How-to

Where do screen recordings go on Mac?

Updated October 10, 2026 · macOS Sonoma 14 to macOS 27

The quick answer: to your desktop. A recording made with Shift-Command-5 or QuickTime Player is saved as a .mov file named “Screen Recording [date] at [time].mov”, unless you chose another place under Save to in the toolbar’s Options.

If it isn’t on your desktop, it’s almost always in one of a few places. Below: how to find a recording you can’t see, how to change where new ones go, and where Framecast keeps its recordings.

Can’t find your screen recording? Check these

1. Give the thumbnail a few seconds

When you stop, a thumbnail of the recording sits in the corner of the screen for a few seconds, and the file is saved when it goes away. If you clicked the thumbnail to trim the recording, the file is saved when you click Done. To save straight away next time, swipe the thumbnail to the right.

2. Search for it with Spotlight

Press Command-Space and type Screen Recording. Every recording keeps that name until you rename it, so it shows up wherever it was saved. Choose one and press Command-Return to show it in Finder.

3. Look in Finder’s Recents

Open a Finder window and click Recents in the sidebar. Your newest files are listed first, wherever they are on your Mac.

4. Check where the toolbar saves

Press Shift-Command-5 and click Options. The location with a checkmark under Save to is where your recordings go. If it’s an app, such as Mail, Messages or QuickTime Player, the recording opened in that app instead of going to a folder. Press Esc to close the toolbar without recording.

5. Your desktop may be in iCloud Drive

If Desktop & Documents Folders is turned on for iCloud Drive, your desktop lives in iCloud. The recording is still there: in Finder, click iCloud Drive in the sidebar, then open Desktop. With Optimize Mac Storage on, a large recording may need to download before it plays.

6. Your desktop is grouped into stacks

If your desktop files are tidied into stacks, recordings are gathered into a stack of movies. Click the stack to open it, or Control-click the desktop and turn off Use Stacks.

7. QuickTime is still holding it

If QuickTime Player recorded in its own Screen Recording window, the recording opens in QuickTime Player when you stop, and isn’t saved anywhere yet. Choose File › Save, then pick a name and a place.

How to change where screen recordings are saved

1. Press Shift-Command-5 to open the Screenshot toolbar.
2. Click Options.
3. Under Save to, choose one of the preset locations, or click Other Location and pick any folder.
4. Press Esc to close the toolbar, or start recording.

Your Mac remembers the choice, and screenshots go to the same place. A tidy option is a folder of its own, such as Screen Recordings inside your Documents folder, so recordings stop piling up on the desktop.

What kind of file is a Mac screen recording?

A QuickTime movie, with the .mov extension. On supported Macs with macOS Tahoe 26 or later, Options lets you choose the capture format: SDR, the most compatible, uses H.264, and HDR uses HEVC. Mac apps and iPhones play .mov files, and most video sites accept them.

If you need an MP4, QuickTime Player can’t make one: Apple says it doesn’t export MP4 videos. A screen recorder that exports MP4 directly, such as Framecast, saves the extra step. To convert a recording you already have, use the free MOV to MP4 converter. It runs in your browser and the file isn't uploaded.

Where Framecast saves recordings

Framecast keeps each recording as a project in its library, so you can edit it again later. The library is in your Movies folder, under Framecast. To open it in Finder, choose Help › Show Library Folder. To keep it somewhere else, such as an external drive, choose Settings › General › Library folder.

The finished video goes wherever you save it when you export, as MP4, MOV or GIF. And if Framecast ever quits while you record, the recording isn’t lost: it’s finished for you the next time Framecast opens. See Recovered recordings and Export a video.

Make the recording worth finding

Framecast is a native Mac screen recorder for macOS 14 Sonoma or later. It zooms in where you click and type, smooths your cursor, adds captions written on your Mac, and records your Mac’s sound on any supported macOS version. See Automatic zoom and Captions.

Framecast is free to try, with every feature. Exporting needs a license: $79 $39 once for up to 3 Macs with lifetime updates, or $15 a month. See pricing, or download Framecast. For the basics, read how to screen record on Mac and how to stop a screen recording.

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