TRex
A Mac menu bar app that copies any text on screen to the clipboard using OCR.
- Verified facts
- 4 of 4
- Alternatives ranked
- 3
- Approved reviews
- 0
- Visits sent from here
- 0
About TRex
TRex is a small macOS utility for grabbing text you can't select: a scanned PDF, a screenshot, a paused video or a screen share. You press a shortcut, drag over the area like a screenshot, and the recognised text lands in your clipboard. It also reads QR codes and barcodes, lets you set the recognition language and a custom word list, and can open URLs it finds. Power users can trigger captures via URL schemes, a bundled command-line tool, Alfred and Raycast, or pass the result to a Shortcuts action. Recognition uses Apple's on-device frameworks, so everything works offline. TRex lives in the menu bar with almost no interface. The source is MIT-licensed and free to download from GitHub or Homebrew, and it's also sold on the Mac App Store for those who prefer that route. It runs on macOS 11 and later, with no Windows or mobile version.
Best for: Mac users who often need to copy text from images, videos or locked PDFs.
Pros and cons
What works
- Free and open source, with an optional App Store purchase
- Works fully offline using on-device recognition
- Shortcuts, URL scheme and CLI hooks for automation
Why people leave
- Mac only; no Windows, Linux or iOS version
- Does single captures only, not batch OCR of documents
- Minimal interface with no history of past captures
Top TRex alternatives
See all 3- 1
Snagit66.2Cross-platform capture suite with a Grab Text tool, for teams on Windows and Mac.
- 2
CleanShot X52.6Paid all-in-one Mac capture app that includes text recognition alongside screenshots.
- 3
TextSniper40.0Paid alternative that adds text-to-speech and barcode reading to quick screen OCR.
Why people left TRex
In reviewers' own words, from reviews of the apps they moved to. These are their opinions, not ours.
No switching stories yet. If you moved away from TRex, review the app you switched to and tell us why.
Reviews
No approved reviews yet. How we verify reviewers
Write a review of TRex
TRex: common questions
Is TRex free?
Yes. TRex is free, open-source software.
Is TRex open source?
No, TRex is not open source.
What platforms does TRex run on?
TRex is available for macOS.
What are the best alternatives to TRex?
The highest-ranked TRex alternatives right now are Snagit, CleanShot X and TextSniper. See the full ranked list for pricing, platforms and verified facts.