I record almost every Zoom meeting I host — team reviews, client calls, webinars — and over the years I've tried all eight of the tools below on real calls, not demo screens. The short version: Zoom's own recorder is all most people need, OBS Studio is the best free upgrade, and everything else earns its place for a specific job.
One thing before the list: recording a call that other people are on comes with consent questions. Zoom shows a recording notice when the host records, but laws differ by country and state (several US states and the EU require everyone's consent), so say it out loud at the start of the call. With that settled, here's how the eight options compare in 2026.
Quick answer: If you host the meeting, use Zoom's built-in local recording — it's free, captures audio and video perfectly, and saves an MP4 to your Documents folder. Can't get host permission? Record your screen with OBS Studio (free, unlimited) or the Xbox Game Bar already on Windows. Loom is the pick when you want an instant shareable link.
The 8 best Zoom meeting recorders at a glance
| Tool | Platform | Price | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zoom's built-in recording | Windows, Mac, mobile | Free (local); cloud on paid plans | Recording meetings you host |
| OBS Studio | Windows, Mac, Linux | Free, open source | No limits, full control |
| Camtasia | Windows, Mac | Subscription (around $180/yr standard) | Recording plus professional editing |
| Loom | Windows, Mac, web, mobile | Free tier; paid from ~$18/user/mo | Instant shareable links |
| Bandicam | Windows | Free (watermark); paid | Lightweight, high-quality capture |
| Movavi Screen Recorder | Windows, Mac | Paid, free trial | Scheduled recordings |
| Xbox Game Bar | Windows | Free, built in | Fastest, zero installs |
| AZ Screen Recorder | Android | Free with ads | Recording on the phone itself |
Why record a Zoom meeting at all?
People retain a fraction of a one-hour discussion — most of the detail is gone within days. A recording fixes that: you can revisit exact decisions, share the session with colleagues who couldn't attend, onboard new team members with real examples, and keep documentation for compliance if your industry requires it. I treat recordings as the meeting's memory, not a backup.
1. Zoom's built-in recording — the obvious first choice
Zoom records the meeting natively, audio and video together, with no extra software. Local recording is available on the free plan when you're the host (or the host enables it for you); cloud recording — with automatic transcripts and phone/tablet support — needs a paid Workplace plan, which includes around 10 GB of storage per license.
- What I like: zero setup, perfect sync between audio and video, and files land in your Documents\Zoom folder minutes after the call ends. Participants are always shown a "recording" notice, which keeps you on the right side of consent.
- What holds it back: there's no built-in editing, free accounts don't get transcripts (that's a cloud/paid feature), and if the host won't grant recording permission, a participant simply can't record this way.
2. OBS Studio — the free power option
OBS Studio is the open-source recorder-streamer that professionals use, and it records any window — including a Zoom call — without time limits, watermarks, or accounts.
- What I like: completely free, records the full screen, a single window, or a cropped region, captures system audio and mic separately, and can even stream the meeting live somewhere else at the same time.
- What holds it back: the scene-and-source interface takes an hour to feel comfortable in, and it's heavier on older laptops than the simple tools. There's no Zoom integration — you point it at the Zoom window yourself.
3. Camtasia — record and edit in one place
Camtasia pairs a solid screen recorder with a genuinely good video editor, which makes it the choice when your Zoom recording is the first draft of something: a training course, a polished webinar replay, a product walkthrough.
- What I like: drag-and-drop editing, callouts, captions and zoom effects, plus a library of templates. It's the smoothest record-to-finished-video pipeline I've used.
- What holds it back: it moved to subscription-only pricing in late 2025 — the standard Essentials plan runs about $180/year with cheaper and pricier tiers — and the editor is overkill if you just want to archive meetings. Check TechSmith's Camtasia page for current plans and the free trial.
4. Loom — instant sharing, built for async teams
Loom records your screen and camera and puts the result on a URL within seconds. Its recent versions can also auto-record your live meetings — Zoom, Google Meet, Teams — and file them straight into your Loom library.
- What I like: share a link instead of uploading a 500 MB file, viewers can comment and react on a timeline, and recordings live in the cloud where anyone on the team can find them.
- What holds it back: the free Starter plan caps screen recordings at 5 minutes and 25 videos at 720p, which runs out quickly; Business is around $18/user/month. See Loom's site for the current limits.
5. Bandicam — light, sharp, efficient
Bandicam is a Windows-only recorder with a reputation for high-quality captures that barely dent system performance — useful when you're recording a Zoom call on the same modest laptop that's running it.
- What I like: real-time drawing on the screen, webcam overlay, crisp output at high frame rates, and a scheduler for unattended recordings.
- What holds it back: the free version caps recordings (10 minutes in recent versions) and adds a watermark, and editing tools are minimal. Paid plans remove both — current terms are on Bandicam's site.
6. Movavi Screen Recorder — simple and schedulable
Movavi's recorder is the "it just works" option: pick a window or region, hit record, get a clean file. A built-in scheduler starts and stops recordings automatically, which is perfect for capturing webinars you can't attend live.
- What I like: the cleanest interface of the paid tools here, flexible capture areas, and quick trimming after the recording finishes.
- What holds it back: it's paid with only a trial version free (the trial adds a watermark), and it doesn't do anything the free options can't if you're willing to learn them. Details at Movavi.
7. Xbox Game Bar — already on your Windows PC
Windows' built-in Game Bar isn't just for games: press Win + G, click the record button (or Win + Alt + R), and it captures the active app window with audio — including Zoom.
- What I like: nothing to install, nothing to pay, and it's the fastest route from "I need this recorded" to a file. It still works fine on Windows 11 in 2026.
- What holds it back: it records a single app window — not the desktop or File Explorer — offers no editing, and occasionally trips over itself with a "Can't record right now" error that a reboot usually fixes.
8. AZ Screen Recorder — for recording on Android
Joining a Zoom call on your phone and need to keep it? AZ Screen Recorder captures the screen with internal or mic audio, with no watermark and no time limit on the free tier (100 million-plus installs on Google Play).
- What I like: no root needed, adjustable resolution and frame rate, basic trimming built in, and it can stream live to YouTube if you ever need that.
- What holds it back: it's Android-only (iPhones have Apple's own screen recorder in Control Centre instead), the free version shows ads, and long recordings eat storage and battery.
So which one should you use?
My rule after years of this: host and just need the recording? Zoom's built-in tool, end of story. Participant without permission, or you want control and zero cost? OBS Studio. Recording for speed with teammates? Loom. Turning the recording into a training video? Camtasia. Just remembered five minutes before the call? Xbox Game Bar. The rest are specialist tools for the situations described above. And if you're new to Zoom itself, the guides at How to Zoom Meeting cover the platform basics, including changing your virtual background.
FAQ
Is Zoom's built-in recording really free?
Yes — local recording to your computer is included on Zoom's free Basic plan when you're the host. What costs money is cloud recording, automatic transcripts, and recording from the mobile app, all of which need a paid Zoom Workplace plan. Free users record locally and manage their own files.
Can I record a Zoom meeting without the host knowing?
Not with Zoom itself — the app announces a recording to everyone on the call. Third-party screen recorders can technically capture the meeting silently, but doing so without consent can breach privacy laws depending on where participants live and is a quick way to lose people's trust. Always ask the host first.
Where does Zoom save recordings on my computer?
Local recordings land in your Documents folder by default, in a Zoom subfolder named by the meeting date. Inside you'll find the video as an MP4, the audio separately as an M4A, and a chat file if the meeting had one. You can change the location in Zoom's Recording settings.
What's the best completely free Zoom recorder?
Three good answers. If you host the meeting, Zoom's local recording is free and the cleanest capture. If you don't, Xbox Game Bar is already installed on Windows — press Win + Alt + R. And if you want full control over quality and layout with no limits, OBS Studio is free and open source.
Can I record a Zoom meeting on my phone?
Yes, two ways. On a paid Zoom plan you can record to the cloud from the mobile app and download the file later. On any plan, you can use a phone screen recorder — AZ Screen Recorder on Android, or the built-in screen recorder in the iPhone's Control Centre — though that captures the screen as displayed, including notifications.
Do I need everyone's permission to record a meeting?
Best practice and much of the law say yes. Rules vary — some places only require one person to consent, others (like several US states and EU countries) require everyone — but announcing the recording at the start and letting people opt out keeps you safe everywhere. Zoom's built-in notice helps, but a spoken heads-up is better.
Related reading
- iObit Screen Recorder: a free option for Windows — a ninth tool worth a look
- How to screen record on Mac with audio
- How to merge video files on Windows — for stitching recorded sessions
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I've hosted and recorded hundreds of Zoom calls across these tools — if your setup won't cooperate, tell me your platform and constraint in the comments and I'll suggest the fix.
