Recording your computer screen can seem daunting at first. Especially if you don’t have the right tools at your disposal. You might want to record a presentation while practicing your speech or share a piece of a game with friends.
Whatever it is, recording your screen in Windows 10 is extremely simple. If you know the correct combination of keyboard keys, you can start recording whenever you want. While the built-in feature is quite powerful, it doesn’t match the dedicated apps whose sole purpose is to capture anything on your screen.
How to record your screen in Windows 10 with built-in software
Windows 10 comes with built-in screen recording software. Initially intended for recording the games you play, you can also use it to record anything you do on your computer.
The first step is to enable this option in the Windows settings menu.
- Press the start button on your keyboard.
- Start typing now “Institutions” the link to the Institutions app will appear. Click on it.
- In the Institutions menu, click the Games option. The Game Bar menu will open.
- put on Record game clips, screenshots and broadcasts using the game bar by on the toggle switch to the On position.
There is also an alternative way to bring up the Settings menu using a keyboard shortcut. Press the Windows key + I at the same time and the menu will appear.
Now that you’ve successfully activated the Game Bar, it’s time to record.
- Select the application for which you want to record your actions. It could be your desktop, web browser, a video game or even a movie you are playing on your computer.
- On your keyboard, press the windows+ G. keys at the same time. This will bring up the recording overlay on your screen. It consists of several widgets, such as Capture, Audio and Performance.
- To record, click on the Record button in the Capture widget.
- Now simply click anywhere on your screen to hide the game bar overlay. A small widget will appear on the right side of the screen showing you the current recording time. It also allows you to stop recording, as well as turn the microphone on or off if you have one.
- Once you are done recording, click the stop button on the small widget.
- A notification recorded in the game will appear. Clicking on it will open a folder in Windows Explorer, where you can see the video file you just recorded.
Of course, you don’t need to call up the game bar every time you want to record something. There is a keyboard shortcut that lets you instantly start or stop recording your screen. Simply press the Windows + Alt + R keys at the same time, and the recording will start. To stop the recording, press the same combination again: Win+Alt+R.
Third-party apps to display on Windows 10
If Windows’ built-in recorder doesn’t offer the level of options you need, there are other alternatives to consider. Depending on the options you need, here are three apps that will definitely cover your needs.
obs studio
obs studio is the absolute champion of screen recording, and it’s completely free. Short for Open Broadcaster Software, the main trick here is that it’s an open source product. This means there are no ads, and the updates keep coming, making it more powerful with each iteration. It is available for Windows, macOS and Linux operating systems.
Check out our tutorial on screen recording with OBS Studio.
FlashBack Express
With FlashBack Express you get a free version of paid software. More straightforward than OBS, it is perfect for anyone who has never used such software. What’s great about the free version is that it has no time limits on your recordings and there are no watermarks appearing on your video.
Apowersoft Free Online Screen Recorder
Unlike OBS Studio and FlashBack Express, Apowersoft’s recorder is not standalone software. Instead, you run it directly from a web browser on your computer. It might not be ideal for capturing any game footage, but it’s perfect for everything else. Whether you want to record a presentation or a video chat, this web app is perfect for what it does.
VLC Media Player
You can also screen record on Windows 10 using VLC Media Player. If you also want to record audio, you’ll need to use the Windows 10 built-in Voice Recorder app to capture it. You will then need to combine the audio and video file, this can also be done with VLC.
Other Frequently Asked Questions
Also, how do I record sound effects from the computer while my screencast is recording?
In most screen recording software, the default is to capture the computer audio. Thanks to this, you don’t have to fiddle with options to enable audio recording as well.
If you don’t want to include computer audio in your recording, there are two ways to do it. Depending on the software you are using, it may have an option to disable the computer sounds while recording. The end result will be a completely silent video. If the software doesn’t offer that option, you’ll need to edit the audio of your video.
Also, how can I record voiceover and match it to my screencast?
In order to record your voice over a video, you will need to connect a microphone to your computer. If you’re recording on your laptop, chances are it already has an integrated microphone.
When you start recording with the built-in Windows recorder, simply press the unmute microphone button on the small widget. It will record everything you say on your microphone until you stop recording. Of course, if you need to, you can mute and unmute the mic input at any moment while recording. This will not visually affect the recording itself in any way.
How do I target a specific monitor for recording?
If you connect multiple monitors to your computer, it is also possible to choose which one you will record from. Depending on the application you are using, the process may vary slightly. Essentially, you need to go to the list of video sources that your software recognizes and select the specific monitor you want.
If the software doesn’t recognize your second monitor by default, you may need to add it. You do this by adding a new source to your recording software and assigning the monitor you want to capture to that source.
Can I record more than one monitor at the same time?
Yes you can. Again, depending on the software you use, the way you do this can be either automatic or manual. If the process is automatic, you simply choose which monitors you want to use to capture.
For the manual setup, you may need to define the recording canvas you want to use. For example, if you want to capture two Full HD monitors side by side, the canvas will need to be twice as wide. In this case, the resolution of the single monitor is 1920 × 1080 pixels. Therefore, the recording size will need to be twice the width of 1920, which is 3840×1080 pixels.
finish
Now that you know how to record a screencast in Windows 10, you can delegate this task to either a built-in recorder or a dedicated application. Whether you want to capture a gameplay of your favorite game or record a video call with your friends, it will now be a breeze to do so.
Have you managed to record a screencast on your computer? Are you using the built-in Windows recorder or one of the apps mentioned? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.