8 Best Screen Recording Software For Windows & Mac

Best Screen Recording Software – To convert screenshots into videos we need screen recording software. By using this software, all activity on the computer will be recorded and automatically turn it into a video.

There are lots of computer screen recording software that you can use, but on this occasion, WatanLema will provide some recommendations for screen recorders that are free and light to run on your computer.

Using screen recording software can be useful for making video tutorials, demonstrating software usage, or recording gaming activities. For gamers, screen recording software is a must-have application, and choosing one cannot be arbitrary. This is because playing the game itself is enough to consume a lot of resources, therefore the screen recording software must be light so that it does not add to the workload of your computer.

The following are some recommendations for the best free and lightweight computer screen recording software:

8 Best Screen Recording Software

1. OBS Studio

OBS Studio

If you are looking for the best screen recording software which is 100% free with no watermark or ads then OBS Studio is the best choice. This application is an open source-based screen recording software with a myriad of very complete features, not even inferior to other paid software.

OBS Studio can run on multiple platforms, be it Windows, Linux, or macOS. This application can be used to record the screen as well as display video from the camera, for those of you gamers who want to record games as well as the camera, you can use OBS to do so.

One of the pretty cool features of OBS is its ability to record multiple sources at once. For example, if you run several programs on your computer, you can make each program a separate source of screenshots, plus a camera.

OBS Studio can also be used for streaming on Twitch, YouTube, DailyMotion, and other video-sharing sites. We highly recommend this application for those of you who want a screen recorder with full features, free, and no watermark.

Advantages of OBS Studio :

• 100% free, full features
• Fullscreen or partial-screen recording
• Input from webcam, microphone, dan computer sound
• Can record multiple sources at once
• Support green screen filter (chroma key)
• An audio mixer that is very useful for balancing the sound of the mic input and the sound from the laptop
• No watermark, ads, and duration limit
• Can be used for streaming

Disadvantages of OBS Studio:

• There is no pause feature when recording
• No built-in video editor
• The setup process is quite complicated, especially for beginners

2. Windows 10 Game Bar

Windows 10 has a built-in feature called the Game Bar that can be used to take screenshots and also record screens. You can use this program as a screen recorder while playing games or running other applications.

The advantage of using this application is that we no longer need to download and install additional applications because the Game Bar is ready to use from the first time you install Windows 10. Game Bar is also very light and well-optimized to run on Windows 10.

Windows Game Bar cannot record specific areas of the screen like OBS Studio, this feature only allows you to record an application or game. This is because the Game Bar is specifically designed for game recording purposes.

To do a recording, do the following :

1. Run the app or game you want to record
2. Press Windows key+G to bring up Game Bar
3. Press the Start button to start the screen recording
4. Press the Microphone button to activate the input from the mic
5. Press the Stop button to stop recording
6. When finished, the video file will be saved in the C:\User\Pictures\Captures folder. You can then edit the video file using one of the best PC video editing applications.

Advantages of Windows Game Bar :

• No need to install additional applications
• Light
• Suitable for recording heavy games smoothly
• There is a trim feature that can be used after finishing the recording.
• No watermarks, ads, or recording duration restrictions

Disadvantages of Windows Game Bar :

• Cannot record full screen or specific areas on the screen
• The resulting resolution is the same as the recorded application resolution, and cannot be set by yourself
• There is no pause button when recording
• Does not have a built-in video editor fitur

3. Streamlab OBS

Streamlab OBS

Streamlab OBS is the most popular streaming application among gamers. This application is built using OBS Studio source code so the features in it are very similar to OBS Studio, the difference is that OBS Streamlab is much easier to use.

If you are a complete beginner and find it difficult to set up when using OBS Studio, then the best alternative you can choose is Streamlab OBS.

Streamlab OBS is a streaming and recording application with the largest community, especially among gamers. You can use this app for screen recording and streaming on sites like Twitch and YouTube.

Streamlab OBS has all the features of OBS Studio such as the ability to record from multiple sources, display video from a webcam, mic input, effects, and filters. You can also create your layout as you wish or you can download layouts that have been made by the community on the official Streamlab website.

Advantages of Streamlab OBS :

• Free
• Lightweight for recording while gaming
• Can be used as a screen recorder to record PC screens or to stream on Twitch and YouTube
• There are cool themes and layouts ready to use
• Integrated with chat features on streaming sites
• The UI is more modern and user-friendly
• The easier setup process for novice users
• No watermark and duration limitation

Disadvantages of Streamlab OBS :

• No pause button
• Minor bugs

4. CamStudio

The next lightweight and free PC screen recording software are CamStudio. This application is also an open-source screen recorder that is quite popular with the features and appearance of the application which is much simpler than Streamlab or OBS Studio.

CamStudio is specially designed to record screen activity offline, the result is a video file in AVI and SWF format. This application also has a feature to add captions, annotations, and video layers from the webcam. If you use the input from the mic, CamStudio also has a feature to improve the quality of the sound produced.

You can use CamStudio to record full screen or select a specific area on your laptop screen. You can also set the output video quality yourself, if you want a smaller capacity, you can reduce the video quality.

Advantages of CamStudio :

• Free
• No watermark or time limit
• The UI is simple and easy to understand
• Fairly light and stable

Disadvantages of CamStudio :

• Can only produce videos with AVI and SWF formats
• The video output capacity is very large
• Trying to enter other software during installation

5. Free Cam

The next best screen recording software is Free Cam. You can also use this application for free without any watermarks and restrictions on the duration of the record.

Free Cam is suitable for making tutorial videos and e-learning. You can record the screen and enter voice input from the microphone. The recorded video can be saved on the computer for editing again or directly uploaded to YouTube from the application.

In the free version, the resulting video format can only use the WMV format. But this is not a big problem because you can change it to another format while making edits.

Advantages of Free Cam:

• No watermarks, time restrictions, and ads
• Can record video with high resolution
• Audio effects
• Voice input from mic and computer voice

Disadvantages of Free Cam:

• The free version can only produce videos in WMV format
• Can’t show video from webcam

6. Flashback Express

Flashback Express is a screen recording software for Windows that has quite complete features. You can use this application to record screens and webcams and add sound from the microphone.

The resulting video can be directly edited using the built-in editor in the application. You can add attributes such as captions, arrows, images, and highlights.

Flashback Express can be used for free without a watermark or duration limitation of 30 days, after which the trial period will expire and users are required to upgrade to the pro version if they want to continue using it.

Advantages of Flashback Express:

• There are no watermarks or time limits
• The UI is modern and user friendly
• Can record screen, mic, and webcam at once
• It has a pretty good built-in video editor

Disadvantages of Flashback Express :

• Can only be used for free for 30 days
• The free version can only produce videos in MP4, AVI, and WMV formats

7. Camtasia

Camtasia is one of the most popular screen recording software that is widely used by both beginners and professionals. This application has the advantages of ease of use and its features are quite complete.

Camtasia can not only be used to record the screen but as a video editor that is quite powerful. You can record the screen while playing games or running certain applications and then directly edit the resulting video directly on Camtasia.

This application is suitable for beginner Youtubers to make gaming videos, tutorials, lessons, and presentations. The simple appearance of the Camtasia application with its easy-to-understand menu navigation makes this application very popular with all people. The only drawback of this application is that there is no free version, you can use the trial version for 30 days and then have to upgrade to the paid version.

Advantages of Camtasia :

• Screen recording in full screen, application windows, or certain areas on the laptop screen
• Webcam capture which allows you to display video from the webcam while recording
• A built-in video editor that is easy to use with quite complete features
• Pre-built assets
• Ready-to-use templates are available
• Integrated with PowerPoint, lets you turn presentations into videos
• Remove background (green screen, chroma key)

Disadvantages of Camtasia :

• Not free, the trial version can only be used for 30 days, after that, you have to buy

8. Icecream Screen Recorder

The last best lightweight screen recording software is Icecream Screen Recorder. This application can be used to record certain applications, games, or self-selected areas on the screen.

Icecream is suitable for making gaming videos, tutorials, and webinars. You can determine the quality of the video you want to produce, if you want high quality, you have to be prepared with a video capacity that will be quite large.

One of the cool features of this application is its ability to record 3D games on full screen with great results. If you buy the pro version, you can also add your watermark to the recorded video.

Advantages of Icecream Screen Recorder :

• Light to run on a laptop with low specs
• Support for video formats that are quite complete
• Modern and easy-to-use UI
• Can record the full screen, certain application windows, or areas of your choosing
• Can make GIFs from screen recordings
• Can determine the quality of the output video

Disadvantages of Icecream Screen Recorder :

• There is a watermark on the free version
• The free version can only record videos with a maximum duration of 5 minutes
• Can only produce WEBM video format on the free version

Those are some free and lightweight computer screen recording software for Windows 10, 8, and 7 recommended by Winpreso. You can choose the application that best suits your needs. Good luck.