# Alternatives to Kap

Open source Mac screen capture.

Kap ranks #9 of 11 in Screen recording, with an Alt Score of 50. It is licensed under MIT, free and available on macOS. 5 of 9 checklist rows are verified against a public source.

Source: https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/kap/
Category: Screen recording

## Overview

- **Who it's for**: Designers, developers, and project managers on macOS who need to record and share quick screen captures, such as demos, bug reports, or tutorials.
- **What you get**: Kap is a free, open-source screen recorder for macOS built on web technology. It exports recordings as GIF, MP4, WebM, or APNG, with optional audio, and lets you highlight mouse clicks and trim footage before exporting. A plugin system extends it with direct sharing to services like Giphy, Streamable, and Vercel.
- **How it works**: Select an area of the screen and start recording, then trim the clip and add click highlights in the built-in editor before exporting to your chosen format or sharing it via a plugin.

## Profile

- **License**: MIT (verified 2026-07-11)
- **Pricing model**: Free (verified 2026-07-11)
- **Starts at**: ?
- **Platforms**: macOS

## Ranked alternatives

| # | App | Alt Score | Licence | Platforms |
|---|-----|-----------|---------|-----------|
| 1 | [Tella](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/tella.md) | 90 | Proprietary | Web, macOS, Windows, Browser extension |
| 2 | [Camtasia](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/camtasia.md) | 80 | Proprietary | Windows, macOS |
| 3 | [Cap](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/cap.md) | 80 | AGPL-3.0 | Windows, macOS |
| 4 | [Screen Studio](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/screen-studio.md) | 80 | Proprietary | macOS |
| 5 | [ScreenFlow](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/screenflow.md) | 80 | Proprietary | macOS |
| 6 | [Bandicam](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/bandicam.md) | 75 | Proprietary | Windows |
| 7 | [Streamlabs](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/streamlabs.md) | 70 | GPL-3.0 | Windows, macOS |
| 8 | [Loom](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/loom.md) | 50 | ? | Windows, macOS, Browser extension |
| 9 | [OBS Studio](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/obs-studio.md) | 40 | GPL-2.0 | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| 10 | [ShareX](https://altcatalog.com/alternatives/sharex.md) | 40 | GPL-3.0 | Windows |

Alt Score = Verified coverage (90%) + Visibility (10%). See https://altcatalog.com/how-alt-score-works/

## Feature comparison

Legend: Yes / No / Partial / ? (not verified).

| Screen recording checklist | Kap | Tella | Camtasia | Cap | Screen Studio | ScreenFlow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Free | Subscription | Subscription | Freemium | Subscription | One-time |
| Starts at | ? | $13/month | €39.57/year | $29/year | $9/month | $199 |
| License | MIT | Proprietary | Proprietary | AGPL-3.0 | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| Platforms | macOS | Web, macOS, Windows, Browser extension | Windows, macOS | Windows, macOS | macOS | macOS |
| Max resolution & fps | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Webcam overlay | ? | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| System + mic audio | Partial | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Editing included | Partial | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Instant share link | ? | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | ? |
| Watermark on free | ? | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes |
| Annotation during recording | ? | ? | ? | ? | No | No |
| GIF export | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Cursor effects | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |

## Sources

Sources for Kap. Each alternative is sourced on its own page.

- **License**: MIT — <https://github.com/wulkano/Kap/blob/main/LICENSE.md> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “MIT License”
- **Pricing model**: Free — <https://github.com/wulkano/Kap/blob/main/LICENSE.md> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy”
- **Platforms**: macOS — <https://github.com/wulkano/Kap/blob/main/docs/plugins.md> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “of the macOS versions your plugin supports”
- **Max resolution & fps**: Yes — <https://github.com/wulkano/Kap/blob/main/main/aperture.ts> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “fps: record60fps ? 60 : 30,”
- **System + mic audio**: Partial — <https://github.com/wulkano/Kap/blob/main/package.json> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “Kap needs access to the microphone to be able to record audio for screen recordings.”
- **Editing included**: Partial — <https://github.com/wulkano/Kap/blob/main/docs/plugins.md> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “The edit service receives an `mp4` file which is generated from the recording after trimming the duration and adjusting the size.”
- **GIF export**: Yes — <https://github.com/wulkano/Kap/blob/main/docs/plugins.md> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “The file formats you support. Can be: `gif`, `mp4`, `webm`, `apng`”
- **Cursor effects**: Yes — <https://github.com/wulkano/Kap/blob/main/main/aperture.ts> (verified 2026-07-11)
  - Quote: “record60fps,
    showCursor,
    highlightClicks,
    recordAudio
  } = settings.store;”

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Ranked by verified data, never by who paid. https://altcatalog.com/trust/