How to search your screenshots by the text inside them

Screenshots get saved with names like "Screenshot 2026-03-14 at 10.42.17", so finding one later means scrolling through hundreds of thumbnails. CaptrIQ reads the text in each screenshot, so you can find it by typing a word you remember: an error message, an invoice number, a name or a price.

How it works

When you're signed in, your captures sync to your CaptrIQ library in the cloud. CaptrIQ reads the text in every cloud capture automatically, a process called OCR (optical character recognition). Search then matches what you type against that text, as well as each capture's title and the address of the page it came from.

Search your screenshots

1. Add the free CaptrIQ extension to Chrome and take a few captures. You don't need an account to capture.
2. Sign in, from the extension or at captriq.com. New captures sync on their own from then on. You can turn syncing off in the extension's Settings.
3. Open your library at captriq.com.
4. Type a word or phrase you remember into the search box. Captures whose text, title or page address match appear as you type.
5. Narrow the results with tags and dates.

What Free and Pro search

• Free: searches your 25 most recent cloud captures.
• Pro and Team: search your whole library.

Searching by the text inside a screenshot works on captures in your cloud library. Captures that stay only on your computer aren't read, so sign in to make them searchable. See pricing for each plan's limits.

Tips for better results

• Search for words that stand out, such as a product name, an order number or part of an error message, rather than common words.
• Printed and on-screen text is read reliably. Handwriting and heavily stylized fonts are read less well.
• If a capture contains private details you'd rather not share, see how to hide sensitive information before sharing.