Free
Free
Personal use only
- Studio Mode with full editor
- 4K 60fps export to any format
- Shareable links up to 5 minutes
- Team workspaces
- Community support
Editing a recording in Studio Mode
Open source screen recorder for Mac, Windows and Linux with instant share links, a built-in editor and self-hosting
from$2.42a month per user, billed yearly
Cap has a free plan. Prices in US dollars as Cap's pricing page showed them on 11 October 2026.
Plans
- Mac
- Windows
- Linux
- Chrome extension
- Web
What Cap does
Cap is an open source screen recorder for Mac, Windows and Linux, built as an alternative to Loom: record, edit with auto zoom and backgrounds, and share a link. It suits individuals and teams who want Loom-style sharing for less, or to host it themselves. Personal use is free; a commercial desktop licence costs $29 a year, and Cap Pro is $12 per user a month, or $8.16 billed annually. Students get 30% off.
Instant Mode
Cap uploads while you record, so a share link is on your clipboard the moment you stop. Viewers watch in the browser with no account, and get a transcript, summary and chapters.
Studio Mode
Records locally in up to 4K at 60fps with screen, camera and microphone on separate tracks, with no compression or upload.
Built-in editor
Backgrounds, padding and frames, automatic zoom from your clicks, cursor smoothing, blur or pixelate masks, camera scenes, animated text and colour grades.
Local captions
Captions are transcribed on your own machine in 19 languages, then can be edited, styled and burned in.
Screenshot Mode
Grab a window or area with a hotkey and add a background, padding and shadow in one click before copying it.
Bring your own storage
Cap Pro can store recordings in your own S3-compatible bucket in any region or in Google Drive, alongside custom domains and password-protected links.
Open source and self-hosting
The code is on GitHub under AGPLv3, and the whole platform can be self-hosted with Docker Compose, with the desktop app pointed at your own server.
Loom importer
Cap Pro imports an existing Loom library, so teams can move their videos across when they switch.
Works with
- Loom importer
- Amazon S3 and S3-compatible storage
- Google Drive
- Chrome
- Docker Compose
- Coolify
- SAML SSO
- Cap CLI
How much Cap costs
Desktop License
$2.42a month per user, billed yearly
$29 a year, or $58 once for a licence that never renews
- Commercial usage rights
- Unlimited local recording and editing
- Studio Mode with full editor
- 20 cloud share links a month, up to 5 minutes each
- Works fully offline
- Community support
Cap Pro
$12a month per user
Save 32% on annual billing
- Everything in Desktop License
- Unlimited cloud storage and bandwidth
- AI titles, summaries, chapters and transcripts
- Custom domain for share links
- Password-protected shares
- Viewer analytics
- Loom video importer
- Custom S3 bucket and Google Drive storage
Enterprise
$12a month per user
Cap Pro price plus optional add-ons
- Everything in Cap Pro
- SAML SSO add-on, $199 a month flat for unlimited users
- Signed BAA add-on, $99 a month per organisation
- Self-serve, no minimum seats
- Volume discounts available
Prices in US dollars; VAT not mentioned. Students get 30% off any paid plan with a code on Cap's student discount page. Volume discounts for teams over 10 users. Prices in US dollars, from Cap's pricing page on 11 October 2026. Cap may charge VAT on top, and prices can change.
Cap pros and cons
Pros
- Cap Pro is $8.16 a month per user billed annually, against Loom's $18 Business plan
- A one-off $58 licence covers commercial local recording with no subscription
- Free for personal use with 4K export and no stated time limit on local recordings
- Open source under AGPLv3 and fully self-hostable
- Runs on Linux as well as Mac and Windows
- Students get 30% off paid plans
Cons
- Free plan is for personal use only, and its share links stop at five minutes
- Product Hunt reviewers report crashes and unreliable multi-screen recording
- Windows version is labelled beta on the download page
- Prices only in US dollars, with no VAT information
- AI features are narrower than Loom's, with no meeting notes or filler-word removal
Good for
- Teams replacing Loom who want AI summaries and unlimited sharing for less per user
- Freelancers who only record locally and want a cheap commercial licence
- Organisations that need to self-host or keep recordings in their own UK or EU storage
- Linux users, who most screen recorders leave out
Look elsewhere if
- Anyone who needs rock-solid multi-monitor recording today, given reviewer reports of bugs
- Teams wanting meeting notes and AI workflows like Loom's Business + AI plan
- Commercial users hoping to stay on the free plan
What reviewers say about Cap
“Cap kept crashing when I first installed it but hopped onto the Discord and it got fixed within hours.”
“The multi-screen recording is unreliable, and I've lost a fair amount of time to bugs”
“A lot of updates and open source”
What reviewers like
- Open source code and the option to self-host
- Polished editor with auto zoom and backgrounds
- Frequent updates and fast fixes from the developers
- Much lower price than Loom or Screen Studio
What reviewers complain about
- Crashes, especially after first installing
- Unreliable multi-screen recording
- Bugs that cost time on paid licences
- Some features still missing compared with older rivals
Cap: what to know before you pay
What is Cap and how does it work?
Cap is a desktop screen recorder with three modes: Instant Mode for quick shared links, Studio Mode for polished edited videos, and Screenshot Mode for tidied-up stills.
In Instant Mode, Cap uploads while you record, so when you press stop a share link is already on your clipboard. Viewers watch in the browser without an account, and every recording gets comments, reactions, a transcript and chapters. Studio Mode records locally in up to 4K at 60fps, with screen, camera and microphone on separate tracks, then opens an editor with backgrounds, automatic zoom on clicks, cursor smoothing, blur for private details, captions transcribed on your own machine in 19 languages and animated text. Cap runs on macOS, Windows (labelled beta on its download page) and Linux, with a Chrome extension too.
Is Cap free?
Yes for personal use: Cap's pricing page says the app is free for personal use with no time limit on local recordings, but commercial use needs a paid plan.
Free and Desktop License users get shareable cloud links up to five minutes long (the Desktop License allows 20 a month). Unlimited cloud sharing, AI titles and summaries, transcripts, password-protected links, viewer analytics and custom domains are all part of Cap Pro. If you cancel Pro, Cap says existing shares stay live and you can export everything.
How much does Cap cost in the UK?
Cap is priced in US dollars: the Desktop License is $29 a year (or $58 once for a licence that never renews), and Cap Pro is $12 per user a month, or $8.16 a month billed annually.
- Free: personal use, Studio Mode, 4K exports, links up to five minutes
- Desktop License: commercial rights for one user, unlimited local recording and editing, works offline
- Cap Pro: everything above plus unlimited cloud storage, Cap AI with no usage limits, custom domain, team workspaces and the Loom importer
- Enterprise: Cap Pro pricing with optional SAML single sign-on at $199 a month (flat, unlimited users) and a signed BAA at $99 a month
Students get 30% off any paid plan with a code from Cap's student discount page, and Cap offers volume discounts for teams of more than 10. The pricing page doesn't mention VAT.
Cap vs Loom: which is better?
Cap is the cheaper choice for most people who record and share screen videos, while Loom suits teams already settled on Atlassian tools who want its wider AI features.
Loom's free Starter plan limits you to 25 videos of up to five minutes at 720p. Its paid plans are listed at $18 per user a month for Business and $24 for Business + AI, against $12 (or $8.16 annually) for Cap Pro, which includes AI titles, summaries, chapters and transcripts. Cap also offers a one-off $58 licence for people who only record locally, imports an existing Loom library, and can store recordings in your own S3 bucket or Google Drive. Loom's AI goes further, with automatic meeting notes, filler-word removal and workflows. Cap's own pages and early reviews show a smaller, younger product: Product Hunt reviewers mention crashes and unreliable multi-screen recording, though others say bugs were fixed quickly after reporting them on Discord.
Can you self-host Cap?
Yes, Cap is open source and can be self-hosted, which Loom can't.
The code is on GitHub under the AGPLv3 licence, with some components under MIT. Cap's README says the web app, API, database, media server and storage can be run with Docker Compose, and the desktop app can then be pointed at your own server. That keeps recordings on your own infrastructure, which suits organisations with strict data rules. It does take technical work to run and maintain, so most small teams will find Cap Pro simpler.
Is Cap safe to use for work recordings?
Cap says it is SOC 2 Type II, ISO 27001 and HIPAA compliant, with signed BAAs available.
For GDPR, Cap Pro lets you bring your own storage, including an S3 bucket in any region, so UK organisations can keep recordings in a UK or EU data centre. Studio Mode records straight to your device with no upload, and captions are generated locally. Shares can be password-protected on Cap Pro.
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Questions about Cap
Are there any Cap discount codes?
We don't currently list a confirmed discount code. That doesn't mean the store has no promotions; check its website for current prices.
Can I use the free version of Cap for work?
No. Cap's free version is for personal use only. Commercial use, such as client work or selling courses, needs the Desktop License or Cap Pro.
Does Cap add a watermark?
Cap's pricing page lists 4K 60fps export to any format on every plan, including Free, and doesn't mention a watermark on any of them.
Can I move my Loom videos to Cap?
Yes. Cap Pro includes a Loom video importer that brings your existing Loom library into Cap.
What happens to my videos if I cancel Cap Pro?
Cap says existing shares stay active and you can export everything. You can drop to the free plan to keep recording locally, or self-host to keep every feature.
Does Cap work on Linux?
Yes. Cap offers Linux downloads as .deb, AppImage, Fedora RPM and Arch packages, alongside macOS (13.1 or later recommended) and Windows.