macOS
A Mac screen recorder that does the editing too.
macOS can already record your screen. What it cannot do is make the recording watchable: zoom in on what matters, calm the cursor, capture the computer's own sound. That is what SmoothCut is for.
How to
Record your Mac screen with SmoothCut
- 01
Install it
Open the .dmg and drag SmoothCut into Applications. It runs on Apple Silicon and Intel Macs.
- 02
Allow two permissions
macOS asks for Screen Recording and Accessibility. Allow both under System Settings → Privacy & Security.
- 03
Record, then finish
Press Record, pick a window or the whole screen, and go. Press Finish and the editor opens with the recording already zoomed and smoothed.
The built-in way, and where it stops
Press Shift-Command-5, or open QuickTime Player and choose New Screen Recording, and macOS records the screen to a file for free. For a quick capture, that is all you need.
It stops there. There is no zoom, the cursor is whatever it was, and there is no editor beyond trimming. Capturing the Mac's own sound also depends on your version: Apple lists system audio recording only for macOS 27 and later, and on anything older the built-in recorder captures the microphone alone.
What SmoothCut adds
Automatic zooms that follow your cursor. A cursor you can smooth, enlarge and restyle after recording. Microphone and system audio recorded as separate tracks. Your camera in a layout you choose afterwards. Captions, noise removal and the cuts, all done on your Mac with nothing uploaded.
The features that matter here
What does the work
- Automatic zoom SmoothCut watches where you click and work, and zooms the recording there for you, with the depth, timing and easing already chosen. Change any zoom on the timeline.
- Cursor smoothing SmoothCut records your cursor as data, so after recording you can smooth its movement, make it bigger, change its style and add click effects, without re-recording.
- Studio voice SmoothCut's Studio voice removes steady background noise with a neural denoiser that runs on your computer, then levels and warms your voice. What you hear in the editor is what exports.
- On-device captions SmoothCut turns your voice into word-timed captions with a speech model that runs on your own computer. Download the model once; after that it works offline and nothing is uploaded.
Questions
Does it run on Apple Silicon?
Yes. There are builds for Apple Silicon and for Intel Macs; the download page picks the right one.
Why does macOS ask for Accessibility permission?
SmoothCut records where your cursor went and what it clicked as data, which is what makes smoothing and automatic zooms possible. macOS puts that behind the Accessibility permission.
Is it free?
It is free to record, edit and preview. Exporting needs a licence, which is a one-time purchase rather than a subscription.
Recording stopped working after an update. What now?
Remove SmoothCut from both the Screen Recording and Accessibility lists, reinstall, and allow them again.
Keep reading
- Download Download the SmoothCut screen recorder for macOS (Apple Silicon and Intel) and Windows. Record, edit and preview free, with no account; a licence unlocks export.
- Screen recorder with audio Record your screen with both your microphone and the computer's own sound, as separate tracks you can balance afterwards, then clean up your voice on your computer. macOS and Windows.
- vs Screen Studio SmoothCut does the automatic zooms and smooth cursor Screen Studio is known for, on macOS and Windows, for a one-time price. Everything runs on your computer.
Record better videos, faster.
Free to record, edit and preview. Pay once when you are ready to export.
macOS and Windows · No account needed