Webcam Recorder

This webcam recorder records your camera and microphone inside the browser and saves the video straight to your device, with nothing uploaded. Choose 1080p, 720p or 480p, record as MP4 or WebM, pause and resume as often as you like, and watch the elapsed time, the file size and a sound level meter as you go. Each recording appears below the camera so you can play it back before saving it, which makes it a simple video recorder online for messages, lessons and auditions. It works in Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari on Windows, Mac, ChromeOS, Android and iPhone.

How to record a video with your webcam

1. Press Turn on camera and mic and allow both when the browser asks.
2. Pick the camera and microphone at the top, then a Quality.
3. Speak and watch Sound level. The bars should reach the yellow part when you talk normally.
4. Press Record. The red badge on the picture shows the recording time.
5. Press Pause to stop for a moment and Resume to carry on.
6. Press Stop. The video appears below, ready to play. Press Save to keep it.

Recording settings

The file sizes are close to what you will see, but they move with the picture: a still background makes a smaller file than a busy one.

MP4 or WebM?

MP4 with H.264 video plays almost everywhere: Windows, Mac, iPhone, Android, video editors and email attachments. Recent versions of Chrome, Edge and Safari can record it. WebM plays in every browser, VLC and most editors, and Firefox usually records WebM only. If you plan to send the video to someone or upload it to a form, pick MP4 when it is offered. The note under File type names the video and sound formats your browser will use.

Get good sound in your recording

Sit close to the microphone and away from fans and open windows. A headset or a USB microphone sounds clearer than a laptop's built-in mic at arm's length. The sound meter shows the level your recording will have: bars in the green and yellow are right, and bars reaching orange mean the sound may crackle, so move back a little or lower the input volume. If the bars do not move at all, check your microphone with the mic test before you record anything important.

Make a video message look good

• Raise the camera to eye level, with your eyes about a third of the way down the picture.
• Put the light in front of you, never a bright window behind you.
• Look at the lens when you talk, not at your own picture. Sticking a small note next to the lens helps.
• Choose a plain, tidy background, and close the door so nobody walks behind you.
• Record a 10 second test, play it back with sound, and only then record the real message.

How long can you record?

The video is held in the tab's memory until you save it, so the limit is your device's free memory. At 720p, an hour of video is about 1.2 GB. On a laptop with 8 GB of memory, save long recordings every half hour or so and close other tabs. On computers, the recording keeps going if you switch to another tab. On phones, keep the browser open on screen, because leaving it turns the camera off and ends the recording; whatever was recorded until then is kept.

The recording has no sound

1. Check that Record sound is on and that the sound meter moves when you talk.
2. Pick the right microphone at the top. Webcams often add a mic of their own, which may not be the one you are speaking into.
3. Unmute your headset; many have a mute switch on the cable or the ear cup.
4. If the browser blocked the microphone, a message under the camera explains how to allow it.
5. If a player shows the picture but stays silent, open the file in VLC. Some players cannot read the Opus sound a few browsers use.

For a microphone that no app can hear, follow the steps for a microphone not working.

The video is choppy or dark

In a dim room the camera slows down to collect light, so the video looks jerky. Turn on a lamp in front of you or use your screen as a zoom lighting panel. Recording 1080p also takes processor power: on an older laptop, close other tabs and apps or record at 720p. A webcam check shows the frame rate your camera delivers before you record, and the webcam resolution test lists the sizes it can really send.

Record without a browser

On Windows, the Camera app has a video mode and saves to the Camera Roll folder in Pictures. On a Mac, QuickTime Player records with File, then New Movie Recording, and Photo Booth has a video mode. Phones record from their own camera app at a higher quality than any browser can. Those apps do not show the file size or a sound meter while you record.

What this webcam recorder does not do

It records the camera and microphone only, not your screen, and it has no editing, effects or background replacement. To grab a still picture instead of video, take photo with webcam on the photo page.

Webcam recorder questions