How to highlight text with Highlite
Updated
Comparing ways to do this, not only with Highlite? Read How to Highlight & Save Text on Any Website (Free).
Steps
- Open the page and click the Highlite icon to show the toolbar.
- Click Highlight in the toolbar, or press H.
- Pick a color in the panel that appears. The highlighter uses color only: the S to XL sizes do not apply to it.
- Select the text you want to mark. A selection can run across several paragraphs; Highlite colors each piece of text it covers.
- To remove a highlight, hover it and click its delete button, or switch to Eraser (E) and click it. Undo (Ctrl+Z, or Cmd+Z on Mac) works too.
Use colors as a legend
The colors are the same on every page. Give each one a meaning, for example one for key points, one for errors, one for questions, and the highlights stay readable in the screenshot you send later.
Adding a comment to a highlight
Highlights carry no text of their own. To explain one, place a sticky note or a text box next to it, or draw an arrow from the comment to the highlighted words.
Limitations
- Highlite stores the highlighted words and their position in the page text. If the site changes that text, the highlight is not shown on your next visit.
- Annotations are tied to the exact page address. The same article opened with something different after a ? or a # in the address counts as a different page.
- Text inside images, PDFs opened in the browser viewer, apps that draw their text as an image (some online editors and whiteboards) and browser pages cannot be highlighted.
- Highlights are not searchable, and there is no list of every page you highlighted.
Premium is an optional plan ($4.99/month or $49.99/year) that adds Markdown and JSON export and sending screenshots to Slack, Discord or a webhook. Every annotation tool and screenshots stay free. See pricing
Frequently asked questions
Do my highlights stay after I close the browser?
Yes. They are saved in your browser as soon as you make them. After a restart Highlite starts switched off, so click its icon on the page and the highlights come back.
Can I highlight a whole page at once?
Yes, by dragging from the first word to the last: the browser scrolls when the pointer reaches the bottom of the window, and zooming out shortens the drag. Select all (Ctrl+A) does not work, because Highlite creates the highlight when you release the mouse.
Can I highlight text in a PDF?
No. PDFs opened in the browser's built-in viewer cannot be highlighted with Highlite, and neither can text inside images or apps that draw their text as an image.
Can other people see my highlights?
Not on their own screen. Highlights stay in your browser. To share them, capture a screenshot of the page or, with Premium, copy them as Markdown or export the annotations as a JSON file.