How to Record Internal Audio on Mac (System Audio)

On macOS 14 Sonoma and 15 Sequoia, the built-in Screenshot toolbar (⇧⌘5, Shift-Command-5) and QuickTime Player record your microphone, not the sound your Mac plays. To record internal audio on a Mac, you have two options:

• A screen recorder that captures system audio itself through Apple's ScreenCaptureKit, such as Screen Bolt. Click Audio and choose Record system audio from all apps.
• A loopback driver like BlackHole. You then select it as the "microphone" in QuickTime.

The first option needs no drivers or audio routing. The second works with any app that records from an input device, but you set up the routing yourself.

Why macOS doesn't record internal audio by default

When an app plays sound, macOS sends it to your output device: speakers, headphones or AirPods. Apple's built-in recorders only let you pick an input device, which means a microphone. On macOS 14 and 15, the Options menu in the Screenshot toolbar and in QuickTime lists only microphones. On a newer version, open Options and check. If there's no system audio entry, use one of the methods below.

For years the standard workaround was a virtual audio device that pretends to be a microphone and feeds your Mac's output into it. Current macOS includes ScreenCaptureKit, which lets a screen recorder capture system audio directly once you grant it Screen Recording permission. On some macOS versions the permission's name also mentions system audio. If you can't find it, open System Settings and search for "Screen Recording".

ScreenCaptureKit takes the audio inside macOS instead of through a microphone, so you don't need a loopback driver. You can also wear headphones while recording, which keeps your mic from picking up sound from your speakers.

Option 1: Record internal audio with a recorder that captures system audio

This is the most direct way to screen record with system audio on a Mac. It suits tutorials for apps that make sound, demos where the interface sounds matter, or anything you're already capturing on screen.

In Screen Bolt (macOS 14 or later):

1. Open Screen Bolt. The floating recording bar appears.
2. Choose what to record: Display, Window or Area.
3. Click Audio and choose Record system audio from all apps.
4. To add your voice, click Mic and pick a microphone. A thin level meter shows at the bottom of the Mic button while it's on.
5. Click the red record button. If macOS asks for Screen Recording permission, allow it. On macOS 14, quit and reopen Screen Bolt afterward, because the permission only takes effect after a relaunch. If Mic is on, macOS also asks for microphone access the first time you record.
6. Click Stop in the recording bar when you're done. By default the editor opens with your recording. Before you rely on it, know these limits:

• "Selected apps" currently records every app. The Audio menu has a third choice, Record system audio from selected apps. In the current version (1.11.5, as of November 2026) it records all apps, and there's no app picker. Treat both options as "all apps" and silence anything you don't want captured (see below).
• Window mode doesn't filter the audio. Recording a single window captures that window's picture. System audio still comes from every app.
• Audio format. System audio is captured at 48 kHz stereo. Exported MP4 and MOV files use AAC at 48 kHz stereo, 128 kb/s.
• The free version limits exports. Recording has no time limit. Free exports are watermarked, capped at 3 minutes and 720p, and can't be GIFs. The Free vs Pro table shows what a license adds.

The recording help page covers the other capture options, including webcam and teleprompter.

OBS Studio is the free, open-source alternative if you also want live streaming (it needs macOS 13 or newer, as of November 2026). We haven't confirmed how its current version handles Mac system audio, so check the documentation at obsproject.com before you plan around it.

Option 2: Use a loopback driver such as BlackHole

BlackHole is a macOS audio loopback driver from Existential Audio that passes audio from one app to another with no added latency. It shows up as both an output and an input. Sound you send to it comes back as an "input" that QuickTime, the Screenshot toolbar and most recording apps can record. Its source code is public on GitHub. As of November 2026 we couldn't confirm its download terms or minimum macOS version, so check its site.

There's one catch: if your Mac sends sound only to BlackHole, you stop hearing it. A Multi-Output Device in Audio MIDI Setup, which is built into macOS, fixes that.

Set up BlackHole to record Mac audio in QuickTime

1. Install BlackHole using the installer from its site.
2. Open Audio MIDI Setup. It's in Applications ▸ Utilities, or you can search for it with Spotlight.
3. Click the + button at the bottom left and choose Create Multi-Output Device.
4. In the new device, tick both your speakers or headphones and BlackHole. If you hear crackles or the audio drifts out of sync, tick Drift Correction for BlackHole.
5. Open System Settings, go to Sound, and set the output to the Multi-Output Device. You keep hearing audio, and BlackHole receives a copy.
6. In QuickTime Player, choose File ▸ New Screen Recording (or press ⇧⌘5), open Options and select the BlackHole device as the microphone.
7. Record. When you're finished, switch the Sound output back to your usual device.

For audio only, QuickTime's File ▸ New Audio Recording works the same way. Pick BlackHole as the input.

What the BlackHole route can't do easily

• Your voice and Mac audio together. QuickTime records one input. If you pick BlackHole, you get the Mac's sound but not your mic. Getting both takes more routing, such as an Aggregate Device in Audio MIDI Setup that combines your mic and BlackHole. Whether your recording app handles that multi-channel input properly varies, so test it before an important take.
• Volume keys. While a Multi-Output Device is your output, the volume keys may stop working. Set levels inside each app instead.
• Remembering to switch back. If you forget, other apps keep playing through the Multi-Output Device. Change the output under Sound in System Settings.

BlackHole still makes sense when your recording app can't capture system audio at all, or when you need to route audio between apps for other jobs.

Compare the methods

Keep system audio and your mic on separate tracks

Separate tracks matter once you start editing. If an app's sound drowns out your narration, you want to turn the app down without touching your voice. You can't do that after both are mixed into one track.

Screen Bolt saves the microphone as its own track, separate from system audio. In the editor:

1. Open the Audio panel (⌘4).
2. Set System Audio and Microphone volume independently (0–100% each).
3. Click the S (solo) button on a track row in the timeline to hear only that track. Having two tracks also lets you:

• Clean up only your voice. Audio Enhance (Noise Reduction, Volume Normalization, Voice Clarity) applies to the microphone track only, so app sounds and music aren't processed as if they were speech. More in removing background noise from a screen recording.
• Save the internal audio as its own file. Right-click the system audio row on the timeline and choose Export System Audio…. You get the raw track as an .m4a file, without your volume or enhancement settings. Export Microphone Audio… does the same for your voice. To drop system audio from the video, choose Remove System Audio.

Screen Bolt always records a screen source, and the record button stays disabled until you pick one. If you only want the audio, record any display or area, then export the system audio track.

Silence notifications and other apps before you record

Capturing system audio from all apps gets you everything: Slack pings, Mail alerts, a browser tab that starts playing on its own. Screen Bolt can't record app by app in the current version, so silence the sources yourself:

1. Turn on Do Not Disturb. Open Control Center in the menu bar, click Focus, then choose Do Not Disturb.
2. Quit any chat, mail or calendar apps you don't need, or mute them in their own settings.
3. Close browser tabs that might play sound.
4. In System Settings, open Sound and turn off Play user interface sound effects so system clicks stay out of the recording. Lower Alert volume too.
5. Make a 10-second test recording and play it back before the real take.

For the rest of the setup, see how to prepare your Mac for a clean screen recording.

If it doesn't work

The recording has no Mac audio

Symptom: you hear your voice but not the app. Screen Bolt's Audio panel says "No system audio track in source."

Fix: the Audio menu was most likely set to Don't record system audio when you recorded. System audio can't be added afterward, so choose Record system audio from all apps and record again. With QuickTime alone this is expected on macOS 14 and 15, so use one of the two options above. For other causes, see Mac screen recording has no sound.

Recording won't start, or the permission seems ignored

Symptom: a red banner under the recording bar starts with "Failed to get screen sources" or "Failed to start recording".

Fix: grant Screen Recording permission. In Screen Bolt, open Help ▸ Screen Bolt Help (⌘?) to see each permission's status, then click Open Settings next to Screen Recording. On macOS 14, quit and reopen Screen Bolt after granting it. On macOS 15, expect macOS to ask you to confirm screen recording access again from time to time (roughly monthly). See why your Mac keeps asking for screen recording access.

You hear the audio twice or with an echo

Why: your mic is picking up your speakers while system audio is also captured directly.

Fix: wear headphones, or turn Mic off if you don't need narration.

Your microphone is missing from the recording

Symptom: an amber banner says "Recording without microphone", for example because the mic "may be in use by another app." If you see the red "Microphone access is required to record mic audio.", macOS permission is missing.

Fix: quit the app holding the mic (a call app, for example), pick the mic again under Mic, and record a short test. For the permission message, click Open Settings next to Microphone in Screen Bolt Help.

Notification sounds ended up in the video

Fix: the chime is on the same track as everything else your Mac played, so you can't remove it on its own. Cut that moment out in the editor, or lower System Audio for the whole clip. Before the next take, turn on Do Not Disturb and quit noisy apps.

The BlackHole recording is silent, or you can't hear anything

Fix: if the recording is silent, make sure the app's sound actually goes to your Multi-Output Device (some apps have their own output setting) and that BlackHole is selected as the input in QuickTime. If you can't hear anything, your output is set to BlackHole alone. Switch it to the Multi-Output Device that includes your speakers or headphones.

FAQ

Can QuickTime record internal audio on its own?

Not on macOS 14 or 15. QuickTime and the Screenshot toolbar only offer microphones as audio sources, so you need a loopback driver such as BlackHole or a recorder that captures system audio itself.

Can I record internal audio and my voice at the same time?

Yes. In Screen Bolt, turn on both Audio and Mic and you get two separate tracks. With BlackHole and QuickTime you need extra routing, such as an Aggregate Device, and you should test the result first.

Do I need BlackHole if my recorder supports system audio?

No. A recorder that captures system audio through ScreenCaptureKit gets the sound directly, so you can skip the driver and Audio MIDI Setup. For more on recording with sound, see how to screen record on Mac with audio.

Screen Bolt has a free version you can download to try system audio capture. Free exports are watermarked and limited to 3 minutes at 720p.