Support
Help and answers for Shotty.
Shotty reads every screenshot on your iPhone or iPad, pulls out the text, and builds a private index you can search in an instant. Type a name, a number, a place, or a single word, and the right screenshot shows up right away. Everything happens on the device. No server, no cloud, no account, no API.
Frequently asked questions
What does Shotty do?
Shotty is a private, on-device screenshot organizer. It scans your Photos library for screenshots, runs Vision OCR and NaturalLanguage tagging on each one, and stores the result in a local index. You can then search screenshots by the words inside them, accept or hide suggested tags, add your own tags, view screenshots fullscreen, copy extracted text, and delete screenshots.
Why does Shotty need Photos access?
Shotty reads screenshots from your Photos library and needs Full or Limited Photos access to index them. ReadWrite access is requested because deleting a screenshot from inside Shotty is supported. No photos are uploaded anywhere.
The Inbox looks empty. Is something wrong?
If your Photos library has no screenshots, Shotty will show an empty Inbox by design. Shotty only reads assets with the screenshot media subtype, regular photos and videos are ignored. Take at least one screenshot on the device, reopen Shotty, and it will be indexed in the background.
How does search rank results?
Results rank by tag match, filename, suggested tag, full extracted text, then word match. Each result shows the reason it matched so you can tell why a screenshot surfaced.
Does Shotty upload my screenshots anywhere?
No. Everything happens on device. There is no server, no cloud, no account, no API, no analytics, and no SDK that phones home, verifiable with a network proxy. OCR runs through Apple Vision and language tagging through NaturalLanguage, all locally.
Are there accounts, subscriptions, or ads?
No accounts, no sign-up, no in-app purchases, no subscriptions, no paywalls, and no advertising SDKs. Shotty is free.
What devices does Shotty run on?
iPhone and iPad.
What happens if I deny Photos access?
Shotty shows a permission card with an Allow Photos Access button. Tapping it reopens the system prompt, or opens system Photos settings if Limited access was chosen. No crash, no empty screen without explanation.
Permissions
- Photos (Full or Limited access), required to read screenshots and to support deleting them. No photos leave the device.
- No camera, microphone, location, contacts, or other permissions are requested.
Requirements
- iPhone and iPad
- At least one screenshot in Photos to see content in the Inbox
Privacy
- All OCR runs on device with Apple Vision.
- All language tagging runs on device with NaturalLanguage.
- All storage is local SwiftData.
- No analytics, no tracking, no account.
- Shotty only reads the screenshots you let it see.
Get in touch
Still stuck? Email and you'll get a real reply from a real person, usually within a day.