# jsattler/BetterCapture

The macOS screen recorder for the rest of us - always free and open source with a native look and feel  📺

Repository: https://github.com/jsattler/BetterCapture
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/bettercapture
Homepage: https://bettercapture.app/
Language: Swift
License: MIT
License Family: permissive
Topics: macos, screenrecorder, utility, apple, audiorecorder, hevc, prores, screen-capture, screen-recorder
Last push: 2026-08-17T20:25:39+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 74/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 98, release rhythm 77, longevity 15
- inputs: {"age_days": 216, "days_push": 16, "days_rel": 158, "gap_med": 1, "n_releases_24m": 8}
- flags: none
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1591, forks 71 (observed 2026-08-28T04:05:08.579795+00:00)

## What it is
BetterCapture is a free, open-source, native macOS screen recorder built with SwiftUI and ScreenCaptureKit that lives in the menu bar. It supports professional codecs (ProRes 422/4444, HEVC, H.264), alpha channel and HDR recording, simultaneous system audio and microphone capture, and stores everything locally with no tracking or analytics.

## Use cases
- record my mac screen without a watermark
- capture screen with system audio and microphone at the same time
- record screen in prores or hevc on macos
- free open source screen recorder for mac
- record a specific window or exclude windows from a screen recording
- record screen with alpha channel transparency
- start and stop screen recording from raycast or shortcuts

## When to choose
- you want a free, MIT-licensed macOS screen recorder with no subscriptions or watermarks
- you need professional codecs like ProRes 4444, HEVC, or H.264 with HDR and alpha channel support
- you value privacy and want recordings stored locally with no tracking or cloud uploads
- you want a native-feeling menu bar app that follows Apple's Human Interface Guidelines
- you want to automate recording via a URL scheme with Raycast, Shortcuts, or Alfred

## When to avoid
- you need screen recording on Windows or Linux - it is macOS-only and requires macOS 15.2 or later
- you need cloud-based recording, meeting bot integration, or hosted recording APIs
- you need built-in video editing, annotation, or post-production tools
- you need cross-platform or web-based screen capture

## Facets
- artifact type: application
- maturity: active
- function: video-processing, audio-processing
- domain: media, desktop-applications, developer-tools
- platform: -
- tags: screen-recorder, menu-bar-app, prores, hevc, swiftui, screencapturekit, privacy-focused, no-watermark, system-audio, url-scheme-automation, screen-capture, macos, desktop, swift

## Member repositories
- jsattler/BetterCapture (main) score 74

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:05:08.579795+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T03:54:44.521985+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/jsattler/BetterCapture (fetched 2026-08-28T04:05:08.579795+00:00, sha 48ad60268edc)
  - homepage: https://bettercapture.app/ (fetched 2026-08-29T11:25:19.167237+00:00, sha 3b1aa98dfad8)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.