# Is there a free Screen Studio alternative?

> Free Screen Studio alternatives: OBS Studio, Recordly and Screenity’s recorder are free. Lumen is paid (from $9/mo) for auto zoom on Windows, Linux and Mac.

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Last updated: 2026-11-03

## Short answer

Yes, with trade-offs. OBS Studio is free and open source on Windows, macOS and Linux but has no built-in automatic zoom. Recordly is free and open source with zoom suggestions. Screenity’s Chrome extension recorder is free. Lumen is not free: Premium from $9/month early bird gets automatic cursor zooms, a camera bubble and on-device captions on all three desktops.

## Details

Free tools give you the recording and leave more of the polish to you. OBS Studio is a powerful general-purpose recorder and streamer, but zooms are added by hand or in an editor. Recordly suggests zooms from cursor activity. Screenity turns clicks into zooms, but it runs as a Chrome extension and its editor is a paid plan. Cap is open source; check cap.so for what its free tier includes.

Lumen is the paid option for people who want the Screen Studio-style result straight out of a desktop app on Windows, Linux or macOS: zooms that follow the cursor while you record, a camera bubble, on-device captions and local exports. Premium is from $9/month early bird (was $12/month), cancel anytime, with a full refund within 14 days of a charge.

If your budget is zero, start with OBS Studio, Recordly or Screenity. If editing time is the bottleneck, Lumen is built to skip that pass. Facts about other tools come from their official sites, checked on November 3, 2026.


## Comparison

Free and paid Screen Studio alternatives

| Tool | Price model | Automatic zoom | Platforms |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| OBS Studio | Free, open source | Not built in | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Recordly | Free, open source (AGPL-3.0) | Zoom suggestions from cursor activity | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| OpenScreen | Free, open source (MIT) | Auto zoom follows the cursor | Windows, macOS, Linux |
| Screenity | Free open-source recorder; paid editor | Clicks become zooms in the editor | Chrome extension |
| Cap | Open source; see cap.so for plans | Zooms in the Studio editor | macOS, Windows (beta), Linux |
| Lumen | Premium from $9/month early bird (not free) | Automatic - follows cursor and clicks while you record | Windows, Linux, macOS |
| Screen Studio | Paid | Yes - zooms to clicks | macOS only |

## Sources

Facts about other tools come from their official sites, checked 2026-11-03.

- [OBS Studio (obsproject.com)](https://obsproject.com)
- [Recordly on GitHub](https://github.com/webadderall/Recordly)
- [OpenScreen on GitHub](https://github.com/siddharthvaddem/openscreen)
- [Screenity (screenity.io)](https://screenity.io)
- [Cap downloads (cap.so/download)](https://cap.so/download)
- [Screen Studio (screen.studio)](https://screen.studio)

## FAQ

### Is Lumen free?

No. Lumen Premium is from $9/month early bird (was $12/month), cancel anytime. It unlocks automatic zooms, the camera bubble, captions and polished exports after you subscribe and sign in.

### What is the best free Screen Studio alternative?

For zero cost on Windows, macOS and Linux, OBS Studio is the most established free recorder, though zooms are not built in. Recordly is free and open source with zoom suggestions. Screenity’s free recorder works inside Chrome.

### Can I get a refund on Lumen Premium?

Yes. Email within 14 days of any charge for a full refund.

## Primary CTA

[See Lumen Premium pricing](https://lumen.raashed.com/upgrade)

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