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How to pin a screenshot on your screen on Mac
By Ziad Ziadeh, Snapline’s developer · Published 7 September 2026 · Last updated 10 September 2026
The short version
- macOS has no universal always-on-top toggle. Stickies has its own Float on Top command, which can keep a pasted screenshot visible.
- Free route: paste the screenshot into a new Stickies note. Choose Window → Float on Top to keep the note above ordinary windows.
- Snapline pins any capture as its own floating window above every app, one click from the capture itself, no second app to open or position.
What macOS gives you (and doesn't)
macOS has no universal always-on-top control for arbitrary windows. Some apps provide their own: Stickies can float a note containing your screenshot. Preview and the screenshot toolbar do not provide a dedicated screenshot-pinning command.
| Method | Floats above other windows | Over a full-screen app | Extra app or permission | Cost model |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ⇧⌘3 / ⇧⌘4 alone | No, it's just a saved file | N/A | None | Free, preinstalled |
| Stickies note | Yes, with Float on Top | Not guaranteed by All Desktops | None | Free, preinstalled |
| Split View | No, side by side instead | N/A | None | Free, preinstalled |
| Snapline Pin | Yes, above every app | Not a separate setting | None | One-time license; free to try |
The free route: a Stickies note
Stickies is included with macOS. Paste an image into a note and choose Window → Float on Top to keep it above ordinary windows.
- Copy a region with ⌃⇧⌘4, or the whole screen with ⌃⇧⌘3. Holding Control copies the capture to the clipboard instead of saving a file. See Apple’s screenshot shortcuts.
- Open Stickies from Spotlight (⌘Space, type Stickies).
- Press ⌘N for a new note, then ⌘V to paste the screenshot in. The note resizes around the image; drag a corner to resize it further, or drag the note itself to reposition it.
- Choose Window → Float on Top for this note. To show Stickies on other desktop Spaces, use its Dock icon’s Options → All Desktops. This is a desktop assignment, not a guarantee that it overlays full-screen apps.
Partial fix: Split View
macOS's built-in Split View (hold the green button on a window, or Mission Control's Tile options) puts two windows side by side, filling the screen between them. If you open the screenshot in Preview and tile it against the app you're working in, it's genuinely visible the whole time, no floating window needed. The trade-off is that it isn't floating: it claims half the screen, and it can't sit on top of a third window the way a pinned note or a pinned card can.
Where the free routes stop
Stickies gets you a floating window for free, but it's a repurposed note app, not a screenshot tool: pasting is a manual step every time, resizing to the exact size you want takes some dragging, and there's no crop, no arrow to point at the part that matters, and no way to tell at a glance which of several open notes holds which screenshot. All Desktops makes Stickies appear on each desktop Space. For a full-screen workflow, verify visibility in the app you use or work with ordinary windows side by side. It's a fine fix for the occasional "keep this address visible while I type it into a form," and not much more than that.
Built-in pinning: Snapline
Snapline pins a capture as its own floating window with one action, no note app in the middle:
- Capture something with ⌥⌘S (rebindable), which opens the Quick Access card in the corner.
- Click the pin action on the card, or open the shot in the editor first and click Pin to Screen in its toolbar if you want to crop, annotate, or redact something before it floats.
- The pinned window carries a hairline border and a hover toolbar, and stays above every other app until you close it. Each capture you pin gets its own window, so several references can stay open at once.
- A scrolling capture's tall image pins the same way, fit to width with vertical scrolling inside the pinned window.
Pinning is screenshot-only: a recording or a converted GIF opens with Play in your video player instead. Snapline is free to try in full for 14 days (after the trial, capture unlocks with a one-time license: no subscription, no account) and requires macOS 14 or later. Screen Recording is needed for screen capture; pinning an existing screenshot asks for no extra permission.
Questions
Does Mac have a built-in way to pin a screenshot on screen?
Not directly. macOS has no universal always-on-top toggle for arbitrary windows. The closest free option is pasting the screenshot into a Stickies note and choosing Window → Float on Top.
How do I keep a screenshot always on top of other windows on Mac?
Copy the screenshot with ⌃⇧⌘4, paste it into a new Stickies note, and choose Window → Float on Top. All Desktops can show Stickies across desktop Spaces, but does not guarantee an overlay on full-screen apps. Snapline has a dedicated Pin action for screenshots.
Why doesn't Split View keep a screenshot on top?
Split View tiles two windows side by side rather than floating one above the other, so it uses half the screen and can't overlap what you're working on. It's a reasonable stand-in when you just need the image visible at a glance, not a substitute for a floating window.
Can Snapline pin a screen recording or a GIF?
No, pinning is screenshot-only, including a scrolling capture's tall image. A finished recording opens with Play in your video player instead.
Can I pin more than one screenshot at a time on Mac?
With Stickies, yes, one note per screenshot. Snapline works the same way: each capture you pin opens its own floating window, so several references can stay up at once.