How to record gameplay on PC

Every option on this page is free. Xbox Game Bar comes with Windows, the NVIDIA App and AMD Software come with your graphics card, and OBS Studio and Medal are free downloads.

Xbox Game Bar: built into Windows 10 and 11

1. Turn on Enable Xbox Game Bar in Settings.
2. Open your game and press Windows + Alt + R to start recording. Press it again to stop.
3. Press Windows + G to open the Game Bar controls if you want buttons instead of shortcuts.

Record what just happened: turn on background recording in Settings > Gaming > Captures and choose how far back to save. Then press Windows + Alt + G to save the last moments as a clip. With background recording on, recordings stop after 30 minutes.

Game audio and mic: in Game Bar settings under Capturing, choose Game only, or All to include all computer sounds. Press Windows + Alt + M to turn the microphone on or off while recording.

Where files go: MP4 files in Videos > Captures, named after the game with the date and time.

Game Bar records one monitor at a time, and some games block recording, so the clip comes out blank. In some full-screen games the Game Bar won’t open, but Windows + Alt + R still works. Clips need a graphics card that supports Intel Quick Sync, NVIDIA NVENC or AMD VCE.

NVIDIA App: for NVIDIA graphics cards

The free NVIDIA App replaced GeForce Experience and runs on Windows 10 and 11 with an NVIDIA GeForce graphics card. Its recorder is still called ShadowPlay.

1. Press Alt + Z to open the NVIDIA Overlay.
2. Press Alt + F9, or select Record, to start recording your game. Press it again to stop.

Record what just happened: turn on Instant Replay in the overlay. It keeps a rolling recording and saves the last moments when you press its shortcut; the length is set under the overlay’s settings cog. Highlights saves key moments automatically in supported games.

Game audio and mic: under Microphone, turn your voice on or off or set a push-to-talk key. The settings cog lets you choose the sound sources and record your mic as a separate track.

Where files go: you choose the folder under the overlay’s settings cog. Recordings also show up in the overlay’s Gallery, sorted by game. There’s no editor.

AMD Software: for AMD Radeon graphics

AMD’s graphics software, AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition, has a recorder called Record in the full installation.

1. Open AMD Software, type Record in the search box and select Record & Stream Settings.
2. Follow the setup wizard to pick your microphone and recording quality. Turn on Record Desktop if you also want to record outside games.

Record what just happened: turn on Instant Replay. AMD says it can keep up to the last 20 minutes, set in 15-second steps with a slider.

Mic: Record Microphone adds your voice, Separate Microphone Track saves it to its own file, and Push to Talk uses the middle mouse button.

Shortcuts: search for Hotkey in AMD Software and open Hotkey Settings. The recording shortcuts are under Media Hotkeys, where you can change them.

Where files go: Videos > Radeon ReLive, unless you change the Media Save Location.

OBS Studio: free for any graphics card

OBS Studio is free and open source and works with any graphics card. It takes more setup than the others.

1. Under Sources, select + and add Game Capture (Windows only). On a Mac or Linux, use Display or Window Capture.
2. Select Start Recording in the Controls dock, and Stop Recording when you’re done.
3. To use shortcuts, set Start Recording and Stop Recording keys under Settings > Hotkeys. OBS documents no default keys.

Record what just happened: enable the Replay Buffer under Settings > Output, then set a Save Replay Buffer key under Settings > Hotkeys.

Game audio and mic: OBS records your desktop audio and microphone by default. Pick other devices under Settings > Audio.

Where files go: the Recording Path under Settings > Output. OBS recommends recording in MKV and converting to MP4 afterwards with File > Remux Recordings. There’s no editor.

Medal: free, with clips and share links

Medal is a free Windows app built around clips. You need a Medal account.

1. Launch a supported game. Medal detects it and starts capturing.
2. Press F8 to save the last few moments as a clip: 15 seconds up to 20 minutes, depending on your setting.
3. For a full recording, switch on the Start/Stop Long Recording hotkey (Alt + F7) in Settings > Capture Hotkeys > Long Recording, or have Medal record each whole game session automatically. Long recordings have no length limit.

Game audio and mic: on the Audio settings page, choose game audio, Discord or everything on your PC, and put your mic on a separate track.

Where files go: a Medal folder on your main drive (for example C:\Medal), which you can change in the PC Storage settings. Files on your PC have no watermark. Clips you upload on the free plan get a watermark and stop at 20 minutes and 1080p.

Which one to use

For a quick recording, Xbox Game Bar is already there. If you have an NVIDIA or AMD graphics card, its own app needs little setup and can record your mic on a separate track. Medal suits clipping and sharing highlights, and OBS Studio suits streaming, webcam overlays and full control. The list below ranks the best game recorders, free and paid.