How to Screen Record on Mac (3 Ways)

The fastest way to screen record on a Mac is to press ⇧⌘5 (Shift-Command-5), choose Record Entire Screen or Record Selected Portion in the toolbar, and click Record. To stop, click the stop button in the menu bar or press ⌃⌘Esc (Control-Command-Escape). The video saves as a .mov file on your Desktop unless you pick another folder under Options.

For most quick recordings, the built-in toolbar is all you need. This page covers three ways to record:

• The Screenshot toolbar.
• QuickTime Player.
• Screen Bolt, the recorder we make, for when you need system audio, a single window or an edited result.

Each section says what the method can't do.

The fastest way to screen record on Mac: the Screenshot toolbar (Shift-Command-5)

The Screenshot toolbar is built into macOS and takes both screenshots and screen video. You don't need to install anything.

1. Press ⇧⌘5. A toolbar appears near the bottom of the screen.
2. Click Record Entire Screen or Record Selected Portion. These are the two buttons with a small record symbol. Hover over a button to see its name.
3. If you chose a selected portion, drag the frame's edges to cover the part of the screen you want.
4. Click Options to change the microphone, the save location, a 5- or 10-second timer, or whether mouse clicks are shown.
5. Click Record.
6. To stop, click the stop button in the menu bar or press ⌃⌘Esc. If you have more than one display and choose Record Entire Screen, click the screen you want to record.

After you stop, a thumbnail appears in the bottom-right corner. Click it to trim the clip before it saves. If you leave it alone, the file saves on its own.

What it can't do:

• Record the sound your apps play (system audio). The Options menu only lists microphones.
• Follow a single window. You can only draw a fixed area around it, so if the window moves, the recording stays where it was.
• Pause. There is no pause button, so you stop and start a new file.
• Edit beyond a trim, add zooms, or save in any format other than .mov.

Recording with QuickTime Player

QuickTime Player can also start screen recordings. On current macOS it opens the same Screenshot toolbar, so the recording options are identical. Starting from QuickTime is useful because you're already in an app that can open and trim the result.

1. Open QuickTime Player from your Applications folder.
2. Choose File ▸ New Screen Recording, or press ⌃⌘N (Control-Command-N).
3. In the toolbar, pick Record Entire Screen or Record Selected Portion. Set the microphone under Options.
4. Click Record.
5. Stop with the menu bar stop button or ⌃⌘Esc.
6. Open the file in QuickTime and choose Edit ▸ Trim (⌘T, Command-T) to cut the start and end.

QuickTime has the same limits as the toolbar: no system audio, no window-following and no pause. It can trim, split and rotate clips. It can't add zooms, text or blur. For more on its menus, see QuickTime screen recording on Mac.

Granting Screen Recording permission

Third-party apps can't record your screen until you give them permission. That includes screen recorders like Screen Bolt and apps that share your screen in calls. Without permission, the app may show an error, record a black screen or record only your desktop wallpaper.

macOS usually asks the first time an app tries to record. If you clicked Don't Allow, or the app isn't recording properly:

1. Open System Settings.
2. Click Privacy & Security.
3. Click Screen Recording. On macOS 15 Sequoia and later, this entry is called Screen & System Audio Recording. If you can't find it, type "Screen Recording" in the System Settings search field.
4. Turn on the switch next to the app. If the app isn't listed, click + and choose it from Applications.
5. Quit the app and open it again.

Don't skip step 5. On macOS 14 Sonoma, Screen Bolt can't use a new Screen Recording grant until you fully quit and reopen it. On macOS 15, macOS asks you to confirm screen recording access again about once a month. This is normal and not a bug. For more on these prompts, see why your Mac keeps asking for Screen Recording access.

In Screen Bolt, open Help ▸ Screen Bolt Help (⌘?) to check the four permissions it uses: Screen Recording, Microphone, Camera and Input Monitoring. Each shows its status and has an Open Settings button.

Microphone vs system audio

A screen recording can include two kinds of sound. The built-in tools only record one of them:

To get system audio with the free tools, people usually install an audio loopback driver such as BlackHole and set up the audio routing themselves. For that method, see how to record internal audio on Mac. To record your mic and system audio together, see how to screen record on Mac with audio.

Before a long take, record five seconds and play it back to check you hear what you expect. If the mic is silent, check the Microphone setting under Options. It may still be set to None.

Recording a display, window or area with Screen Bolt

Screen Bolt is a native screen recorder for macOS 14 or later. It records one display, one window or an area you drag, with your microphone and system audio. When you stop, the recording opens in an editor. Zooms on your clicks have already been added and the cursor movement is smoothed.

Screen Bolt has four things the built-in tools don't:

• System audio recording.
• Recording of a single window.
• Pause and resume.
• A timeline editor.

If you only need a raw clip, the built-in toolbar is fine.

When you open Screen Bolt, a small floating bar appears. It stays above other windows and doesn't appear in your recording.

1. Click a source:
   • Display records a whole screen. If you have several displays, it becomes a menu listing each screen and its resolution.
   • Window opens Select Window to Record. Click a window, then click Record Window to confirm.
   • Area lets you drag a rectangle. Then click Record Area to confirm.
2. Click Mic and choose a microphone, or choose Don't record microphone. A thin level meter on the button shows when the mic picks up sound.
3. Click Audio and choose Record system audio from all apps, or Don't record system audio.
4. Click the red record button. Details worth knowing before you record:

• Window mode records the window itself. This works even if another window covers part of it.
• System audio can't be limited to certain apps yet. The Record system audio from selected apps item currently records all apps. Quit or mute any app you don't want in the recording.
• The mic and system audio are saved as separate tracks, so you can set their volumes separately in the editor.
• If the mic can't be opened, the recording continues without it. An amber banner tells you why, for example that another app may be using the mic.
• Keyboard shortcuts only work while Screen Bolt is the active app. ⌥⌘3 records the first display, ⌥⌘4 lets you pick a window and records it, and ⌥⌘5 lets you select an area and records it. They don't work from other apps.
• You can add a camera and blur zones. Camera adds your webcam, or an iPhone through Continuity Camera. Blur places frosted zones over parts of the screen. You can see the zones on your own screen too, and they don't blur Window-mode recordings. See the recording docs.

Settings ▸ Recording ▸ After recording controls what happens when you stop. The default, Open editor, opens the recording in the editor. Export to file skips the editor and renders the video straight away.

The free version of Screen Bolt has no recording time limit. Free exports are limited to 3 minutes and 720p, carry a watermark, and can't be GIFs. A $79 one-time license removes these limits (as of November 2026). See Free vs Pro on the pricing table.

How to stop a recording

Screenshot toolbar and QuickTime:

• Click the stop button in the menu bar.
• Or press ⌃⌘Esc. This shortcut also works when a full-screen app hides the menu bar.

Screen Bolt:

• While you record, the bar shrinks to show a timer with Pause, Stop and Discard and restart buttons.
• Click Stop. Or, while Screen Bolt is the active app, press ⌃⌘↩ (Control-Command-Return).
• Pause stops recording until you resume. The finished video has no gap where you paused, and the screen, cameras and cursor stay in sync.
• Discard and restart deletes the take without creating a project.

Don't quit Screen Bolt (⌘Q) in the middle of a recording, because it quits without finalizing the file. Stop first, then quit. If the stop button is missing, see how to stop screen recording on Mac.

Where recordings are saved

To change where the built-in tools save:

1. Press ⇧⌘5.
2. Click Options.
3. Under Save to, pick a folder, or choose Other Location.

Your choice is used for future recordings too.

Screen Bolt saves each recording as a project package. Finder shows the package as a single file, and it contains the raw recording and your edits. The finished video is the file you export. To change the projects folder, go to Settings ▸ Recording ▸ Save new projects to.

If you can't find a recording, search for "Screen Recording" in Spotlight (⌘Space). For other places recordings end up, see where do screen recordings go on Mac?

Which method should you use?

How to decide:

• Use the Screenshot toolbar for a quick clip for a colleague, a bug report or your own reference, when your voice is the only sound you need.
• Use QuickTime if you want the same kind of recording plus a quick trim in an app you already have.
• Use a dedicated recorder if any of these apply:
  • You need the sound your Mac plays.
  • You want to record one window on its own.
  • You often have to start over because you can't pause.
  • The video will go on a website, YouTube or a product page, where small text needs zooms to be readable.

Screen Bolt is one option. We compare it with others, including free ones, in the best screen recorders for Mac.

If it doesn't work

• The recording is black or only shows your wallpaper. The app doesn't have Screen Recording permission. Turn it on in System Settings ▸ Privacy & Security, then quit and reopen the app. On macOS 14 the reopen is required.
• There's no sound at all. Check Options ▸ Microphone, which may be set to None. If you expected app or video sound, remember that the built-in tools don't record system audio.
• Your voice is missing in Screen Bolt. Look for the amber "Recording without microphone" banner. It gives the reason, often that another app is using the mic. Quit that app or pick a different mic in the Mic menu.
• Screen Bolt won't start recording. "Not enough free disk space to record safely" means you need to free up space. Before it starts, Screen Bolt checks that the disk has room for 60 minutes of recording. "No capture source selected" means you need to click Display, Window or Area first.
• Screen Bolt's shortcuts do nothing. ⌥⌘3, ⌥⌘4, ⌥⌘5 and ⌃⌘↩ only work while Screen Bolt is the active app. Click its bar first.
• You can't find the file. Check the Save to folder under ⇧⌘5 ▸ Options, or search Spotlight for "Screen Recording".

For error messages that only appear in Screen Bolt, the troubleshooting page lists each one and how to fix it.

FAQ

Is there a time limit on Mac screen recordings?

The built-in tools have no fixed time limit. In practice, you're limited by free disk space. Screen Bolt's free version also records without a time limit, but its free exports are capped at 3 minutes.

Can I record my screen and webcam at the same time?

You can't with the Screenshot toolbar alone. Screen Bolt records your webcam, or an iPhone through Continuity Camera, along with the screen and adds it as an overlay in the editor. See adding a webcam overlay on Mac.

How do I record just one window?

The built-in toolbar can only record a fixed area that you draw around the window. Screen Bolt's Window source records the window on its own, even when it's partly covered. For details, see how to record a single window on Mac.