Unpixel Help Center
Everything about using Unpixel: from your first capture to settings, automation and fixing permission problems. Start typing to find an article.
Getting started
- Getting started with UnpixelFrom download to your first copied text in five steps: install Unpixel, activate your license, allow Screen Recording, pick a shortcut and try a capture.
- Unpixel system requirementsUnpixel needs a Mac with Apple silicon and macOS 26 Tahoe or later. How to check your chip and macOS version, and why Intel Macs and older macOS can’t run it.
- What Unpixel can’t doKnow Unpixel’s limits before you rely on it: protected video shows black, no scrolling capture or searchable PDFs, Mac only, and caps on handwriting and pages.
- Install Unpixel on your MacDownload Unpixel, move it to Applications, approve the first launch if macOS asks, and find its icon in the menu bar. Plus how to install a new version later.
- Allow Screen Recording for UnpixelUnpixel needs the Screen & System Audio Recording permission to read the area you select. Turn it on, relaunch if macOS asks, and check that it’s working.
- Launch Unpixel at login, or quit itHave Unpixel start in the menu bar every time you log in, find it in Login Items & Extensions, quit it properly, and fix it when it doesn’t open at login.
- Update Unpixel to a new versionHow Unpixel tells you a new version is out, how to check by hand, install the update yourself, read the release notes, and turn the daily check off.
- Accessibility in UnpixelHow Unpixel works with VoiceOver, Reduce Motion, Reduce Transparency and the keyboard, and other ways to read text when dragging a selection is hard for you.
- Uninstall Unpixel completelyRemove Unpixel from your Mac: deactivate the license first, quit and delete the app, then clear its history, settings, Screen Recording entry and keychain item.
Capturing text
- Your first capture with UnpixelPress ⇧⌘2, drag over any text on screen, let go and paste. A step-by-step first capture with Unpixel, how to cancel, and what ends up on your clipboard.
- Change or clear the capture shortcutRecord a new capture shortcut in Unpixel’s settings, reset it to ⇧⌘2 or clear it, understand the orange warning, and start a capture without a shortcut.
- Selecting an area: tips and controlsMake precise selections with Unpixel’s crosshair: read the size label, hold Space to move the rectangle, cancel cleanly, and capture on any connected display.
- Read the same area again with Capture AgainPress ⇧⌘1 to read the area of your last selection again without dragging. Add ⌥ to translate, change or clear the shortcut, and see what each message means.
- Add captures to the clipboard instead of replacing itHold ⇧ as you let go of a selection and Unpixel adds the text after what’s on the clipboard, so several passages paste at once. Separators, tables and limits.
- The “Copied” confirmation and capture soundWhat each Unpixel confirmation means, from Copied to No text found, how to turn the bubble or the capture sound on and off, and which messages always appear.
- The menu bar panel and icon menuFind your way around Unpixel’s menu bar icon: what a click and a right-click open, every part of the panel, its More menu, the footer and the pulsing icon.
- Unpixel keyboard shortcutsEvery keyboard shortcut in Unpixel: ⇧⌘2 to capture, ⇧⌘1 to read the same area again, ⌥ to translate, ⇧ to add, Esc to cancel, and the menu bar panel keys.
Recognition settings
- Recognition mode and language correctionChoose Accurate or Fast recognition in Unpixel, see when a capture switches to Accurate by itself, and decide when language correction helps or gets in the way.
- Recognition languages and automatic detectionLet Unpixel detect the language of each capture or choose one. Which languages Vision reads on macOS 26, mixed-language text, and tips for Asian scripts.
- Keep or join line breaksUnpixel’s Keep line breaks setting copies text line by line as it wraps on screen, or joins each paragraph into one line while lists keep their own lines.
QR codes, barcodes and links
- QR codes, barcodes and opening QR linksCapture a QR code or barcode with Unpixel to copy what it contains, see which code types it reads, and decide whether web links in QR codes open by themselves.
- Links in captures: detection and Open LinkWhen a capture is one web address, Unpixel copies it as a link and files it under Links in history. What counts as a link, what doesn’t, and how to open one.
Tables
- Tables: detection and paste formatsHow Unpixel spots a table in your selection, pastes it as real cells in Numbers, Excel, Google Sheets and Notes, and what text-only apps get instead.
- Copy a table again as Markdown, CSV or textRight-click a table in Unpixel’s history to copy it again as a Markdown table, as CSV for import tools, or as plain text, without capturing it a second time.
Translation
Images, PDFs and the clipboard
- Open images and PDFs to copy their textUse Open Image… in Unpixel to copy the text from image files and PDFs: supported formats, scans up to 50 pages, several files at once, and progress notes.
- Drag and drop files, or use Open WithDrop an image or PDF on Unpixel’s menu bar icon or panel, or Control-click it in Finder and choose Open With → Unpixel, to copy its text without a file dialog.
- Read text from a copied imageCopied a screenshot, an image from a web page or an image file? Choose From Clipboard in Unpixel to copy its text, with no file to save and no area to select.
- Copy text from Finder with the Services menuRight-click images or PDFs in Finder and choose Services → Copy Text with Unpixel, or start a capture from any app’s Services menu, with a shortcut if you like.
History
- Capture history: search and filtersFind an earlier capture in Unpixel’s history: search by text, app or file name, filter by Text, Links or QR Codes, read each row’s caption, and copy it again.
- History row actions: copy, translate, share, deleteEvery command on a capture in Unpixel’s history: Copy, Copy as Markdown or CSV, Copy Original, Translate & Copy, Open Link, Share… and Delete, plus their keys.
- History settings: limit, turn off or clear historyChoose how many captures Unpixel keeps, turn history off, clear it for good and find the history file. Your capture history is stored only on this Mac.
Automation
- URL scheme reference: unpixel:// commandsEvery unpixel:// command, with examples for Terminal, Raycast, Alfred and Shortcuts, what happens when Unpixel isn’t running, and what the links can’t do.
- Get captured text in Shortcuts with x-callback-urlUse Shortcuts’ Open X-Callback URL action with unpixel://x-callback-url links to capture, read the clipboard or a file and get the text back in your shortcut.
License and purchase
- Licenses and pricing: 1, 2 or 3 MacsUnpixel costs $5.99 for one Mac, $9.99 for two or $13.99 for three, paid once. No subscription, no trial, a 14-day refund window and 1.x updates included.
- Buying Unpixel: checkout, receipts and taxesHow buying Unpixel works: Dodo Payments runs checkout as the Merchant of Record, adds any tax, emails your receipt and license key, and keeps your invoices.
- Activate your Unpixel licenseActivate Unpixel with the key from your purchase email, in the welcome guide or in Settings → License, use the Activate in Unpixel button, and fix errors.
- Move your license to another MacFree your Unpixel license on the old Mac with Deactivate This Mac, activate the key on the new one, and what to do when the old Mac is broken, sold or gone.
- License activation errors explainedWhat each Unpixel license message means and how to fix it: all Macs in use, key not found, key disabled, license no longer valid, or an unreadable keychain.
- Lost your license key? How to find it againFind your Unpixel license key again: search your email for the Dodo Payments receipt, copy it from an activated Mac, use the customer portal, or ask support.
- Using Unpixel offline and the 30-day license checkUnpixel reads text without internet. See when it checks your license, how the 30 days offline work, and what to do when it asks you to verify your license.
- Refunds and the 14-day money-back guaranteeAsk for a refund within 14 days of buying Unpixel: how to request it, what to include, how long the money takes, and what happens to your license afterwards.
Privacy
Troubleshooting
- Troubleshooting UnpixelUnpixel not working? Fix the common problems in one place: a shortcut that does nothing, captures with no text, black video, translations and license errors.
- Reset Unpixel’s settingsPut every Unpixel setting back to its default with Reset All Settings…, see which defaults return and what stays untouched, and open the welcome guide again.
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