Use case · buy once, keep it
The category went subscription. PrintScreen.ly didn't. Pay once, own the cross-device library forever — and the screenshot tool itself is free.
Mac · Windows · web · lifetime $59.99 (also $3.99/mo or $24.99/yr)
If you're searching for a screenshot tool with a lifetime license, you've probably noticed the trend: the category went subscription. Snagit removed its perpetual license and went subscription-only. CleanShot X sells a one-time app license but puts unlimited cloud behind a monthly plan. Zight, Jumpshare, Droplr, and Gyazo Pro are all recurring. The free, simple tools either don't sync across your devices or upload everything to a public-style host. So a reasonable question — “can I just buy a good screenshot tool once?” — has gotten surprisingly hard to answer.
PrintScreen.ly answers it: $59.99, one time, forever.
It means you pay $59.99 once and the synced cross-device library is yours — no renewal, no “renew to keep getting updates,” no per-seat math. There's also a $3.99/month and a $24.99/year option if you'd rather not pay upfront, but the lifetime is the headline and the reason most people land on this page.
Just as important: the screenshot tool itself is free. You do not need the lifetime license to capture, mark up, save, and share screenshots. On Mac and Windows, region/window/scrolling/ fullscreen capture, the full 8-tool markup editor (pen, highlighter, arrow, shapes, text, blur/redact, crop, unlimited undo), on-device text grab (OCR), local save, and clipboard copy are all free with no account. The lifetime license only unlocks the cross-device layer: cloud upload, a synced web library, shareable links, and cross-device clipboard.
Ex-perpetual refugees
People who bought a screenshot tool years ago, fully expecting to own it, and got moved onto a subscription. The frustration is real and the math is simple: a one-time $59.99 beats an indefinite annual fee.
People who use more than one computer
A lifetime license that spans Mac, Windows, and a web library is more useful than a single-OS one-time purchase.
People who hate subscription creep
If you're consolidating recurring software costs, a buy-once screenshot tool is an easy win.
A lifetime license is a real advantage, but it doesn't make PrintScreen.ly better at everything, so here's the honest part:
No screen recording or GIF
PrintScreen.ly is a still-screenshot tool. If you need video or animated GIFs, tools like Snagit, CleanShot X, Zight, or Jumpshare do that and we don't.
No beautification
No gradient backgrounds, device frames, or auto-padding. Xnapper owns that; we don't compete there.
The synced storage is a fixed 2 GB
It's enough for a large personal screenshot history, but it's a real, advertised cap — not unlimited.
Mobile is a companion soft-launch
iOS and Android clients exist and honor the same free/Pro split, but they're not a separately marketed standalone purchase surface — the lifetime is purchased on Mac, Windows, or web.
If your needs are “capture a region, annotate it clearly, keep a private history that's on every machine I own, and never think about a renewal again,” a lifetime screenshot license is exactly the right purchase — and there are very few left in the category. PrintScreen.ly is one of them. You can use it free forever for local work and only ever pay the one-time $59.99 if and when you want your library to follow you across devices.
Free, complete local capture and markup on Mac and Windows. The optional cross-device library is $59.99 once — no renewal.
Get PrintScreen.lyRelated
PrintScreen.ly overview
Capture, the 8-tool editor, the synced library — the full feature list and pricing.
PrintScreen.ly vs Snagit
The lifetime-vs-subscription head-to-head, told honestly — including where Snagit wins.
A Skitch replacement
A maintained, cross-platform successor in Skitch's capture-and-annotate spirit.
PrintScreen.ly vs CleanShot X
Cross-platform lifetime versus Mac-only polish with subscription cloud.