Platforms
How to record your screen on a Mac
macOS puts screen recording behind a system permission that sits outside the browser. Until you grant it, the browser picker either shows nothing useful or produces a black recording, with no obvious explanation.
Grant the system permission first
Open System Settings, then Privacy & Security, then Screen & System Audio Recording. Find your browser in the list and switch it on. On older macOS versions this is called Screen Recording, under System Preferences, Security & Privacy.
macOS usually requires you to quit and reopen the browser afterwards. If capture starts but the video is empty, read why a recording comes out black. If the picker still looks empty, that restart is almost always the missing step.
Then record as normal
Press start, choose a screen, window or tab, and confirm. Recording begins immediately.
Sound is the real limitation
macOS does not expose system audio to browsers. Chrome can capture the audio of a shared browser tab, but not the sound of your whole Mac. If you need system sound on a Mac, use QuickTime with a virtual audio device, or record your narration through the microphone instead. Recording with sound covers both routes.
Read next
- Screen recording in Safari
Safari support for screen capture, the MP4 files it produces, and where it falls short.
- Screen recording is black or blank
Why a recording plays but shows nothing, and how to fix each cause.
- How to record your screen on Windows
Record your Windows screen in a browser, including the one setting that lets Chrome and Edge capture system sound.