If you want a screenshot extension that turns rough screen grabs into polished screenshots in seconds, Lustly and Awesome Screenshot are two Chrome extensions worth comparing. Both run inside Chrome on any operating system, but they solve different problems. Awesome Screenshot is a veteran tool built around screen recording, full-page capture, and cloud sharing for teams. Lustly is built for speed and style: select part of a page, add a macOS or Windows frame, drop in a background and shadow, annotate, then export a high-resolution PNG or copy it to your clipboard.
This guide breaks down the real differences between Lustly vs Awesome Screenshot so you can pick the right Awesome Screenshot alternative without signing up for accounts you do not need or paying for features you will never use.
What Lustly does best
Lustly is a Chrome extension for capturing and styling screenshots. After you click the extension icon, you drag to select any area of the current page. Lustly stores the shot locally, opens a visual editor, and lets you apply window frames, backgrounds, shadows, rounded corners, and padding. You can add arrows, rectangles, circles, freehand drawing, text labels, or blur and mask sensitive details. When you are done, you can download the result as a PNG or copy it straight to the clipboard.
The Pro tier adds custom branding, AI background removal, social media aspect ratios, 4K export, saved presets, and custom background uploads. None of the core styling requires an account, and the workflow stays inside the browser until you export.
What Awesome Screenshot does best
Awesome Screenshot is one of the most popular screen capture tools in the Chrome Web Store. Its strongest features are screen recording and cloud sharing. You can record your desktop, a browser tab, or your webcam, then upload the video to a shareable link. It also captures visible pages, selected regions, and full-page screenshots, then gives you annotation tools such as text, arrows, shapes, and blur.
Where it really stands out is collaboration. Teams can save captures to project folders, invite members, add comments, and connect the tool to Jira, Slack, or Trello. If your job is to report bugs, create documentation, or share async video updates, those team features are hard to beat.
Ease of use and first-run experience
Lustly is designed to be frictionless. Click the icon, select an area, and the editor opens. There is no onboarding wizard, no signup prompt, and no cloud dashboard to learn. Every control lives in the popup. If you just need a beautiful screenshot for a tweet, blog post, support ticket, or design review, you can finish in under a minute.
Awesome Screenshot is feature-rich, but that richness comes with more UI. The toolbar, menu options, and cloud saving steps can feel heavy if you only want a single annotated screenshot. Many useful features sit behind an account wall, so you will spend time deciding whether to sign up before you can share or organize captures.
Capture and editing workflows
Lustly's capture workflow is drag-to-select only. That keeps things simple, though it means you cannot record video or capture an entire scrolling page out of the box. Once the shot is open, editing is visual and immediate: change frames, swap backgrounds, adjust shadow size, and tweak corner radius with sliders. Fabric.js powers the annotation layer, so you can move, resize, and rotate every arrow, shape, or text element freely.
Awesome Screenshot supports more capture types: selected area, visible area, full page, delayed capture, and screen recording. Its annotation tools cover the basics and add features like numbered steps, which are handy for documentation. However, styling options are more limited than Lustly if your goal is a polished, shareable image rather than a functional markup.
Polished screenshots vs functional markup
This is the biggest difference between the two extensions. Lustly treats the screenshot as a design object. You can wrap it in a realistic macOS, Windows, or Linux window frame, place it on a gradient or textured background, and add a soft shadow. The result looks like a product mockup rather than a plain screen grab. For marketers, designers, indie hackers, and anyone posting screenshots online, that visual polish matters.
Awesome Screenshot focuses on clarity and communication. It is great for pointing out bugs, adding quick annotations, and sharing a link with teammates. It does not aim to make the screenshot itself beautiful, so you will not find presentation frames, custom backgrounds, or ratio presets for social platforms.
Sharing, privacy, and accounts
Lustly does not require an account for basic use. Your screenshot stays in local browser storage until you export or close the editor. That keeps data on your machine and removes signup friction. Sharing is manual: download the PNG or copy it to the clipboard and paste it where you want.
Awesome Screenshot leans on the cloud. Many features, including link sharing, team folders, and video hosting, require an account and store files on Awesome Screenshot servers. That is useful for collaboration, but it adds a privacy consideration and a dependency on the service. If you prefer local-first tools, Lustly feels lighter and safer.
Pricing and value
Lustly is free to use for capture, framing, annotation, and PNG export. Pro adds advanced styling and export options for users who need branding, AI background removal, social media ratios, 4K output, presets, and custom backgrounds. You only pay if you need those extras.
Awesome Screenshot has a free plan, but several features are gated behind premium plans. Cloud storage limits, longer recordings, team collaboration, and advanced integrations generally require a subscription. For an individual who only needs occasional screenshots, the paid tiers can feel like overkill. For a team that lives in shared capture workflows, the subscription may be worth it.
Verdict
Lustly vs Awesome Screenshot comes down to what you actually need from a screenshot extension. If your work depends on screen recording, cloud sharing, and team collaboration, Awesome Screenshot is the stronger choice. Its recording features, project folders, and integrations with tools like Jira and Slack are built for that environment.
If you want an Awesome Screenshot alternative that gives you instant, polished screenshots without forcing an account or bloating the UI, Lustly is the better fit. It is fast, local, and focused on making your screenshots look great. Add Lustly to Chrome to try the free version, or compare Lustly Pro plans if you need custom branding, AI background removal, and 4K export.