In short
- Press Shift-Command-5 to open the Screenshot toolbar, pick full screen, a window or a portion, then click Record.
- Stop with the Stop button in the menu bar or Command-Control-Esc. The file lands on your Desktop as a .mov.
- Window recording arrived in macOS 26 Tahoe; system audio in macOS 27, with the Include System Audio option.
- QuickTime Player's New Screen Recording opens the same toolbar, so it can do the same things.
- For a camera bubble, a share link or subtitles you need a third-party app.
To screen record on a Mac, press ⌘⇧5, choose whether to record the entire screen, one window or a portion of it, and click Record. When you’re done, click the Stop button in the menu bar or press ⌘⌃Esc. The recording is saved to your Desktop as a .mov file.
That covers most needs. The rest of this guide shows what each version of macOS can and can’t do (window recording and system audio are recent), how QuickTime Player fits in, the permission prompt, where your files go, and when a third-party app is worth it.
The quick way: the Screenshot toolbar
The Screenshot app is the built-in screen recorder. Its toolbar opens on top of whatever you’re doing.
- Open the toolbar. Press ⌘⇧5, or search for Screenshot in Spotlight.
- Pick what to record. The toolbar has three recording buttons: Record Entire Screen, Record Selected Window (macOS 26 Tahoe or later) and Record Selected Portion. For a portion, drag the frame to move it and drag its edges to resize it.
- Check the Options menu. Choose a microphone if you’ll talk, where to save, and a timer if you need a few seconds to get ready (details below).
- Click Record. If you chose a window, click the window you want. Press Esc before you start if you change your mind.
- Stop. Click the Stop button in the menu bar, or press ⌘⌃Esc.
- Use the thumbnail, or let it save. A thumbnail appears in the corner of the screen. Click it to trim or share the recording, or wait and the file is saved.
The shortcut can be changed, and there are a few more worth knowing: our guide to the Mac screen record shortcut lists them.
What’s in the Options menu
The Options menu is where most “why didn’t it record X” problems are solved.
| Option | What it does | macOS version |
|---|---|---|
| Save to | A preset folder, or Other Location to pick any folder | All |
| Timer | A delay in seconds after you click Record | All |
| Microphone | Records your voice from the mic you pick; None turns it off | All |
| Include System Audio | Records the sound the Mac plays | 27 or later |
| Show Floating Thumbnail | The preview in the corner after you stop | All |
| Remember Last Selection | Reuses the last area you recorded | All |
| Show Mouse Clicks (Show Mouse Pointer in some versions) | Shows the pointer and a circle when you click | All |
| Capture Format | SDR (H.264, most compatible) or HDR (HEVC), on supported Macs | 26 or later |
Source: Apple Support and the Mac User Guide for macOS 15, 26 and 27. Checked November 2026.
Leave Capture Format on SDR for anything you’ll send to a client. Apple’s own note is that HDR only shows its difference on an HDR display, and SDR plays well everywhere.
Using QuickTime Player
QuickTime Player can still start a screen recording, but on recent macOS it hands the job to the Screenshot toolbar.
- Open QuickTime Player from the Applications folder.
- Start a screen recording. Choose , or press ⌃⌘N.
- Record as above. You get the same Screenshot controls and the same Options menu.
- Stop from the menu bar. QuickTime then opens the recording, ready to play, trim or share.
So QuickTime isn’t a different recorder: it’s a different door to the same one. It’s useful if you want the recording open in a player straight away, and its command cuts the start and end (see how to trim a screen recording on Mac). For a side-by-side view of what the built-in tools cover, see JustRec vs QuickTime and the Screenshot toolbar.
What each macOS version can do
The built-in recorder changed in the last two releases. If a colleague’s instructions don’t match your screen, this is usually why. To check your version, choose .
| Feature | macOS 15 Sequoia | macOS 26 Tahoe | macOS 27 Golden Gate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Record the entire screen | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Record a selected portion | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Record a single window | ✗ draw a portion instead | ✓ Record Selected Window | ✓ Record Selected Window |
| Microphone | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| System audio (sound from the Mac) | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ Include System Audio |
| SDR or HDR capture format | ✗ | ✓ supported Macs | ✓ supported Macs |
| Camera bubble | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Share link when you stop | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Subtitles | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
Built-in means the Screenshot toolbar (⌘⇧5) and QuickTime Player, which opens the same toolbar. Source: Apple Support and the Mac User Guide. Checked November 2026.
Two rows matter most. Window recording is new in Tahoe: on Sequoia you record the screen or draw an area around the window. And until macOS 27 the built-in tools could not record the sound your Mac plays, which is why so many guides mention BlackHole. If you’re on 15 or 26 and need that sound, our guide to screen recording on Mac with internal audio covers every workaround.
Some apps don’t let you record their windows at all: Apple names the Apple TV app as an example.
Recording with system audio on macOS 27
If you’re on macOS 27, recording a video with its sound takes one extra click:
- Press ⌘⇧5 and pick a recording mode.
- Turn on system audio. Choose . The sound your Mac plays goes into the recording.
- Pick a microphone too, if you’ll talk. Both are recorded together.
- Use headphones. Otherwise the mic also picks up the sound from your speakers, and you hear it twice.
- Click Record, then play the video, call or prototype you want to capture.
Do a ten-second test first and play it back. It’s much cheaper than finding out after a five-minute walkthrough that the sound wasn’t on.
Full screen, one window or an area
Each mode fits a different video:
- Entire screen for walkthroughs that jump between apps. Tidy the desktop first.
- One window for a single app, like a browser showing the client’s staging site. Everything else on screen stays out of the video, including that Slack window behind it.
- A portion when you want a fixed frame, for example just the artboard in Figma.
On macOS 15, where there’s no window mode, a portion drawn around the window is the closest match. Our guide on recording one window or part of your screen goes through each mode, plus setups with more than one display.
The permission prompt
Third-party recorders, browsers and video call apps need your permission to record the screen. The first time one tries, macOS shows a dialog; click Allow.
You can review the list at any time in (scroll down the Privacy & Security list to find it). Turn each app on or off there: an app can be allowed to record the screen and audio, or only audio. The setting has the same name in macOS 15, 26 and 27.
If an app keeps asking even though it’s switched on, or records only your wallpaper, the cause is usually an old copy of the app holding the permission. We ran into exactly that while building JustRec, and the fixes are in Mac screen recording permission not working.
Where your recordings go
By default, recordings go to the Desktop, named “Screen Recording [date] at [time].mov”. To change it, press ⌘⇧5 and pick a folder in , or choose Other Location for any folder.
One thing to check: if iCloud Drive syncs your Desktop & Documents folders, every recording saved to the Desktop is uploaded to iCloud and counts against your iCloud storage. Large .mov files fill that up fast. Our guide on where screen recordings go on Mac covers how to find a lost recording and pick a better folder.
If the files are too big to send, see how to make a screen recording smaller on Mac.
Before you hit Record
A minute of preparation saves a second take.
Before you record
- Turn on Do Not Disturb so notifications don’t pop up in the video.
- Close inboxes, chat apps and tabs from other clients.
- Pick the right microphone under Options (AirPods and the built-in mic sound different).
- Set Capture Format to SDR if you’ll send the video to a client.
- Check Save to, so you know where the file ends up.
Notifications are the most common surprise: a message preview from another client is the last thing you want in a video. How to hide notifications while screen recording shows the Focus settings that stop them.
When the built-in tools aren’t enough
The Screenshot toolbar records well. What it doesn’t do is everything around the recording, which is where most of the time goes when the video is for someone else:
- Your face on screen. There’s no camera bubble. You can float a QuickTime camera window on top, but it’s fiddly. Apps with a real bubble are covered in how to record your screen and camera at the same time, including using your iPhone as a webcam.
- Sharing. You get a .mov file. To send it, you upload it somewhere, wait, copy a link and paste it.
- Subtitles, drawing and click effects. None of them are built in.
- Sound on older Macs. System audio needs macOS 27.
Third-party recorders fill these gaps in different ways: some focus on polished tutorials with an editing timeline, others on sharing a video quickly. Pick based on what you send most.
If something goes wrong
Most problems have a short list of causes:
| Problem | Usual cause |
|---|---|
| Black recording, or only the wallpaper | The app lacks permission, or the Mac was locked while recording |
| No sound | The microphone was set to None, or you expected system audio on macOS 15 or 26 |
| The video looks soft | It was scaled down for sharing, or recorded at a lower resolution: see why your screen recording looks blurry |
| The app keeps asking for permission | An old copy of the app holds it; resetting the permission fixes it |
Our Mac screen recording troubleshooting guide goes through each of these in order.
Which method should you use?
| You want to | Use |
|---|---|
| Record a quick clip for yourself or a colleague | Screenshot toolbar, ⌘⇧5 |
| Record and trim straight away in a player | QuickTime Player, |
| Record a video with its sound on macOS 15 or 26 | A third-party recorder or a virtual audio driver |
| Record a video with its sound on macOS 27 | Screenshot toolbar with Include System Audio |
| Show your face while you explain | A recorder with a camera bubble |
| Send the video to a client in a minute | A recorder that gives you a share link |
The short version
Press ⌘⇧5, pick a mode, check Options, click Record. On macOS 27 tick Include System Audio if you need the Mac’s sound; on Tahoe or later you can record a single window. For anything you send to a client every day, a camera bubble and a link ready when you stop save more time than any setting in the toolbar.
Sources
- Apple Support: How to record the screen on Mac, checked November 2026.
- Apple Support, Mac User Guide: Take screenshots or screen recordings on Mac (macOS 15, 26 and 27 versions), checked November 2026.
- Apple Support, Mac User Guide: Control access to screen and system audio recording on Mac, checked November 2026.
- Apple Support, QuickTime Player User Guide: Record your screen, checked November 2026.
- Apple Support, QuickTime Player User Guide: Trim a movie or clip, checked November 2026.
- Apple Support: Add your Desktop and Documents files to iCloud Drive, checked November 2026.
Frequently asked questions
How do I screen record on a Mac?
Press Shift-Command-5, choose Record Entire Screen, a window or a selected portion in the toolbar, then click Record. Click the Stop button in the menu bar, or press Command-Control-Esc, when you're done.
Can a Mac screen record with sound?
It always can record your microphone: pick one under Options. Recording the sound the Mac itself plays needs macOS 27 or later, where the Options menu has Include System Audio; on older versions you need a third-party app or a virtual audio driver.
Where do Mac screen recordings save?
On the Desktop by default, as a file named Screen Recording followed by the date and time. You can pick another folder under Options › Save to in the Screenshot toolbar.
Is there a time limit on Mac screen recordings?
Apple doesn't list a time limit for the built-in recorder. In practice the limit is free disk space, because long recordings at Retina resolution make large files.
Why can't I record some apps?
Some apps block screen and audio capture, such as the Apple TV app, so their windows or sound are left out. It is a choice made by the app, not a setting you can change.
