Screen recording apps for MacHead to head

Screen Studio vs Cap

Screen Studio ranks #2 and Cap ranks #3 in our guide to the best screen recording apps for Mac. Screen Studio is the better pick for most people, and Cap is the best free option.

The Useful TechResearched and written with AI under our rulesUpdated 14 Oct 2026

Better for most peopleScreen Studio app iconScreen StudioPick Screen Studio if you publish product demos or course videos and want them zoomed and smoothed without a video editor.From $9Best freeCap app iconCapPick Cap if you want Loom-style share links for free and like that the code is open source.Free to start

What decides it

  • Cap costs less over 3 years: $58, against $324 for Screen Studio.
  • Both run on Mac.

Side by side

Prices are checked every day.

At a glanceScreen Studio app iconScreen StudioCap app iconCap
Price$9 a month billed yearly, or $29 month to monthFree for personal use. A commercial license is $58 once, and Pro is $8.16 a month billed yearly
How you paySubscriptionFree, with paid upgrades
3 years of use$324 Yearly plan$58 Cheaper
Free trialNone listedFree to start
Runs onMacMac
Where to buyDeveloperDeveloper
FeaturesNone flaggedOpen source
Last updated22 Oct 202629 Oct 2026

Who should get which

Get Screen Studio if

You record product demos, tutorials or course videos and want them to look edited without a video editor.

Get Cap if

You explain things to clients or teammates in short screen videos and want a Loom-style link fast.

Skip Screen Studio if

You record your screen a few times a year, and QuickTime with Shift-Command-5 handles that for free.

Skip Cap if

You record your screen for yourself now and then, and Shift-Command-5 already saves those free.

Our verdicts

Screen Studio app iconScreen Studio

Record your screen once and get back a video that zooms in wherever you clicked, with a smoothed cursor and a clean background, so it looks like an edited product demo. The cursor is recorded separately so you can restyle it later, and editing the transcript cuts filler words. It is subscription only now, from $9 a month billed yearly, so CleanShot X is the better buy if you mostly take screenshots.

Cap app iconCap

Free for personal use, this open source recorder works like Loom: it uploads while you talk and the share link is copied when you stop. Studio Mode records screen, camera and mic in 4K on separate tracks and adds automatic zooms. Free share links stop at 5 minutes and commercial use needs the $58 license, and CleanShot X is the better buy if you want screenshot tools in the same app.

What each one helps you do

Screen Studio app iconScreen Studio

  • Zoom in automatically wherever you click
  • Cut filler words by editing the transcript
  • Turn 1 recording into wide and vertical videos
  • Share a finished video as a link

Cap app iconCap

  • Share a recording link the moment you stop
  • Record your screen and camera in 4K
  • Add automatic zooms to a tutorial video
  • Keep recordings on your own storage

Where to get them

Screen Studio

$9 a month billed yearly, or $29 month to month

  • From the developerOne-time licenses are no longer sold; older ones stay valid
    From $9 a monthGet it

Cap

Free for personal use. A commercial license is $58 once, and Pro is $8.16 a month billed yearly

  • From the developer
    Free downloadGet it

Neither one quite right?

The other picks in our guide to the best screen recording apps for Mac.

Read the full guideAll Screen Studio alternativesAll Cap alternatives

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