ClearRec — Screen Recorder, Video Editor, GIF

Record screen, tab, webcam. Trim, crop, export to MP4/WebM/GIF. 100% free, fully local, no account required, and no watermarks.

ClearRec is a free, fully local screen recorder for Google Chrome. Capture your screen, a single application window, a browser tab (with audio), or your webcam — then trim, crop, and export the recording to MP4, WebM, or GIF without ever leaving your browser. Every byte stays on your computer. No account, no cloud upload, no analytics, no telemetry, and absolutely no watermarks. ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ WHY CLEARREC ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ Most screen recorders make you sign in, push your file to a third-party server, then hand you a "view link" you can't fully control. That works for marketing teams. It does not work when you're filing a bug report, recording a security demo, capturing a private demo for a client, or just trying to send a 30-second clip without onboarding to yet another SaaS. ClearRec is the opposite. Install it, click record, save the file. Done. ✓ Zero servers — your recording is encoded by Chrome's own MediaRecorder and written to your Downloads folder via Chrome's built-in download manager. ✓ Zero accounts — no email, no sign-in, no licence keys. ✓ Zero tracking — no analytics SDK, no crash reporter, no third-party scripts. ✓ Zero limits — recordings can be hours long; the only cap is your free disk space. ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ HOW CLEARREC COMPARES (Loom / Screencastify Alternative) ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ Unlike traditional cloud-based screen recorders, ClearRec runs entirely in your browser memory: • Time Limits: Unlimited recording vs. Loom's 5-minute cap. • Watermarks: None vs. competitors' branded watermarks on exports. • Privacy: 100% local processing vs. uploading sensitive data to third-party servers. • Sign-up: No account required vs. mandatory logins and password setup. • Offline Mode: Works fully offline without an internet connection. ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ CAPTURE EVERY SURFACE ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ 🖥️ Entire screen — record your monitor with system audio (perfect for tutorials, talks, gameplay). 🪟 Single window — record one application without exposing the rest of your desktop. 🌐 Chrome tab — record just one tab, with tab audio captured separately. 📷 Webcam only — record your face for a quick selfie message or async update. 🎥 Screen + Webcam — picture-in-picture overlay: choose circle / rounded / square shape, four corner positions, three sizes, and a mirror toggle. ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ SIX QUALITY TIERS ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ Choose the right trade-off between file size and visual fidelity: • Insane — 4K @ 60 fps, 50 Mbps (cinematic captures) • Extreme — 4K @ 30 fps, 30 Mbps • Ultra — 1440p @ 60 fps, 20 Mbps ← default • High — 1080p @ 60 fps, 10 Mbps • Medium — 1080p @ 30 fps, 5 Mbps • Low — 720p @ 30 fps, 2.5 Mbps (smallest files for email) ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ BUILT-IN VIDEO EDITOR ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ Every recording lands in ClearRec's editor automatically — no extra app to install. ✂️ Trim — drag the in/out handles, snap to keyframes, frame-accurate scrub. 🔲 Crop — pull any aspect ratio (free, 16:9, 9:16, 1:1, 4:3, 3:4) or eyeball it. 📦 Export — MP4 (universal H.264 + AAC), WebM (smaller, best quality-per-byte), GIF (with palettegen + paletteuse for accurate colour, custom width / FPS / loop). ⚡ Fast-copy — when no re-encode is needed, MP4 and WebM cuts stream through in seconds. ⌨️ Keyboard-first — Space to play, [ and ] to set trim points, M to mute, C to crop, F to fullscreen, Home/End to jump to in/out. ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ WHO USES CLEARREC ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ → Developers shipping bug reports — capture a 20-second reproduction, drop the MP4 into the issue, never wait for a cloud upload. → Designers reviewing prototypes — record a 90-second walkthrough of a Figma flow without onboarding to a new tool. → Educators recording lessons — full-length lectures saved straight to a USB drive, no school-data-policy headaches. → Founders & support teams — async updates and "what does it look like on your machine" replies, sent to one person without exposing a public share-link. → Privacy-conscious people — record what you need, keep where it stays. ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ Q: Is ClearRec really free? Does it have a watermark? A: Yes, completely free. No watermark, no upgrade prompt, no "Pro tier". Q: How does ClearRec compare to tools like Loom or Screencastify? A: Loom and Screencastify are cloud-first tools that upload recordings to their servers. They impose time limits (e.g., 5 minutes for free plans), restrict high-definition exports, add watermarks, and require account creation. ClearRec is a 100% free, local alternative: it has no recording limits, no watermarks, requires no account, works offline, and never uploads your video data anywhere. Q: Where is my recording saved? A: To Chrome's Downloads folder, optionally inside a "ClearRec" subfolder (configurable). The file is yours — ClearRec keeps no copy. Q: Does ClearRec upload my recording anywhere? A: No. The extension has no network code at all. Recording, encoding, trimming, and exporting all run inside your browser. Read the privacy policy linked above for the full breakdown. Q: Can I record system audio AND my microphone at the same time? A: Yes. Both toggles in the launcher control whether tab/system audio and microphone audio are mixed into the recording. Q: What's the longest recording I can make? A: There is no hard cap. Recording length is limited only by your disk space. For reference: one minute of 1440p @ 60 fps at Ultra quality is about 150 MB. Q: Does it work offline? A: Yes. After install, ClearRec needs no internet connection. Q: Can I record a specific Chrome tab without recording the rest of the screen? A: Yes. Choose Screen mode, then pick the tab in Chrome's screen-share dialog. Tab audio is captured along with the video. Q: Does ClearRec work with Google Meet, Zoom, or Microsoft Teams calls? A: Yes. ClearRec records anything Chrome can display, so it captures any web app or any other application's window. Q: What format should I pick — MP4 or WebM? A: MP4 for sharing with people on any operating system or social platform. WebM for the smallest file at the same visual quality if you know the recipient can play it (every modern browser can). Q: Can I make a GIF from a recording? A: Yes. Open the recording in the trimmer, switch the Format selector to GIF, set the trim range, optionally crop, then Export GIF. The editor generates an optimised colour palette before encoding, so colour reproduction is much better than naive GIF tools. Q: Do I need to grant "Allow access to file URLs" for the video editor to work? A: No. ClearRec uses a zero-permission IndexedDB blob hand-off. The editor opens and loads your recording instantly without needing any special permissions. "Allow access to file URLs" is purely optional; it is only needed if you want to reopen a past recording from your history list without picking it from your disk manually. Q: Does ClearRec work on Mac, Windows, and Linux? A: Yes — on any platform where Chrome 116+ is supported. ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ WHAT'S NEW IN v1.0.1 ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ • Zero-permission video editor load — trimmer now opens and loads recordings instantly via IndexedDB hand-off. No need to toggle "Allow access to file URLs" or use manual file pickers. • Fullscreen cinematic playback — transport controls and the mouse cursor now auto-hide after 3 seconds of inactivity during fullscreen playback in the editor. • Improved timeline accuracy — waveform processing and time representation optimized for precise cuts. • Enhanced storage clarity — dashboard and empty state UI updated to clearly explain local storage limits and data boundaries. ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ PERMISSIONS — IN PLAIN ENGLISH ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ • "Capture content of your screen" → required to record what you record. Only active while you're recording. • "Read & change your downloads" → required to save the finished file to your Downloads folder. The extension never reads any other file. • File URLs access (optional) → lets the trimmer reopen saved files directly from history. You explicitly enable this in chrome://extensions; the trimmer works without it via a file picker. ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ GET STARTED IN 30 SECONDS ═══════════════════════════════════════════════════ 1. Click "Add to Chrome". 2. Pin ClearRec to your toolbar so the icon is one click away. 3. Click the ClearRec icon → choose Screen / Screen + Cam / Webcam → click Start Recording. 4. Pick the source in Chrome's screen-share prompt → record → click Stop & Save. 5. The trimmer opens automatically with your recording. Trim, crop, export. That's it. No account. No upload. Yours.