Cap vs Screen Studio

Cap

• Teams that want an open-source Loom alternative they can self-host
• Developers sending bug reports and async updates as video links
• Product demos and tutorials that need zooms, backgrounds and captions

Screen Studio

• Product demos and launch videos recorded on a Mac
• Makers who want zooms and cursor polish without manual editing
• Developers showing iPhone or iPad apps inside device frames

Cap

• The free version is licensed for personal use only; commercial use needs a Desktop License or Cap Pro.
• Share links on the Free plan and the Desktop License are limited to recordings of up to 5 minutes; unlimited cloud sharing needs Cap Pro.
• AI titles, summaries and chapters, cloud transcriptions, the Loom importer and custom S3 or Google Drive storage are Cap Pro only.
• The Windows build is labeled beta on the download page, and no iOS or Android app is listed.

Screen Studio

• macOS only, requiring Ventura 13.1 or later. The vendor says there are no near-future plans for Windows.
• Subscription only: one-time licenses are no longer sold, though earlier purchases remain valid.
• Paying monthly costs $29 per month, more than three times the $9 per month yearly rate.
• The site does not mention a free trial, and the terms state that fees are non-refundable.

Cap

Instant Mode

Uploads in the background while you record, so a share link is on the clipboard the moment you stop. Viewers watch in a browser with no account or download.

Studio Mode and editor

Records locally at up to 4K and 60fps with separate screen, camera and microphone tracks, then opens an editor with backgrounds, automatic zoom, cursor effects, blur masks and scenes.

Screenshot Mode

A hotkey captures a window or an area, and the image can be given a background, padding and a shadow before it is copied to the clipboard or shared as a link.

Share pages

Each capture gets a page with comments, reactions, a transcript and chapters. Password protection, a custom domain and viewer analytics are part of Cap Pro.

Cap AI and captions

Cap Pro generates titles, summaries, clickable chapters and transcriptions for every recording with no usage limit. Studio Mode can also transcribe captions on the device in 19 languages.

Own storage, self-hosting and agents

Cap Pro can store recordings in a custom S3 bucket or Google Drive, and the whole platform can be self-hosted. A CLI and local MCP server let AI coding agents record and manage videos.

Screen Studio

Automatic zoom

Zooms are added automatically as you record and can be edited, added by hand or turned off afterwards.

Smooth cursor movement

Cursor motion is smoothed and given motion blur and click effects, and the cursor can be hidden in chosen sections.

iPhone and iPad recording

Record an iPhone or iPad screen and present the footage inside a device mockup.

Webcam layouts

Camera footage can appear fullscreen, in a split screen, as an overlay or as a cutout.

Captions and transcripts

Generates a transcript of the recording and adds automatic captions.

Export and shareable links

Export MP4 at up to 4K and 60 fps or a GIF, or publish a shareable link at 1080p and 60 fps for videos up to 30 minutes.

Cap

• Free$0

  Personal use only: Studio Mode with the full editor, 4K 60fps export and share links for recordings of up to 5 minutes.

• Desktop License$29

  per license / year, or $58 once for a lifetime license

  Commercial use for one user, unlimited local recording and editing, and 20 cloud share links a month of up to 5 minutes each.

• Cap Pro$8.16

  per user / month, billed annually ($12 billed monthly)

  Unlimited cloud storage and sharing, AI titles, summaries, chapters and transcripts, custom domain, password protection and viewer analytics.

• EnterpriseCap Pro price + add-ons

  Cap Pro for large organizations, with optional SAML SSO at a flat $199 a month and a signed BAA at $99 a month per organization.

Screen Studio

• Yearly$9

  per month, billed yearly

  All features: export up to 4K at 60 fps, shareable links, cloud transcript and project sharing.

• Monthly$29

  per month, billed monthly

  The same features as the yearly plan, paid month to month.

Cap

• Annual discount

  Save 32% on Cap Pro with annual billing

  The pricing page lists Cap Pro at $8.16 per user a month when billed annually, against $12 per user billed monthly.

• Lifetime license

  Lifetime Desktop License for $58

  The Desktop License can be bought once for $58 as a license that never renews, instead of paying $29 per license each year.

• Education

  30% student discount

  Cap's student discount page offers students 30% off any premium plan, applied with a discount code at checkout.

Screen Studio

• Annual discount

  Save 69% with yearly billing

  Screen Studio lists the yearly plan at $9 per month, which it labels a 69% saving over the $29 monthly plan.

• Education

  40% off for students and educators

  Students and educators get 40% off by using an email address from an educational institution or sending proof of student status.