10 Best Screen Recording Software For Windows [ Free and Paid ]

I have been creating Technology guides and tutorials for more than two years and in these two years, I have come across a variety of screen recording software. While some of these screen recording software are available for free, many are these are also offered as paid versions.
Be it helping people with troubleshooting an error or recording a gameplay video, there are infinite uses for an screen recording software. You can create a detailed text guide on troubleshooting a problem, but in the end a instructional video of the same process will be much more effective than the written text guide.
It doesn’t matter if these screen recording software are offered as free or paid, overly they all perform the primary objection flawlessly i.e recording the computer’s screen. But when it comes to additional features, the paid screen recording software have always had a upper hand.
So if you are looking for some of the best free screen recording software available right now, here our list of both paid and free screen recording software.

Best Free Screen Recording Software for Windows

 

Camstudio

When it comes to screen recording software, Camstudio is the first screen recording software that came into my mind. Mostly because it’s an free and open source screen recording software. Camstudio helps you to record your PC’s screen and choose between the avi or flash format as containers for the recorded videos. The Avi format will offer better video clarity than the flash format, but on the other hand the flash format will help you to decrease the size of the recorded video . So ultimately it’s upto you, whether you prefer a higher quality screen recording or a smaller bandwidth friendly video size.

Camstudio even has an effects menu that lets you annotate and append video with comments, plus add a time stamp or watermark. Last but not the least, the screen recording software even allows you to set the frame rate for the video and select the screen region which you want to record.
Overall, Camstudio is definitely one of the best screen recording software for recording both instructional videos and screen recordings and share them with the world!
 

Ezvid

Ezvid describes its screen recording software as one of the easiest screen recording software available right now. Well i can’t deny it either, because it really is one of the most easy to use screen recording software available right now. The Ezvid screen recording software can record everything that appears on your PC screen, be it videos, games, applications, maps and much more.
Apart from screen recording, the screen recording software comes with additional features such as voice recording, facecam, voice synthesis, screen drawing, and speed control. All of these features truly make Ezvid screen recorder a all in one tool for recording and editing instructional videos.

The Ezvid screen recorder is also houses a very powerful video editor. The inbuilt video editor can nonlinearly edit videos, make speed changes, re-arrange, add text, image slides, and much more, thus helping you to create a video in minutes instead of hours.
One of the most interesting feature of the Ezvid screen recorder is the screen drawing functionality. With the help of the screen drawing feature, you will be able to draw directly on your screen, thus making it easier to create instructional videos.
Last but not the least, Ezvid also allows you to upload the recorded videos directly to YouTube. This and all the features mentioned above, together make the Ezvid screen recording software as one of the most easiest.
 

Jing

If you are on the lookout for both screen recording and capturing features in a single software, then Jing is what you need. Jing doesn’t come with loaded with features but it excels at what its meant to do. It lets you record, edit and share screen recordings directly to screenshot.com.

Just Select any window or region that you would like to record, and Jing will capture everything that happens in that area. From simple mouse movements to a fully narrated tutorial, Jing records everything you see and do. However Jing videos are limited to five minutes for instant, focused communication. With all the features Jing has got, it is definitely not meant for creating high definition screen recording, but it’s more suited for creating tech support videos.
 

Screenr

Unlike the most other screen recording software listed here, Screenr isn’t a desktop software, instead it is an web based screen recording tool that makes use of JAVA. Being a web based software, Screenr is not limited to a single operating system, instead you can use it on any operating system, where the browser is compatible with JAVA.

Just click the record button, capture your screen, voice, and share the link. Overall, Screenr is basically targeted at the audience who want to create quick and easy screencasts and share it over the internet.
 

Icecream Screen Recorder

Screenr a free screen recording software that allows you to capture any area of your screen either as a screenshot or a video file. Apart from the screen recording feature, Icecream Screen Recorder also comes additional features such as a drawing panel and the ability to add webcam video in the screen recording.

Using screenr is very simple, just select the area on the screen and record it. With the help of Screenr, you can record webinars, games and Skype videos in HD, and much more in a quick and hassle-free way.
 

LICEcap

Need an low footprint and extremely bandwidth friendly screen recording software? LICECAP is what you are looking for. AVI, Flv and other video formats are most suited to create and share high definition content. But for those who are looking to create extremely bandwidth friendly and short instructional videos, your best bet would be to make use of the GIF image format. As GIF is universally supported by all the web browsers and loads faster, it make an excellent choice for creating short instructional videos for blogs.

Just run LICEcap, select the screen region, set the Fps and click on the record button to create highly bandwidth friendly GIF screen recordings.
 

Webinaria

Webinaria is a free and no fuss screen recording software that does what it meant to do. The screen recording software allows you to create screen recording in Flv format, which is bandwidth friendly and low on size. Adding to that it even allows you edit the recorded video by adding voice commentary and text.

 

VLC Media player

Being the Swiss knife among media players, the VLC media player deserves a mention in this article due to the plethora of additional features it has got. Surprisingly, the VLC media player can also double up as an screen recording software which can be used to record instructional videos and any other screen activity on your PC.

VLC media player being an open source software, it is available for all the major operating systems including Windows, Mac and Linux. I am sure most of you reading his article, will have the VLC media player installed on their PC’s and even if you don’t have it, i would recommend you to download it and follow the instructions provided in the link below to us the VLC media player as a Screen recording software.
 
How to Record Screen Video with VLC media player.
The list of free screen recording software is extremely long, so are a few other screen recording software that you should try if the above software don’t satisfy your needs and requirements.

• BlueBerry FlashBack Express Recorder
• Rylstim Screen Recorder
• DVDVideoSoft Free Screen Video Recorder

Best Paid Screen Recording Software for Windows

 

Fraps

Fraps is the first screen recording software that comes into my mind when i think about paid screen recording software. The screen recording software is directly aimed at gamers and other similar users who need to record high definition content and that too in the best quality possible. However using the screen recording software also requires you to have a decently powerful computer with large storage space, as the software records video in a loss less format, resulting in videos that might amount to 1GB or more for a mere 10 minutes of 720p video.

The base version of Fraps can be downloaded and used for free, but it will have time limit for recording screen videos and also a watermark, which is why the base version is not suitable for recording gameplay videos as gameplay videos usually last more than an hour.
 

Smartpixel

Smartpixel is another screen recording software that is primarily aimed at recording video games footage. The video recording software is a also a all in one tool that offers both video recording, editing and even uploading to sites such as YouTube.
Smartpixel allows you to record both the entire screen or either a selected region. Thus making it suitable for both creating gameplay videos and instructional videos. The screen recording software allows you to create high definition 1080p screen recordings but the size of remains much less thanks to its advanced video compression technology.

A Picture-in-picture mode allows you to capture your webcam video as well as microphone audio simultaneously while desktop screen recording. This feature makes it very easy to create tutorial game videos to share with other gamers.
Overall, the Smartpixel screen recording software is definitely the best when it comes to create video game content, but it can also be used to create instructional videos. While the base version of Smartpixel is free, it also has a paid version which unlocks more powerful features such as the ability to record screen video in the high definition 1080p format and removes the watermark.