11 Free Best Video Capture Software for Mac/MacBook Air/MacBook Pro

A viable method to save meetings, university classes, or lectures is to screen record on a Mac to watch later or publish on media. Whether you're recording lectures, seminars, walkthrough tutorials, or gameplay walkthroughs, you need Mac video recording software to capture on-screen activity.

This article discusses the best video capture software for Mac users to record high-resolution videos on Mac, MacBook Air, Macbook Pro, or iMac. Here is a quick guide for you:

Now, we will get into the details of the best macOS video recording software. Learn about features, pros, and cons to examine what suits you the best.

1. EaseUS RecExperts

EaseUS RecExperts is the ideal Mac video capture software for high-quality videos with up to 144 FPS. For gaming, teaching, or meetings, you can capture the desktop and system audio with webcam videos to make immersive videos for social media and personal use. You can also record internal audio on Mac with ease. After recording, you can edit and download the videos in multiple formats, such as MP4, MOV, MP3, WAV, AAC, etc.

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Features:

• Multiple screen recording windows and webcam picture-in-picture mode recording.
• Captures lossless desktop and microphone audio simultaneously.
• Can schedule recordings for meetings, TV shows, and gaming.
• Special Gaming mode and AI features like noise remover to enhance video quality.
• Flexibility in terms of video exporting and allows you to extract audio in MP3, AAC, WAV, FLAC, etc formats.

Pros	Cons
Comes with editing tool to enhance videos. Scheduling features to automate recording on Mac. Supports downloading in multiple formats and extracts audio. Best for recording gameplay, meetings, and tutorials.	Free model limits a few features. Video quality depends on the PC specifications.

2. QuickTime Player

QuickTime is built into Mac and allows users to record screens and audio, watch videos, edit movies, and more. This Mac video recording software offers editing features like trimming, adjusting playback speed, cropping, or rotating videos. As for screen recording, you can capture a window, screen, or just a portion of it using audio. 

Features: 

• Supports playing multiple audio and video formats like MP4, MOV, M4V, ACC, etc.
• Allows screen ecording with custom recording screen and microphone audio.
• A simple user interface and advanced editing tools enhance the video output.
• Offers standard playback controls like rewind, pause, volume, play, and more.

Pros	Cons
Mac free and pre-installed HD screen recorder. Offers excellent screen recording gear to record games, meetings, and lectures. Works well with popular media formats. The recording file is large in size.	Limited editing features. Requires additional software along with QuickTime if you want to record internal audio.

Fix QuickTime Screen Recording No Audio on Mac

Here, you will learn some easy ways to fix that issue. Besides, you can also learn the easiest way to screen record Mac with audio here.

3. Loom

Loom is another Mac screen video recorder that allows users to record and share videos on Mac. Loom is a video messaging platform that allows users to screen record and share with peers. More like you record a quick clip or video of what you want to capture on a Mac screen and send it to the other person. Loom videos are shared with the cloud and are public by default.

Features:

• Loom offers recording video with virtual backgrounds.
• The video messaging platform offers timestamped comments, emojis, and video transcriptions with subtitles.
• You can integrate third-party tools like Slack, Jira, Gmail, and Salesforce.
• Basic editing features.

Pros	Cons
Custom recording canvas and virtual backgrounds of users' choice. Captures the system and microphone audio with webcam. Third-party app integrations. Good video and audio quality.	Editing features are almost nill. Uploads all Loom videos to the cloud and marks them public by default.

4. Icecream Screen Recorder

Another freeware screen recorder for Mac with internal audio is the Icecream screen recorder. The tool serves basic screen recording needs with features like multiple recording modes, game capture, internal and external audio recording, and more. Additionally, it can convert one video format to another and create URLs to share the videos with social media and other platforms. 

Features:

• Capture screen, audio (mic and speakers), and webcam.
• Schedule screen recordings to automate the process.
• Allows quick sharing of videos with encrypted URLs.
• Record mouse and hotkeys.
• Features an inbuilt video converter and editor.

Pros	Cons
Simple user interface and is intuitive. Schedule screen recordings to automate the recording process. You can edit videos and convert them to other formats. Allows you to add annotations and highlights to the video.	Offers Editing features, but they are basic and only contribute a little. The game record modes do not use DirectX or OpenGL capturing, which leads to heavy resource usage.

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5. OBS Studio

The OBS Studio is the most popular free and open-source screen recording software for Mac and Windows users. Although complex to customize and use, it offers live streaming and video recording of the highest quality for absolutely free. You can edit videos, integrate third-party plugins, customize video recording settings, add effects, and more. You can add multiple sources to record and customize audio, FPS, and encoders per your needs.

Features:

• You can add multiple sources and scenes to record the Mac screen.
• Live streaming is available on YouTube, Twitch, or any streaming platform.
• Endless customization in terms of media formats.
• Offers third-party integrations to take features to the next level.

Pros	Cons
Best for professional screen recording with multi-source setup. It helps with free live-streaming games and content on any streaming platform.  It offers advanced and customized multimedia features like FPS, Encoders, and audio and video formats. Plugins enhance overall quality if used with the right source, like OBS.	Need a learning course to learn the software. Does not provide detailed walkthroughs to learn about the software.

6. Aiseesoft Screen Recorder

Aiseesoft is also in the screen recording space and works well for Macs. The SaaS tool offers free and paid versions for people to screen record. You can record Mac screens, create gameplay videos, how-to videos, and more. The editing suite includes a media player, manager, and editor to fine-tune the output videos.

Features:

• Records with customizable screen regions and webcam.
• Allows scheduling to save time and effort.
• It offers a default media player and editor to edit screen recordings.
• Screencast features can help you record phone activity.

Pros	Cons
Simple and easy to use. Adjusts recording settings like video quality, frame rate, and codec. Editing suite and burning the recordings to discs.	Restricts video recording length (3 minutes) with the free plan. Exports only in MP4 and WMV formats. No advanced features for editing.

7. VLC Media Player

Many are familiar with VLC media player as a multimedia platform. People often use this to play movies and series on PC. You can choose your video format and frame rate while recording the screen. Although the open-source software is handy for essential work, it fails to offer features compared to the specialized screen recorders.

Features:

• A freeware to record videos and clips.
• Comes with customizable audio and video codecs to churn out the best quality.
• Allows users to convert and compress Mac screen recordings.

Pros	Cons
Free and open-source. Allows customization of video and audio as per requirements. Download output video in various supported formats.	You cannot record audio while recording on the PC. The video quality strictly depends on your camera.

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8. ScreenPal (formerly Screencast-O-Matic)

ScreenPal is an all-in-one editor and video recording app for Mac. The software offers recording, editing, creating storyboards, adding captions, images, and more. It is an excellent choice if you want to make end-to-end screen recordings for visual communication. Moreover, you can access scrolling capture, store videos online, and publish them.

Features:

• Excellent screen capture and video capture with webcam and audio.
• Offers unlimited storage and a powerful video editor.
• Allows you to add and edit images to the video.
• Directly publish the videos to YouTube, Google Drive, Dropbox, Vimeo, or email.

Pros	Cons
Simple and effective screen recorder and video editor. It offers unlimited storage and publishing on various social media platforms. Get premium screen capture features like OCR and scrolling capture.	Few export options for images and videos compared to their contemporaries. Advanced features require a subscription to access.

9. ScreenRec

ScreenRec is another popular recording software that captures Mac screens. The software is a productivity tool and offers features to record video and audio messages. It also boasts capabilities like annotated screenshots, instant sharing, analytics, and content management.

Features:

• Customizable screen recording options with webcam overlay.
• Encrypted URLs and quick sharing options for YouTube and streaming.
• Sores all the screen recordings on cloud with unlimited storage.
• Basic editing tools.

Pros	Cons
Ability to record audio and webcam along with the screen. Allows instant sharing of screen recordings to multiple platforms. Encrypted sharing links and free downloading of videos.	Puts a 5-minute recording limit for users without a ScreenRec account. No features to edit videos. Unintuitive interface, especially for the annotation toolbar.

10. TechSmith Snagit

Snagit is a top recommendation for screen recording for Macs. The newest version adds editing features for images and videos to enhance the output. Although costly, Snagit provides better features like making custom templates, OCR, scrolling capture, zooming while recording, adding annotations, etc.

Features:

• Ability to record webcam (PiP) and internal audio with screen recording.
• Lets you create and share custom templates for recording.
• Maintains cloud access on multiple OS using cloud storage.
• Mobile app Wi-Fi syncing and OCR functionality.

Pros	Cons
Can record 4K videos with 4:3 or 16:9 aspect ratios with OCR and scrolling capture. Advanced features for video and image editing. Custom-themed templates are a plus. Recordings are available across all devices.	Depends on third-party cloud apps for file syncing. Expensive.

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11. Movavi Screen Recorder

Movavi is another leading product for screen recording on Macs. It contains all the features required to capture the Mac screen, edit, and publish them. The webcam capture, detailed editing features, audio-only features, and annotations make it an ideal choice. After selecting your custom recording area, you can directly go into recording and use annotations.

Features:

• A recording widget to video capture content on Mac.
• A dedicated video conference recorder is used to capture meetings and lectures.
• Inbuilt screenshotting, editing, and annotation tool.
• Intriguing features like slow motion capture, stabilization, green screen effects, etc. 

Pros	Cons
Custom screen recording and audio-only capture. Simple to set up and allows 4K capture. Video editing and annotations are a plus.  Event scheduling and video conference recording automate the process.	Limited features with the free model. Few output formats for video and audio.

How to Choose the Best Video Recorder for Mac

Macs have many screen recording software programs, but choosing a particular one can be difficult. Although all cater to video capturing on Macs, here are a few things you should consider based on your needs before you choose one.

• Compatibility and Performance: Even if the software supports macOS, check the Mac versions it supports, examine the application's performance aspects, and test it.
• Flexibility and User-friendliness: Software intuitiveness is crucial, as it helps in easy navigation and work.
• Functions and Quality: Always try to tally your requirements and the features the software provides. This will help you understand the app's functions and the quality of your recordings.
• Custom Settings: Flexible recording areas, video and audio formats, and online sharing settings are significant for screen recordings.
• Customer Support and Regular Updates: Check for reviews about customer support and see if the app releases regular updates to keep up with the trends.
• Cost: Screen Recorders primarily offers free and paid versions. If you have a price in mind, use the free trials to analyze features before paying for a subscription.

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To Wrap Things Up

It's often confusing when you have plenty of Mac screen records to choose from. So, we have curated a list of Mac's top 11 video capture software for Mac. Before choosing one, ensure your requirements align with the software features to select the right tool. 

EaseUS RecExperts stands out from the above list, as it offers a custom recording screen, audio, noise remover, editor, and the ability to customize the media formats and resolution. RecExperts is free to download; check out the free model.

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Best Video Recording Software for Mac FAQs

Here are some frequently asked questions on the best video recording software for Macs.

1. Does Mac have video capture software?

QuickTime player is Mac's built-in video capture software. It is free to use and helps you record your screen, play media, and edit video and audio.

2. How to record high-quality video on Mac?

However, the QuickTime player records the Mac screen, and the output is not high-quality. Try using QuickTime player first, but to achieve a better quality of up to 4K with 144 FPS, you can use EaseUS RecExperts for Mac.

3. What is the best way to record a video on a Mac?

For Mac users, the built-in screen recording tool (QuickTime player) is the best option. QuickTime can record screen videos with good picture quality, but if you want to record in high-resolution, edit, and publish videos, choosing professional software like RecExperts is the best way.

4. Is OBS Studio better than QuickTime?

OBS Studio is the best screen recording and live streaming software for all operating systems. It is free and offers endless customization and the highest quality for making videos. You should get used to the UI to make the most of it.