How to Use Screenpipe to Recover Information You Saw on Screen

Knowledge workers lose track of valuable information constantly — a URL they saw, a snippet they read, or a code block they glanced at. Screenpipe turns your screen into a searchable knowledge base. Here is how to use Screenpipe to recover information you saw but forgot to save.

Step 1: Set Up Continuous Capture

Install Screenpipe and let it run in the background. It records your screen and uses OCR locally, so every document, website, and app you view becomes searchable text.

Step 2: Search by Keyword

When you forget where you saw a detail, type a keyword into Screenpipe‘s search. It scans the full timeline of your screen history and returns the exact moment that text appeared.

Step 3: Use Semantic Search

Beyond exact words, Screenpipe supports semantic search, letting you describe a concept in your own words and find related content even if you do not remember the exact phrasing.

Step 4: Retrieve Code and URLs

Developers and researchers can search for specific code snippets or URLs seen on screen. This saves the hassle of re-searching documentation or scrolling back through browser history.

Step 5: Stay Private

Because Screenpipe processes everything on-device, you can search sensitive documents and personal notes without sending them to a server. This privacy is a major reason people choose it.

By capturing and indexing everything on your screen, Screenpipe gives you an effortless way to find information you viewed but never saved.

Based on trending questions from Google Trends and Quora.