Some tools you install and forget. Ashampoo Snap 17 is the opposite — it tucks itself away as a thin coloured strip along the top edge of your screen and only wakes up when you slide your cursor over it. No clutter, no pop-ups begging for attention. Yet the moment you need to grab something on screen, it’s already there.

I’ve followed this software line for years on Techno360, and the pattern is reliable: Ashampoo runs a free full-version promo for each new release, and the community grabs it while it lasts. This round is Snap 17, and the key is being handed out right now. Here’s everything worth knowing before you claim yours.

What Ashampoo Snap 17 actually does

Calling it a “screenshot app” undersells it. Snap 17 handles the everyday rectangle grab, sure, but it also captures a single window, an entire scrolling webpage, a free-hand region you draw yourself, and full-motion video of your desktop. My favourite bit is the text recognition: mark an area with words in it, and Snap pulls the letters out as editable text instead of a flat picture. Handy when you want to copy something a website won’t let you highlight.

Once a capture lands, the editor pops open on its own. Free users can save straight away; the full version you’re claiming today unlocks the extras — numbering that auto-increments, callout comments, stickers, highlighters, and blur for anything you’d rather not show. For quick how-tos and tutorials, that combination saves a genuinely silly amount of time.

The new stuff in version 17

Ashampoo reworked more than the paint job this time. A few changes you’ll actually feel day to day:

• Quick Access bar — your most-used capture modes sit one click away instead of buried in menus.
• Rebuilt video editor — a cleaner interface plus faster export to MP4 (H.264). You can also spit out clips as GIF, pull just the audio, or grab a single frame as an image.
• Smarter scroll capture — long, awkward pages that used to trip up the old engine now stitch together far more cleanly.
• Lighter footprint — quicker launch, snappier response, and less drain on your system while it sits idle.
• Quality-of-life touches — drag-and-drop support, a collapsible menu bar, a modern print dialog, and a sharing button with a smoother web upload.

How to get your Ashampoo Snap 17 free license

The whole thing splits into three short moves: request the key, download the installer, then activate. Follow along.

Step 1 — Request the full-version key

Open the official Ashampoo promo page and drop in your email address, then hit Request full version key. You’ll be asked to sign in to a free Ashampoo account (or make one on the spot). Once you’re in, the page shows your personal license code. Copy it somewhere safe — you’ll need it during install.

👉 Promo page: Ashampoo Snap 17 free key request →

Step 2 — Download the installer

The setup file lives on CHIP’s download page. Open it, click Manual installation, wait a couple of seconds, and the big blue Download button lights up. That pulls a single ZIP of about 218 MB — no extra wrapper installer to click through, which is exactly how we like it.

👉 CHIP download page: Get the Snap 17 installer →
Prefer to skip the clicks? The direct file link points to the same ZIP.

Once the ZIP finishes, extract it. Inside you’ll find the Snap 17 setup file (ashampoo_snap_17_*.exe) and a small text note. Double-click the EXE to begin.

Step 3 — Activate and you’re done

Run the installer. Early on, it stops at a license screen asking for your key. Paste the code you copied in Step 1, click Activate now!, and let the rest of the install finish. That’s it — the full version is yours, no expiry timer running in the background.

After launch, Snap lives quietly in your system tray. Right-click the tray icon for the full menu — capture, record video, capture all screens, open either editor, and settings all sit there.

Is it worth grabbing?

If you write tutorials, file bug reports, teach remotely, or just explain things faster with a picture than with paragraphs, Snap 17 pays for itself instantly — mostly because it costs nothing today. The OCR and auto-numbering alone put it a notch above Windows’ built-in Snipping Tool. The one thing to remember: this is a promo, so the newsletter opt-in is the price of entry, and the offer window won’t stay open forever.

Prefer to compare before you commit? We’ve covered the earlier releases too — see our Ashampoo Snap 16 free license guide, the Snap 15 full version walkthrough, and the older Snap 12 giveaway. For more capture and recording freebies, browse our full screen recording tools hub.

Frequently Asked Questions