Top 15 Best Free Video Recording Software [Any Device]

Jane Zhou updated on Oct 30, 2024 to Screen Recording Utility

If you want to find the best free video recording software, you have come to the right place. Here we will show you 15 professional video capture software with pros and cons in detail. Among all the programs mentioned, we highly recommend EaseUS RecExperts, an unlimited screen recorder with NO watermark. You can get it by hitting the below button.

There are many reasons why you need to record a video. For example, to make a video tutorial for a better and more intuitive presentation, record a video that you can't download, or record a real-time video so that you can share fun things with your friends on the social platform. All the work can be done with free video recording software. An excellent screen recorder. 

On the Internet, you can find plenty of screen recorders for PC free download, but they vary in functionalities. It's essential to choose the right video recording software, depending on what you intend to do. This post covers the top 15 best free video capture software. Now, look at our dedicated testing statistics on a dozen video screen recorders so you can easily find the most appropriate one.

What Makes A Good Video Recording Software?

When it comes to the best video recording software, it heavily depends on your needs. But, whatever you use this video capture software for, you always keep an eye on the following basic criteria while selecting a screen recording program:

  • 🔶Check if it supports customizing recording, like full-screen recording, specific window recording, or any-region recording
  • 🔶Allow camera, system sound, and microphone audio recording
  • 🔶Real-time annotation tools to enrich your video recordings
  • 🔶Export video recordings in high quality and various common formats
  • 🔶Affordable pricing plans that match the value

As you can see, a qualified video recording software should cover all the above aspects, and the programs mentioned in this post deliver on these features and aspects. Moreover, if you use a video recorder to capture yourself for online classes, you must consider whether the software offers the green screen tool to modify your background.

If you find it helpful, don't be mean to share this post on social platforms!

 

Quick Glance at Free Screen Recording Software in 2024 

1. EaseUS RecExperts for Windows (🥳Best Overall)

  • 🧑‍💻Compatibility: Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7 (32-bit & 64-bit)
  • ✍️TechRadar Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • 🕵️‍♂️Best for: Educators, gamers, content creators, and more

If you want free video capture software on Windows 10, you cannot miss EaseUS RecExperts. This screen recorder for PC can be regarded as the best video recording software available for both novices and pros. It allows you to capture your screen area according to your needs, such as the full screen or a specific part of your screen.

With this software, you also can record streaming video, record Teams meeting, record YouTube live stream, or more easily and quickly. If you want to record screen and camera at the same time for online courses, you also can rely on this software. Most importantly, it offers you a basic video editing tool that can help you trim the recordings. Now, you can download it to start your recording process immediately.

😃Pros:

  • Friendly to both beginners and professionals
  • Let you screen record protected videos without a black screen
  • There is no time limit for recording & no watermark
  • Support auto start, stop, and clip recordings

😭Cons:

  • Not available for Linux users
👨‍🎓User Review
EaseUS RecExperts is an easy-to-use screen recording software with a lot of features to offer. This recording tool can capture audio and webcam video in addition to what's happening on your screen. We also liked that it offers scheduled recordings and an auto-stop function. - By Michael Graw, from TechRadar

Here is a video about free screen recorder. Check the recommended options in it!

  • 00:00 - Intro
  • 00:26 - Best free video recording software - EaseUS RecExperts

2. VideoProc Converter

  • 🧑‍💻Compatibility: Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7 & macOS Sierra, Mojave, Catalina, Big Sur, Monterey, Ventura, or higher
  • ✍️G2 Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • 🕵️‍♂️Best for: Teachers and students

Yes, that's right, don't get fooled by its name. VideoProc Converter, as the name implies, is indeed a video converter. Besides the feature of converting audio/video formats, this program also has a built-in video downloader, DVD converter, and, of course, a screen recorder. And in fact, the screen recording app works like a charm.

This software offers three recording modes: screen, webcam, and PiP mode for both screen and webcam. In the PiP mode, you can apply the chroma key to record video with virtual background. This video capture software allows recording in various formats, just like OBS. Use MP4 (by default) for better compatibility and MKV for better stability.

Using this best free screen recorder is as easy as 1-2-3. For video tutorial makers, it provides a range of utility video editing tools to mark, crop, or highlight important areas during recording. While gamers can save the epic boss kill or upload it to YouTube for more applause.

😃Pros:

  • Record full screen or part of the screen
  • 3 recording modes: record video, webcam, or record both with PiP mode
  • Green screen recording (Chroma key)
  • Multiple recording formats: MP4, MKV, FLV, MOV
  • Offer many editing tools to enhance your recordings
  • GPU Acceleration: 47x real-time faster, 2% avg. CPU usage

😭Cons:

  • Watermark with the trial version
👨‍🎓User Review
VideoProc Converter is an all-in-one tool to convert 4K/HD videos, audios, and DVDs, compress, edit, fix, record videos and more with full GPU acceleration. - From G2

3. Xbox Game bar

  • 🧑‍💻Compatibility: Windows 10/11 and later (32-bit & 64-bit)
  • ✍️PCWorld Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
  • 🕵️‍♂️Best for: Game lovers

Windows 10 has a pre-installed free video recorder named Game Bar for anyone who wants to capture their game clips and screenshots. You can use Game Bar to record apps, especially for gaming capture. This software is a good choice if you want to record your wonderful moments of playing games or record a teaching video of playing games. With a few simple clicks, you can start screen recording in minutes. For more tips about Xbox Game Bar recording, you can move to the specific page to learn more information.

😃Pros:

😭Cons:

  • Record apps only, not available for recording full screen or a specific region
  • No pause function when recording the video
  • Limited video editing tools
👨‍🎓User Review
Game Bar and Game DVR built-in to Windows 10 get the job done, but these tools are inconsistent, and whether they’ll work as intended largely depends on the game you’re playing. Performance was also drastically different in several games in our tests. If you want a worry-free experience, then consider going with a more reliable third-party tool. - By Ian Paul, from PCWorld

4. Flashback Express

  • 🧑‍💻Compatibility: Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7
  • ✍️TechRadar Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • 🕵️‍♂️Best for: video content creator with editing needs

Flashback Express, released by Blueberry Software, is a free video capture software that can record video, webcam, and sounds. It's packed with the same video recording features as the pro version.

You can use this free video recorder to capture your whole screen, a window, a selected area, or a webcam. Once the recording finishes, you can trim and crop your video with a simple editor, then export it to YouTube, an FTP server, or your PC.

Pros:

  • Well designed interface
  • Free screen recorder without a watermark
  • No time limit on recording
  • Record screen and webcam
  • Record audio while capturing video

Cons:

  • The free version doesn't include any video editing tools
  • Limited video output formats: MP4, AVI, WMV
👨‍🎓User Review

FlashBack Express used to require a license key for activation, but that's no longer the case – just download the software, and you're ready to start recording. Although FlashBack Express isn't as feature-packed as OBS Studio, its interface is much less intimidating for new users. - By Cat Ellis, from TechRadar

5. CamStudio 

  • 🧑‍💻Compatibility: Windows XP/Vista/7/8 (For Windows 8 and above, you need to run CS3)
  • ✍️TechRadar Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • 🕵️‍♂️Best for: Video content creator

CamStudio is one of the best free video capture tools to record screen objects and audio activity on your computer and create industry-standard AVI video files. 

You can choose to use custom cursors to record the entire screen or just a part of it. CamStudio can also add high-quality, anti-aliased (non-aliased) screen descriptions to your video recordings quickly. After recording, you can have "best quality" ones for burning onto CD/DVD.

Pros:

  • Easy-to-use
  • Provides a unique video annotation feature
  • Record audio on Windows 10 in crystal quality
  • 100% free for personal and commercial projects

Cons:

  • No editing tools in this application 
  • Not available for macOS devices
👨‍🎓User Review

A superb screen recorder packed with tools and options ideal for making your own software reviews and tutorials. The built-in annotation tools are a particular bonus. - By Cat Ellis, from TechRadar

6. ShareX 

  • 🧑‍💻Compatibility: Windows 7 SP1 or later
  • ✍️G2 Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • 🕵️‍♂️Best for: Recording with screen content with screen capture tools

ShareX is a free open source screen recorder for capturing still screen grabs and recording videos. This free portable screen recorder can record an entire scrolling webpage, identify text via OCR, and even capture your screen according to a schedule.

You can also use this free video recorder to save your screenshot as a GIF instead of a video file, useful for sharing on forums and social media. After video recording, ShareX allows you to send your captured grabs and videos straight to a file-sharing or social media site.

Pros:

  • Easy-to-use with a user-friendly interface
  • Record a GIF or videos in other formats
  • Support exporting videos in various formats
  • Free screen recorder without watermark

Cons:

  • No video editing options
  • It doesn't support recordings from games running in full-screen mode
👨‍🎓User Review

ShareX is a free and open-source program that lets you capture or record any area of your screen and share it with a single press of a key. It also allows uploading images, text, or other types of files to over 50 supported destinations you can choose from. - From G2

7. Screencast-O-Matic

  • 🧑‍💻Compatibility: Windows, Mac / iOS, Android, and Chromebook
  • ✍️PCMag Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • 🕵️‍♂️Best for: Educators

Screencast-O-Matic (now called ScreenPal) is a browser-based screen recording software and video editing software on Windows and macOS. It offers many features, including screen recording, video editing, video hosting, and sharing. This free video recorder can capture full screen, window, region, webcam, microphone, and computer sound. 

Besides, multiple video editing features are available while recording, such as zoom, trim your recorded clips, add captions, save them to your desktop, YouTube, or the cloud, or share a video link.

Pros:

  • many options for recording a video: full screen, window, or region
  • Provide many video editing features, such as trim, cut, change speed, annotations, etc.
  • Publish videos directly to YouTube, Vimeo, and other platforms
  • Available for multiple platforms, including Windows, macOS, ChromeOS (in browser)

Cons:

  • Time-limited recordings are limited to 15 minutes in length
  • Watermark added on the recorded video
  • The free version offers limited functionality
👨‍🎓User Review

Screencast-O-Matic is an excellent, free screen-capture utility that features a subscription option that offers even more powerful tools.- By Jordan Minor, from PCMag

8. EaseUS RecExperts for Mac

  • 🧑‍💻Compatibility: macOS 10.13 or later
  • ✍️G2 Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • 🕵️‍♂️Best for: video content creators

As the most recommended best video capture software for Mac, it is featured with its Lightweight and rich functionality. You can use it to capture whatever happens on your Mac screen while customizing the recording region according to your preference. You can record the full screen, record part of screen, or a specific application window.

Besides that, you can capture system audio simultaneously with this Mac screen recorder. There are several optional audio sources, including system sound, audio in the microphone, and both. Suppose you want to record your voice with more advanced equipment. In that case, it's possible to install an external microphone since EaseUS RecExperts can be compatible with external devices like microphones and cameras.

Key Features:

  • No watermark
  • Support capturing videos in high-resolution
  • Schedule recording without much effort
  • Export the recordings as animated GIFs 
  • Record a Skype call, a Zoom meeting, and online classes
  • Act as an excellent video editing software

If those features help you, you can click on the button below to download this recording tool for free.

👨‍🎓User Review
EaseUS RecExpert is an easy-to-use and powerful screen recording software for anyone on Windows or Mac. With a super intuitive interface and multiple screen capture options, it makes screen recording a piece of cake. With this software, users can record video and audio from the computer or record a webcam with ease. This software is a good fit for recording Zoom meetings, webinars, YouTube videos, streaming videos, and many more. - From G2

9. OBS Studio

  • 🧑‍💻Compatibility: Windows 8 and later, macOS 10.15 and later, Linux, BSD
  • ✍️PCWorld Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • 🕵️‍♂️Best for: Professionals with tech knowledge

OBS Studio is a popular open-source and best video recording software tool that works well for live streaming games on Twitch and recording other information. 

It has high performance in real-time video/audio capturing and mixing. It allows you to record multiple sources, including window captures, images, text, browser windows, webcams, capture cards, and more.

You can immediately start recording from multiple sources at once, with a fairly nice amount of customization in terms of the options you have. What's more, the application streams with various platforms like Facebook Live, YouTube Live, Hitbox, Twitch, and more.

Pros:

  • Record system audio on Mac
  • Intuitive audio mixer with per-source filters
  • Easy to use configuration option on streamlined Settings panel
  • Multiple platforms supported: Windows, Mac, or Linux
  • Entirely free, with no limitations

Cons:

  • No pause function for recording
  • Not easy for beginners to use
  • Not much training material included in OBS Studio
👨‍🎓User Review

OBS Studio is a powerful program that doesn't make too much of an impact on your PC's performance. It is not a tool that just starts up and works, however. It requires time to understand how it works and how to get the most out of it, and the patience to learn how to troubleshoot when things don't work as expected.- By Ian Paul, from PCWorld

🚩Check what users say about OBS Studio on Reddit:

Realistically, what are the pros and cons between using OBS Studio and Streamlabs OBS?
by inTwitch

10. QuickTime Player

  • 🧑‍💻Compatibility: macOS, Windows XP, Windows Vista, Classic Mac OS, Mac OS X Leopard
  • ✍️TopSevenReviews Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • 🕵️‍♂️Best for: Beginners with basic screen recording needs

QuickTime Player is the default Mac video player, but it's more than a video player. You could also use QuickTime Player to do video recording for free. 

It even has some limited editing capabilities after video captures, such as cut, copies, and pastes, adds a new soundtrack, adds annotations, rotates your video, and more. This best video recording software uses onscreen controls similar to a CD or DVD player.

Pros:

  • Record video on Mac
  • Convert recorded video to a variety of formats
  • Record audio with video simultaneously
  • Record Skype videos in full screen
  • Ability to save videos from the web
  • Provide video editing features to create beautiful video and share it via email

Cons:

  • Limited recording and editing functionality
  • System audio recording is not possible

👨‍🎓User Review
It will put a smile on a lot of users that the application they are using is beneficial for them, and the great thing about QuickTime Player is that it is manageable. In addition to this, it has a lot of versions that you can choose and what the best Pro version suits you. - By Jordan Scott, from TopSevenReviews

11. Monosnap

  • 🧑‍💻Compatibility: Windows, macOS, and Chromebook
  • ✍️G2 Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • 🕵️‍♂️Best for: Recording screen content with integrated cloud storage

Monosnap is one of the best video recording software for Mac. You can use this program to record your screen and take a screenshot if you need to use it as a powerful screen recording software. It offers the option of turning on your webcam, mic, and system's audio all before starting screen recording.

After video recording, you can connect the cloud drives such as Dropbox, CloudApp, Yandex. Disk, Box.com, Google Drive, or FTPs upload recorded videos to share with other PCs and smartphones.

Pros:

  • Totally free without feature limitation
  • Record sound from computer
  • Record in 60fps to ensure an ultra-smooth playback
  • Ideal for students and professionals with its integration with the cloud
  • Highlight important details with pen, text, arrow, and shape

Cons:

  • Video editing is not possible
  • Cannot record mobile devices
👨‍🎓User Review

Monosnap screenshot tool for Mac and PC with own cloud storage. Take screenshots, record videos and upload files directly to the cloud. Just in one click. - From G2

12. Jing

  • 🧑‍💻Compatibility: Windows 10/Mac OS X 10.14 or later
  • ✍️Software Advice Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • 🕵️‍♂️Best for: Creating simple videos and screencasts

Jing (now called TechSmith Capture) is another video recording software for Mac, released by Techsmith. Unlike all other screen-capture software, The captured video can be saved in SWF format or stored in the screencast. Besides screen video recording, you can use this tool to take screenshots and edit them right after capturing.

Pros:

  • Very simple and easy to use
  • Crosshair capture on the focus area is a must to record screen
  • A good option for narrating the steps to solve a problem
  • Allow you to suspend while recording
  • Come with a movable sun icon that enables you to utilize its function easily

Cons:

  • Only record up to 5 minutes

👨‍🎓User Review
Formerly known as Jing, Techsmith Capture is a screen capture solution that can capture screens and share screen content with Screencast and Techsmith Knowmia. Techsmith Capture enables the capture of full screens or regions and the annotation of captured screens with arrow/rectangle tools, a highlighter, and a callout bubble with font and size control. - From Software Advice

13. VLC Media Player

  • 🧑‍💻Compatibility: Windows, Android, macOS, Linux, MORE
  • ✍️TechRadar Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • 🕵️‍♂️Best for: Novices with a low budget

VLC is a free, open-source video capture software available on different platforms, including Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS. It's great music and video player with speed control of any format, including WMA, AAC, AIF, MP3, and much more on your computer.

What's more, it's also good at video recording, and you can regard it as one of the best music video recorders and use it as a free video capture software with built-in screen recording features.

Pros:

  • Simple and clean user interface
  • Completely free and open-source
  • Record streaming audio
  • Stream media over the network or internet
  • Offer various alluring customized skins

Cons:

  • No audio recording options
  • Only capture video playing on VLC
👨‍🎓User Review
VLC offers everything you could need from a media player - comprehensive format support, streaming, downloading, and much more besides. - By Carrie Marshall, From TechRadar

14. Loom

  • 🧑‍💻Compatibility: All device
  • ✍️G2 Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • 🕵️‍♂️Best for: Creating video messages for work

Loom is a video recording app that can be used on your Windows PC, Mac, phone, or tablet, and works professionally like other tools. With its help, you can record videos up to 720P quality along with your system sound or microphone audio. Once you have captured your desktop video, you can see a link generated by Loom for sharing. This link lets other people view, react, and respond to the content. Loom integrates with various workflow platforms such as Slack, the concept being that you can quickly record, edit, and share videos with your colleagues to get their responses.

However, its free version allows you to make 25 videos per person, and the total video length is 5 minutes. It might seem short, but Loom is designed for shorter videos.

Pros:

  • Available for all devices
  • Generate a URL for sharing your recorded video content
  • Offer the green screen tools to change your background during recording

Cons:

  • Lack of advanced recording features
👨‍🎓User Review
Loom is a fantastic product. I use it often for short how to videos to record my screen and use as a training tool. - By Chelsey S., From G2

15. Camtasia

  • 🧑‍💻Compatibility: Windows and macOS
  • ✍️TechRadar Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
  • 🕵️‍♂️Best for: Recording screen with editing needs

Camtasia is a versatile video recording software as well as a video editing program. Although Camtasia is not free, it's still popular among most video content creators as it is easy to use, straightforward, and effective.

This video capture software flexibly lets you choose your capture area, whether or not to include webcam and microphone inputs, and click Record. Once you finish your recording, you can modify it with the built-in video editor. There's an exhaustive list of editing options that manage not to feel overwhelming. Click-and-drag effects and a decent selection of stock media are located along the left-hand side of the app, with detailed properties and customizations appearing on the right-hand side whenever you select an element from the timeline.

Although it provides rich features, it is more suitable for those professional video producers or content creators. And a beginner might feel out of place as it offers various tools.

Pros:

  • Simple, easy-to-use capture
  • Offer unrivaled editing features
  • Provide outstanding tutorial videos for anyone

Cons:

  • Free trail for only 3 days
👨‍🎓User Review
I've been using Camtasia for a few months now and have been really enjoying it. I've been using it every week and it is extremely easy to use and user friendly. The interface is extremely intuitive and it was very easy to get started. While the interface and options are more simplistic, I find the balance of features absolutely perfect for video narration and tutorials and some of the features go beyond the depth I needed from this software making this an extremely versatile piece of software. - By Sam E, From G2. 

Find the Best Free Video Recording Software

We talked about the top 13 best screen recording software in this post. Every video recorded differs from each other in many aspects, such as the interface design, operating system, and function. According to your needs, there are different "best free video recording software".

If you are an educator or content creator for YouTube or other platforms, and need a lightweight yet high-quality video recording software, EaseUS RecExperts is the obvious choice.

If you use a high-end PC and want to record gameplay while streaming and playing, then look no further than OBS Studio. But you need to keep in mind that you need to download an extra video editor if you have any editing needs.

For those need to record screen and edit the recorded video files, Camtasia is the only one for you. But, it might be over your budget.

FAQs About Free Video Recording Software 

Those FAQs are helpful if you want to know more about the free video capture software on Windows and Mac.

1. What is the best video capture software or the best free screen capture software?

When it comes to best video recording software, I strongly recommend EaseUS RecExperts. This screen recorder has an intuitive workflow that is best for beginners and professionals. It lets you record your screen, audio, and webcam with a few simple clicks.

2. How do I record video and sound on my computer?

If you use a Windows 10 computer, you can record a video from your computer for free with the built-in screen recorder. If you are a Mac user, you can rely on QuickTime Player. These tools have basic screen recording features.

You can try video recording software like EaseUS RecExperts, OBS Studio, ShareX, and many more if you need more recording features.

3. How do I record a video on Windows 10 for free?

To record a video on Windows 10 for free, you can use the built-in screen recorder called Game Bar.

Step 1. Press Win + G to open it.

Step 2. When you are ready, click the Start Recording button to begin your recording. Once done, click Stop Recording to save the recordings on your computer.

4. What is the most accessible recording software?

The Top 12 Video Recording Software:

  • EaseUS RecExperts for Windows
  • Windows 10 Game bar
  • Flashback Express
  • CamStudio
  • ShareX
  • EaseUS RecExperts for Mac
  • Screencast-O-Matic
  • OBS Studio
  • QuickTime Player
  • Monosnap
  • Jing
  • VLC Media Player