Screen Record On Mac Laptop

Use Screen Time to see how much time you and your kids spend on apps, websites, and more. Then make informed decisions about how you use your devices, and set limits if you'd like to.

  1. Record computer screen Cover the entire region of video by clicking on ‘Full Screen’ mode. Use ‘Stop’ for pausing the video and ‘ESC’ key to exit. Also, make modifications, by dragging out borders of the frame or shift the cursor to make adjustments on the target screen.
  2. Check steps below to learn how to use it to capture a video of the Mac screen in action: Launch QuickTime Player (located in /Applications/) Pull down the File menu and select 'New Screen Recording' Press the Red button to start recording the screen activity.

In this example, the screen capture tool is set to Record Partial Screen, as shown above. Press and hold the Mouse button or Touchpad to draw a box around the area on the screen you want to capture. FREE and works on Windows, Mac, & Linux. Record your computer screen and a webcam simultaneously.There are lots of programs out there, like ezvid and Camtasi.

Turn on Screen Time

Follow these steps in macOS Catalina or later:

  1. Choose Apple menu  > System Preferences, then click Screen Time.
  2. Click Options in the lower-left corner.
  3. Click Turn On.
  4. To be able to see usage information for every other device signed in to iCloud with your Apple ID, select “Share across devices” on each Mac. And on each iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, go to Settings > Screen Time and turn on the same setting.
Screen Record On Mac Laptop

If you're using Family Sharing to manage a child account, you can turn on Screen Time directly from each of your child's devices. Or follow these steps to do it from your Mac:*

  1. Choose Apple menu  > System Preferences, then click Family Sharing.
  2. Click Screen Time in the sidebar, then select your child's name from the list on the right.
  3. Click the Open Screen Time button to return to Screen Time preferences.
  4. Choose your child's name from the menu in the upper-left corner.
  5. Click Options in the lower-left corner.
  6. Click Turn On.

Before deciding whether to select “Use a Screen Time Passcode,” learn about Screen Time passcodes.

Use a Screen Time passcode

Set a passcode so that only you can change Screen Time settings and allow more time when app limits expire. If you're a parent, use this feature to set up enforceable content, communication, and privacy limits for your child.

If you're using Family Sharing to manage a child account, follow these steps:*

  1. Choose Apple menu  > System Preferences, then click Screen Time.
  2. Choose your child's name from the menu in the upper-left corner.
  3. Click Options in the lower-left corner.
  4. Select “Use Screen Time Passcode,” then enter a passcode when prompted.
  5. If you're using the latest macOS, you're offered the option to enter your Apple ID to enable Screen Time passcode recovery, in case you forget your Screen Time passcode.

If you're not using Family Sharing to manage a child account, follow these steps:

  1. Make sure that you're on the same Mac used by the child, and are logged in to the standard account used by the child. If you're not sure what to do, just continue with the steps below: Screen Time will help you.
  2. Choose Apple menu  > System Preferences, then click Screen Time.
  3. Set up Downtime, App Limits, Communication Limits, and Content & Privacy with all of the limits that you want for your child.
  4. Click Options in the lower-left corner.
  5. Select “Use Screen Time Passcode,” then enter a passcode when prompted.
  6. If you're using the latest macOS, iOS, or iPadOS, you're offered the option to enter your Apple ID to enable Screen Time passcode recovery, in case you forget your Screen Time passcode.

If you're setting a passcode while logged in to your administrator account, an alert explains that you should do this from a standard account. If you haven't set up a standard account for your child, you can either do that and log into their account, or choose from these options:

  • Allow this user to administer this computer. If you choose this option, the passcode affects the current user, even though they're also an administrator of this Mac. This isn't recommended, because administrators have macOS privileges that could allow them to work around passcode restrictions.
  • Don't allow this user to administer this computer. If you choose this option, you're prompted to enter your account password in order to modify your configuration. You're then guided through the steps to create a new administrator account—for use by the parent. The administrator account you're currently logged in to is converted to a standard account—for use by the child.

Learn what to do if you forgot your Screen Time passcode.

Track usage

Use the App Usage, Notifications, and Pickups features in the Screen Time sidebar to see how much time you spent using apps and websites.

Each feature offers several views:

  • To see usage for only one of your devices, choose a device from the menu at the bottom of the window.
  • To switch between days, click within the weekly chart, or use the arrow buttons above the chart. To see total usage by week, including how much more or less time you spent compared to last week, choose This Week from the date menu at the top of the window.
  • To see usage for a child account, choose the child's name from the menu in the upper-left corner.


App Usage

See how much time you spent using each app. Click Categories to view usage by categories such as social networking, productivity, or entertainment. To see an app's category, click the information icon that appears when your pointer is over an app in the list. Or click the app limit icon to quickly create a new app limit for that app or category.


Notifications

See how many notifications you received from each app. Remember, you can use the devices menu at the bottom of the window to separate the notifications received on your Mac from the notifications received on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch.

How To Screen Record On A Laptop Mac


Pickups

See how many times you picked up your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, and which app you checked first after picking up the device.

Limit usage

Use the Downtime, App Limits, Communication Limits, Always Allowed, and Content & Privacy features in the Screen Time sidebar to schedule downtime and set limits on apps and websites. Limits apply to this Mac and all of your other devices that are using Screen Time and have “Share across devices” turned on.

To set limits for a child account, choose the child's name from the menu in the upper-left corner, then set up each feature.* Or do it from each of your child's devices.


Downtime

Schedule periods during which you can use only the apps that you've allowed. A downtime notification appears 5 minutes before downtime starts. After downtime starts, the app shows a message saying that you've reached your limit on the app.

  • Click OK to close the app and honor the limit you've set. Or click Ignore Limit, then choose One More Minute, Remind Me in 15 Minutes, or Ignore Limit For Today.
  • If you've set a Screen Time passcode, Downtime includes an additional setting: Block At Downtime. When this setting selected and you click Ask For More Time when downtime starts, entering the passcode allows you to approve the app for 15 minutes, an hour, or all day. Child accounts can click One More Minute once, or click Ask For More Time to send their request to the parent account for approval.


App Limits

Set the amount of time you want to be able use apps. You can set limits on specific apps, or entire categories of apps.

An app-limit notification appears 5 minutes before a limit is reached (expires). After the limit is reached, the app shows a window saying that you've reached your limit.

  • Click OK to close the app and honor the limit you've set. Or click Ignore Limit, then choose One More Minute, Remind Me in 15 Minutes, or Ignore Limit For Today.
  • If you've set a Screen Time passcode, App Limits includes an additional setting: “Block at end of limit.” When this setting is selected and you click Ask For More Time when a limit is reached, entering the passcode allows you to approve the app for 15 minutes, an hour, or all day. Child accounts can click One More Minute once, or click Ask For More Time to send their request to the parent account for approval.


Communication Limits

Control who your children can communicate with throughout the day and during downtime. These limits apply to Phone, FaceTime, Messages, and iCloud contacts. Communication to known emergency numbers identified by your wireless carrier is always allowed. To use this feature, you must have Contacts turned on in iCloud preferences.


Always Allowed

Allow use of certain apps even during downtime or when an app limit has been set for “All Apps & Categories.” Phone, Messages, FaceTime, and Maps are always allowed by default, but you can change that here.


Content & Privacy

Restrict content, purchases, and downloads, or configure privacy settings. If you attempt to use one of the restricted items, you see a message explaining why you can't do it. For example, if you visit a blocked website, the message says that the website was blocked by a content filter. If you're using a Screen Time passcode, the message includes the option to click Add Website. You can then enter the passcode to allow the website. Child accounts can send a request for approval to the parent account.

Approve Screen Time requests


Requests

The Screen Time sidebar includes a Requests section when you have unanswered requests from a child account. From here you can manage all requests from your child. Approve the request for 15 minutes, an hour, or a day. Or click Don't Approve.

Requests for approval also arrive as notifications, and you can approve directly from the notification:

Learn more

  • With Ask to Buy, you can give kids the freedom to make their own choices while still controlling their spending.

* If you used your iPhone to set up an Apple Watch for a family member, you need a device using iOS 14 or iPadOS 14 to set up or adjust Screen Time for that watch.

Use the Screenshot toolbar

To view the Screenshot toolbar, press these three keys together: Shift, Command, and 5. You will see onscreen controls for recording the entire screen, recording a selected portion of the screen, or capturing a still image of your screen:

Record the entire screen

  1. Click in the onscreen controls. Your pointer changes to a camera .
  2. Click any screen to start recording that screen, or click Record in the onscreen controls.
  3. To stop recording, click in the menu bar. Or press Command-Control-Esc (Escape).
  4. Use the thumbnail to trim, share, save, or take other actions.

Record a selected portion of the screen

Mac
  1. Click in the onscreen controls.
  2. Drag to select an area of the screen to record. To move the entire selection, drag from within the selection.
  3. To start recording, click Record in the onscreen controls.
  4. To stop recording, click in the menu bar. Or press Command-Control-Esc (Escape).
  5. Use the thumbnail to trim, share, save, or take other actions.

Trim, share, and save

After you stop recording, a thumbnail of the video appears briefly in the lower-right corner of your screen.

  • Take no action or swipe the thumbnail to the right and the recording is automatically saved.
  • Click the thumbnail to open the recording. You can then click to trim the recording, or click to share it.
  • Drag the thumbnail to move the recording to another location, such as to a document, an email, a Finder window, or the Trash.
  • Control-click the thumbnail for more options. For example, you can change the save location, open the recording in an app, or delete the recording without saving it.

Change the settings

Click Options in the onscreen controls to change these settings:

  • Save to: Choose where your recordings are automatically saved, such as Desktop, Documents, or Clipboard.
  • Timer: Choose when to begin recording: immediately, 5 seconds, or 10 seconds after you click to record.
  • Microphone: To record your voice or other audio along with your recording, choose a microphone.
  • Show Floating Thumbnail: Choose whether to show the thumbnail.
  • Remember Last Selection: Choose whether to default to the selections you made the last time you used this tool.
  • Show Mouse Clicks: Choose whether to show a black circle around your pointer when you click in the recording.

Use QuickTime Player

  1. Open QuickTime Player from your Applications folder, then choose File > New Screen Recording from the menu bar. You will then see either the onscreen controls described above or the Screen Recording window described below.
  2. Before starting your recording, you can click the arrow next to to change the recording settings:
    • To record your voice or other audio with the screen recording, choose a microphone. To monitor that audio during recording, adjust the volume slider. If you get audio feedback, lower the volume or use headphones with a microphone.
    • To show a black circle around your pointer when you click, choose Show Mouse Clicks in Recording.
  3. To start recording, click and then take one of these actions:
    • Click anywhere on the screen to begin recording the entire screen.
    • Or drag to select an area to record, then click Start Recording within that area.
  4. To stop recording, click in the menu bar, or press Command-Control-Esc (Escape).
  5. After you stop recording, QuickTime Player automatically opens the recording. You can now play, edit, or share the recording.

Screen Record On Mac Laptop

Learn more

Mac Laptop Screen Size

  • The Screenshot toolbar is available in macOS Mojave or later.
  • When saving your recording automatically, your Mac uses the name ”Screen Recording date at time.mov”.
  • To cancel making a recording, press the Esc key before clicking to record.
  • You can open screen recordings with QuickTime Player, iMovie, and other apps that can edit or view videos.
  • Some apps might not let you record their windows.
  • Learn how to record the screen on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch.