How to Screen Record on Mac: Built-In and Free Methods

You don’t need OBS. You don’t need Camtasia. You don’t need any paid screen recording app. Every Mac shipped since 2018 has a perfectly capable screen recorder built right into the operating system, and it takes exactly one keyboard shortcut to start.

The Fast Way: Cmd + Shift + 5

Press Cmd + Shift + 5 and a toolbar appears at the bottom of your screen. The last two icons on the toolbar are what you want:

• Record Entire Screen — captures everything on all displays
• Record Selected Portion — lets you drag a rectangle over the area you want

Click one, then click Record. A small stop button appears in your menu bar. Click it when you’re done. That’s the entire workflow.

The recording saves as a .mov file — H.264 encoded, decent quality, reasonable file size. For a 10-minute recording of standard desktop work, expect roughly 200-400 MB depending on resolution and how much motion is on screen.

Where Recordings Save

Same as screenshots: Desktop by default. To change it, open the Cmd + Shift + 5 toolbar, click Options, and pick a different folder. We recommend creating a dedicated ~/Movies/Recordings folder to keep things organized — screen recordings mixed with screenshots on your Desktop gets messy fast.

Recording with Microphone Audio

This is where people get confused. By default, Cmd + Shift + 5 records your screen silently. No audio at all.

To record your voice (microphone audio):

1. Press Cmd + Shift + 5
2. Click Options
3. Under Microphone, select your input device — Built-in Microphone, AirPods, or whatever you’re using

Now your recording captures your voice alongside the screen. This works perfectly for walkthroughs, tutorials, and quick explanations you want to send to colleagues.

The Big Limitation: Internal Audio

Here’s the thing Apple won’t tell you upfront: macOS does not record system audio by default. If you’re playing a YouTube video or a game and want to capture that sound in your recording, the built-in tool won’t do it. You’ll get silent video or just your microphone picking up speakers.

This is a deliberate privacy and DRM decision by Apple.

The workaround: BlackHole. It’s a free, open-source virtual audio driver. Install it, set up a Multi-Output Device in Audio MIDI Setup (combining your speakers and BlackHole), then select BlackHole as the microphone in Cmd + Shift + 5 options.

The setup takes about 10 minutes the first time:

1. Download BlackHole from existential.audio
2. Open Audio MIDI Setup (search Spotlight)
3. Click the + button → Create Multi-Output Device
4. Check both your speakers/headphones and BlackHole
5. Set this Multi-Output Device as your system output
6. In Cmd + Shift + 5 → Options → Microphone, select BlackHole

It’s not elegant, but it works reliably and it’s completely free.

QuickTime Player: The Advanced Method

QuickTime Player gives you more control than the toolbar method, even though it uses the same underlying technology.

Open QuickTime Player → File → New Screen Recording. This opens the same Cmd + Shift + 5 toolbar, but launching from QuickTime gives you a few advantages:

• You can start and stop recording from the QuickTime window
• The recording opens directly in QuickTime for immediate trimming
• You get a cleaner workflow for record-trim-export cycles

For most people, Cmd + Shift + 5 is sufficient. QuickTime is better when you plan to edit the recording immediately after capturing it.

Recording a Specific Window or Area

When you choose “Record Selected Portion,” you can drag the recording area to cover exactly one window. But there’s a practical difference from window-based screenshots — the recording captures that screen region, so if another window overlaps, it shows up in the recording.

If you need to record just one app cleanly, put it in full-screen mode first (green button or Ctrl + Cmd + F), then record the entire screen. Single display, single app, clean recording.

Trimming Your Recording

After stopping a recording, the thumbnail appears in the bottom-right corner just like screenshots. Click it to open in Quick Look, then click the trim icon (scissors). Drag the yellow handles to cut the beginning and end.

For QuickTime: open the recording, go to Edit → Trim, adjust the handles, click Trim. Then File → Export As to save at your preferred quality (1080p, 720p, or 480p).

You can’t cut segments from the middle with built-in tools — only trim the start and end. For anything more complex, iMovie (free) handles basic multi-cut editing without needing professional software.

Recording Tips That Actually Matter

Hide your Desktop. If your Desktop is covered in files, anyone watching sees them. Clean it or use a clean Space (Mission Control → add a new Desktop, drag the app there).

Turn off notifications. Go to System Settings → Focus → Do Not Disturb before recording. Nothing ruins a tutorial like a personal message popping up mid-screen.

Check your resolution. If you’re recording a tutorial for others, consider scaling your display to a lower resolution (System Settings → Displays → More Space). Text and UI elements appear larger and more readable in the final video, especially when viewers watch on smaller screens.

Use a timer. In Cmd + Shift + 5 → Options, set a 5-second timer. This gives you time to position your cursor and prepare before recording starts.

The built-in tools handle 90% of screen recording needs. Unless you’re streaming to Twitch or need multi-source compositing, there’s no reason to install anything else.