone and iPadOne private screenshot history that syncs both ways through iCloud: Mac to iPhone and iPad, and back.
- How to find a screenshot by the text inside itSearch by the words you remember seeing, on any of your devices.
- How to free up the space your screenshots takeClear synced originals from Photos and your Mac without losing your history.
- CloudShots is an iCloud screenshot manager for Mac, iPhone and iPadWhat lives in your own iCloud, how the library limit works, and what stays private.
- One screenshot history for your Mac, iPhone and iPadOne searchable history of every screenshot from your Mac, iPhone and iPad, synced through your own iCloud. Find any shot and free up storage.
- How to pin a screenshot on screen on MacKeep a screenshot floating above your other windows on Mac with ⌘P. Pin up to 6, move and resize them, close with Esc.
- How to redact or blur text and faces in a screenshot on MacBlur, pixelate or cover text, faces and objects in a screenshot on Mac. Redaction in CloudShots is non-destructive: your original stays untouched.
- How to add a background, padding and shadow to a screenshot on MacExport a Mac screenshot with a background, padding, rounded corners and a shadow using Export with Frame in CloudShots. Copy, save or share the result.
- All guides
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