Kap — Open-Source Screen Recorder for macOS

Introduction

Kap is an open-source screen recorder designed specifically for macOS. Built with Electron and web technologies, it provides a minimal interface that stays out of the way while offering flexible export options. It is maintained by the Wulkano team and focuses on producing lightweight recordings ideal for sharing demos and bug reports.

What Kap Does

• Records screen activity from a selected area, a specific window, or the full display
• Exports recordings to GIF, MP4, WebM, and APNG formats with configurable quality and frame rate
• Provides a built-in trimming editor so you can cut footage before exporting
• Supports a plugin system that enables sharing directly to services like Imgur, Streamable, and Giphy
• Lives in the macOS menu bar for quick, unobtrusive access

Architecture Overview

Kap is built on Electron, using Chromium for its UI layer and Node.js for system interaction. Screen capture is performed through the macOS AVFoundation framework via native bindings. The export pipeline leverages FFmpeg under the hood to transcode recordings into the selected output format. Plugins are loaded as npm packages, each exposing a share function that receives the exported file and uploads it to a target service.

Self-Hosting & Configuration

• Install via Homebrew Cask: brew install --cask kap
• Alternatively, download the DMG from the GitHub releases page
• Configure default export format, FPS (up to 60), and recording quality in the Preferences panel
• Install plugins through the built-in plugin manager within Kap's settings
• Kap requires macOS 12 (Monterey) or later and Screen Recording permission in System Settings

Key Features

• Lightweight and fast startup compared to heavier recording suites
• Built-in trimming editor avoids the need for a separate video editor
• Plugin architecture allows community-contributed export targets
• Supports high-DPI Retina displays and captures at native resolution
• Open-source under the MIT license with an active contributor community

Comparison with Similar Tools

• macOS Screenshot Toolbar (Cmd+Shift+5) — built-in but limited to MOV export with no trimming or plugin support
• OBS Studio — far more powerful for streaming and complex scenes but heavyweight for quick screen recordings
• LICEcap — produces GIFs directly but lacks MP4/WebM export and has a dated interface
• Gifox — polished GIF recorder for macOS but proprietary and paid
• ScreenFlow — professional screen recording and editing suite but commercial and resource-intensive

FAQ

Q: What output formats does Kap support? A: Kap can export to GIF, MP4, WebM, and APNG. Each format has adjustable quality and FPS settings.

Q: Does Kap record audio? A: Kap supports microphone audio recording. System audio capture is not natively supported due to macOS restrictions, though plugins may extend this.

Q: Can I record a specific application window? A: Yes. Kap offers three capture modes: a custom area selection, a single window, or the entire screen.

Q: Is Kap free? A: Yes. Kap is completely free and open-source under the MIT license.

Sources

• https://github.com/wulkano/Kap
• https://getkap.co