Best screen recorders, by what you need to deliver

Product	Best for	Per month, yearly plan	The deciding fact, and the catch	Link
OBS Studio	Best free recorder	Free	Free, open source, on Windows, Mac and Linux. No built-in editor, where Camtasia has one, and scenes need manual setup.	Visit
Loom	Best for team messages	$15	Free gives 25 videos at 5 minutes each. Removing Loom branding takes Business, at $18 per user a month.	Visit
Screen Studio	Best for Mac demos	$9	$9 a month on yearly, $29 on monthly, with every feature on every plan. Mac only, with no Windows version planned.	Visit
ScreenFlow	Best one-time purchase	$199 once	Listed as starting at $199 once. Mac only, and stock media is $99 a year extra.	Visit

Start with OBS Studio. It's free, open source and has no stated limits, as of November 1, 2026. If the video is a message to a coworker, use Loom instead.

The right tool depends on the file you owe somebody at the end. So pick by that.

A raw recording, or a live stream

OBS Studio records and streams, under GPL-2.0 or later, on Windows 10 and 11, macOS 13+ and Linux. Loom's free plan stops at 5 minutes per recording (checked Nov 1, 2026). OBS's project page gives no cap at all.

You pay with setup. Scenes and sources need configuring by hand, and there's no built-in editor, so trimming means a second app. Camtasia and ScreenFlow both skip that step, for money.

A link your coworker will actually watch

Loom's Starter plan is $0, for up to 25 videos per person at 5 minutes each. Business is $18 per user a month, with recording up to 4K. The $15 annual figure is inferred from page data, where 180 a year sits next to 18 a month and a "save up to 17%" line.

The branding catch: Loom's logo comes off only on Business. On the free plan, your message to a client carries Loom's branding.

Loom also has apps for Mac, Windows, iOS and Android. OBS has no phone version on its project page, so for a recording on your phone, Loom is the one to read about.

A product demo for a landing page

Screen Studio. It exports MP4 up to 4K at 60 fps, and shareable links run up to 30 minutes, six times Loom's free cap. All features are in every plan.

Yearly is $9 a month, and monthly is $29. Pay monthly and you're paying more than triple for identical features. The page doesn't say whether yearly is charged upfront.

Two catches. It's macOS only, with no Windows version planned, so Windows users should look at Camtasia. And one-time licenses are no longer sold to new customers.

A training video with edits

Camtasia. TechSmith's Essentials plan adds text-based editing, filler-word removal and multitrack editing, and individual plans are billed yearly only, non-transferable.

Camtasia's price isn't confirmed yet. TechSmith's store and a third-party article, trainn.co dated Aug 25, 2026, don't agree on currency, so check the checkout. Trainn also says the entry Starter plan watermarks exports (checked Nov 1, 2026). Essentials removes the watermark.

A screenshot with a short clip attached

Snagit, if screenshots are the job. TechSmith's store sells it as a yearly plan, and its price isn't confirmed yet.

It needs macOS 14+ or Windows 10 or 11. There's no one-time purchase, and personal licenses can't be transferred. If you only need short clips, Loom's free plan may do.

A one-time receipt

ScreenFlow. Telestream lists it as "Buy starting at $199", on Mac only, with a free trial. Against a yearly subscription, buying once is the obvious argument.

Then there's the add-on. The Stock Media Library is $99 a year, optional, and easy to skip. It's the same Mac-only limit as Screen Studio, without the subscription.