How to annotate an app screenshot
To annotate an app screenshot, take the screenshot on your device, then open it in a markup tool: Markup on iPhone, Preview on Mac, or Snipping Tool on Windows. Add arrows, text callouts, and highlight boxes over the UI elements you want to flag. To collect feedback back from a client — not just send your own notes — share a link they can annotate in any browser with no account.
Take and annotate on iPhone (fastest for app screens)
Press Power + Volume Up to capture the app screen, then tap the thumbnail in the bottom-left corner before it fades. This opens Markup immediately — you get a pen, highlighter, text box, shapes, and an arrow tool. Tap the + to add a text callout and drag it to the UI element you're flagging. For cleaner call-outs than freehand circles, use the shape tool: tap the squiggle, draw any shape, pause — iOS auto-corrects it to a crisp rectangle or circle. Tap Done to save to Photos. Most designers doing rounds of app feedback keep a dedicated album so annotated screenshots don't get lost among camera roll photos.
On Mac with Preview
Open your app screenshot in Preview (the macOS default viewer). Press Shift ⌘ A to show the Markup Toolbar if it's not already visible. The arrow tool is the one designers reach for first — click and drag from tail to tip. The text tool lets you add a callout label; pair it with a shape border if you want a speech-bubble look. To annotate multiple elements in a sequence, use the text tool's number stamps (click the 'A' in a circle). One thing to know: Preview annotations are saved as embedded layers in the file, so if the client opens the PNG in something other than Preview, they may see a flat image. If round-tripping is the goal, export as PDF from Preview (File → Export as PDF) — PDF annotations survive more readers.
On Windows with Snipping Tool or Paint
If you're on Windows and the app screenshot is already on your machine (via ADB, emulator screenshot, or sent from a phone), open it in the Snipping Tool by pressing Windows + Shift + S and selecting an existing screenshot from the editor. Use the pen and text tools to add notes. For numbered call-outs — the kind that match a numbered list of changes — Microsoft Paint's text tool handles that, but free tools like ShareX and Greenshot (both open-source) give you arrow presets, blur boxes for redacting sensitive data, and step-number stamps that make annotating a long screen of UI elements much faster.
In your browser — any OS, no install
Browser-based annotators let you upload the screenshot and add arrows, text, and shapes without installing anything. Markup Hero, Annotely, and annotation.com all work this way — drag in the image, annotate, download or copy a share link. This is useful when you're switching between devices or annotating screenshots from Figma exports, emulator snapshots, or client-supplied images. The limit is that you annotate and send; if the client needs to mark up the same image back to you, they'd need to upload it themselves to the same tool — which rarely happens. You end up emailing two separately annotated files and reconciling them.
When you need the client's feedback on specific UI elements
The hardest part of app screenshot annotation isn't marking it up yourself — it's getting your client's feedback pinned to the right spot. The typical flow: annotate the screenshot, export it as a PNG or PDF, email it, wait. The client opens it in whatever viewer they have, screenshots the email, circles something in red, and sends it back. By round two, you're comparing two blurry annotated images trying to figure out if 'the button' in theirs matches 'the button' in yours. A shared review link solves this: you share one URL, your client clicks the exact element in the app screen, and their note pins right there. No file attachments, no version confusion — one thread per element, one place to reply and resolve.
If you're annotating an app screenshot to collect client feedback — not just to document your own notes — skip the export step entirely. Drop the screenshot into Drafty, share the link, and your client clicks the exact UI element they mean and pins a note right to it. No account, no download, works on their phone. You see the comment anchored to the spot, reply in the thread, and when you ship a new version it lives on the same link. Designers use this for app review rounds specifically because the client never has to figure out markup tools — they just tap and type.
Open a live demoQuestions
- How do I annotate an app screenshot on iPhone?
- Take the screenshot (Power + Volume Up), then tap the thumbnail before it disappears — this opens Markup immediately. Add text callouts, arrows, and shapes directly on the app screen. Tap Done to save. For crisp shapes instead of freehand circles, draw any rough shape and pause — iOS auto-corrects it.
- How do I annotate an app screenshot on Android?
- Take the screenshot, then open it in your Gallery or Photos app and tap Edit. Look for a Draw or Markup option (Samsung has a built-in pen tool; stock Android's varies by version). For more structured annotation — numbered steps, blur, arrows — a free browser-based tool like Annotely lets you upload the screenshot and mark it up without installing anything.
- What is the best free tool to annotate app screenshots?
- For your own notes: Preview on Mac and Snipping Tool on Windows are both free and built-in. For round-trip client feedback, tools like Markup Hero and annotation.com work in the browser with no account. If you need the client to annotate back to you without emailing files, a link-based review tool is more practical.
- How do I share an annotated app screenshot with a client?
- Export as PNG and email it — straightforward for a single pass. If you expect the client to annotate it back, share a browser-based review link instead. That way their notes come back pinned to the exact element rather than as a separately annotated image file you have to reconcile with your own.
- Can my client annotate an app screenshot without installing anything?
- Yes — if you share a review link rather than a file. They open the URL in any browser on desktop or phone, click the UI element they mean, and pin a note. No download, no account. This avoids the back-and-forth of emailing annotated image files with each round of feedback.
- How do I annotate an emulator or simulator screenshot?
- Emulator and simulator screenshots save to your machine as standard PNG files. Open them in Preview (Mac), Snipping Tool (Windows), or drag them into any browser-based annotator. The workflow is the same as annotating a screenshot from a real device — the only difference is how you capture them (most emulators have a camera icon in the toolbar).
Keep exploring
Stop emailing files back and forth.
Share one link. They comment on the exact spot — no account, always the current version.