Flexible screen capture
Capture a display, window, or selected area, with camera, microphone, and system audio recorded as separate tracks. An optional camera bubble can be repositioned or resized after recording.
Reelbird
Reelbird is a free, open-source screen recorder for macOS 15+. Capture screen, camera, microphone, and system audio, then edit and share from your own storage.
Screen recording with local projects and configurable sharing
Reelbird is a free, open-source screen recorder for macOS 15 and later. It captures a display, window, or selected area along with camera, microphone, and system audio, then keeps those sources as separate tracks for later editing. The app is available for Apple silicon Macs as a download or from source, and it does not require a Reelbird account.
Its sharing workflow is designed around recording first and polishing later. When Share while recording is enabled, Reelbird uploads a stream to a storage bucket you configure and puts the share link on your clipboard when you stop. You can later add auto-zoom, a smoother cursor, framing, audio processing, or captions and update the same URL. Recordings and projects remain available locally as MP4-based files and .reelbird project folders.
Features
Share links from your own storage
Reelbird copies a browser share link to the clipboard when recording stops. With sharing enabled, it uploads to a bucket you control, and Update link replaces the video without changing the URL.
Editable zoom and cursor polish
Auto-zoom is planned from clicks and typing, while the cursor is redrawn from the event log so it moves smoothly. Zooms remain editable, and the cursor can be resized or hidden after recording.
Local audio cleanup and captions
The app can normalize voice audio to −16 LUFS, apply on-device voice enhancement, duck system audio while you speak, remove long silences, and cap peaks at −1.5 dBFS. Captions are generated on the Mac and can be burned in or offered as a viewer-selectable track.
Crash recovery and live warnings
Takes are written to disk in two-second segments from the first frame, allowing Reelbird to recover a recording after a crash with at most two seconds missing. The recording bar warns about issues such as a silent microphone, stalled capture, audio drift, a filling disk, or delayed uploads.
Keyboard, CLI, and MCP control
Use the app, command-line tool, or MCP interface to list screens, record demos, edit takes, export, and share with JSON output. Keyboard shortcuts include ⌥⇧R to start recording and ⌘E to export.
Use cases
Developer demos and technical handoffs
Capture a bug, configuration change, or short walkthrough from any display, window, or selected area. The CLI and MCP interface can record a timed demo and return a share link for handoff.
Async product walkthroughs
Record a product explanation once, then refine the same take with zooms, cursor movement, framing, audio cleanup, and captions before sending the existing link to a client or colleague.
Tutorials and training videos
Keep screen, camera, microphone, and system audio separate when recording training or presentation material. Reposition the camera bubble and choose a landscape, square, vertical, or 4:3 export afterward.
Privacy-conscious recording
Use local recordings and on-device speech processing when you want the source project, captions, and transcripts to stay on the Mac. Enable sharing only when a browser link is needed.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Free and MIT licensed, with no Reelbird account, watermark, or stated export limit.
- Share links can be copied when recording stops and updated after editing without changing the URL.
- Screen, camera, microphone, and system audio are kept as separate tracks for post-recording adjustments.
- Captions, audio processing, cursor smoothing, and much of the recording workflow run locally on the Mac.
- Open project files use standard MP4s, JSON, and an event log rather than a locked proprietary media format.
Cons
- Sharing requires configuring and paying attention to your own storage provider; Reelbird does not host the files. The documented setup requires a bucket, scoped credentials, and a public URL.
- The product is Mac-only: it requires macOS 15 or later and does not support Windows or Linux.
- Some editing capabilities are still limited; the site identifies clip joining and in-app titles or chapters as not yet available.
FAQ
Is Reelbird free?
Reelbird is a free, MIT-licensed macOS application. The source states that it has no paid tier, watermark, or export limit. Sharing requires storage that you configure, such as Cloudflare R2 or another S3-compatible service, and that provider may charge for storage or requests.
What platforms does Reelbird support?
No. Reelbird supports macOS 15 and later and is built around Apple frameworks including ScreenCaptureKit and Metal. The site says Windows and Linux are not supported and are not planned.
How do Reelbird share links work?
For sharing, enable Share while recording and connect Reelbird to a bucket you control. The documented setup uses a bucket, a scoped API token, and a public URL. Reelbird uploads a browser viewer and video files to that bucket, then copies the share link when recording stops. The link remains the same when you later choose Update link.
Do I need an account, and where is my data stored?
No Reelbird account is required. Recordings, edits, captions, and transcripts remain on the Mac unless you enable sharing; shared files go to the storage bucket configured by you. The sharing credentials are stored in the macOS Keychain.
What can Reelbird record and export?
Reelbird records the screen, camera, microphone, and system audio as separate tracks. It can export MP4, HEVC, ProRes, or GIF with hardware encoding, in landscape, square, vertical, or 4:3 formats. Projects are also kept as .reelbird folders containing standard MP4 files, JSON, and an event log.
Quick Facts
- Category
- Screen recorder
- Platform
- macOS 15 and later
- License
- MIT
- Price
- Free
- Storage model
- Local recordings; optional sharing to your own S3-compatible bucket
- Source
- reelbird.app
Reelbird Alternatives
Tavus
Tavus is an AI video platform for real-time face-to-face agents, digital twins, and AI companions, with APIs and multilingual workflows for developers.
HiringPartner.ai
HiringPartner.ai is an autonomous AI recruiting platform for sourcing, screening, and interviewing candidates 24/7 with ATS-connected workflows and bulk resume uploads.
CAKIE
CAKIE is a Mac app for recording your screen and voice for an AI agent, with transcripts, screenshot highlights, and easy prompt copying.
Zella
Zella is a screen recorder and on-device AI video editor for Mac and iPhone. Record, edit, caption, reframe, and export videos locally.
Bezel
Bezel is a macOS app for mirroring and recording Apple devices on a Mac. Supports wireless AirPlay and USB mirroring for demos, walkthroughs, and screen recordings.
Capso
Capso is a native macOS screenshot and screen recording app for capturing, annotating, recording, and extracting text from screen content. Free forever, open source, and an alternative to CleanShot X.