How to Record Your Screen on Windows 10 and 11 — Free, No Software

Recording your screen on Windows used to mean installing heavy software, hunting for a licence key, and living with a watermark across your video. None of that is necessary anymore. Windows 10 and 11 both ship with built-in capture tools, and a modern browser can record your screen without installing anything at all.

This guide walks through the three best free methods, when to use each one, and how to make sure your audio — both your microphone and the sound coming from your computer — is actually captured.

Method 1: Xbox Game Bar (built into Windows)

Every copy of Windows 10 and 11 includes the Xbox Game Bar, a lightweight overlay originally built for gamers that doubles as a capable screen recorder.

1. Press Windows + G to open the Game Bar overlay.
2. Find the Capture widget. If you do not see it, click the camera icon in the top toolbar.
3. Click the record button, or press Windows + Alt + R to start instantly.
4. To record your voice, toggle the microphone icon on before you begin.
5. Press Windows + Alt + R again to stop. Your clip is saved to Videos › Captures as an MP4 file.

Method 2: Browser-based recorder (no installation)

If you want to record your whole screen, a specific window, or just one browser tab — and capture system audio alongside your microphone — the fastest route is a browser-based recorder. There is nothing to download, it works the same on any Windows version, and it leaves no watermark.

1. Open the Screen Recorder Pro tool in Chrome, Edge, or Firefox.
2. Choose your sources: tick System Audio to capture computer sound and Microphone to capture your voice.
3. Click Start Recording. Your browser asks what to share — pick Entire Screen, Window, or Chrome Tab.
4. Do whatever you need to demonstrate, then click Stop.
5. Preview the result and download it as MP4 or WebM.

Because the recording is processed locally in your browser, your footage never gets uploaded to a third party — a real advantage when you are capturing anything sensitive.

Method 3: Snipping Tool (Windows 11 only)

Windows 11 added screen recording directly to the Snipping Tool, the same app you already use for screenshots.

1. Open the Snipping Tool from the Start menu.
2. Switch from the camera icon to the record (video) icon.
3. Click New, drag to select the area of the screen you want to capture.
4. Press Start, and when finished, press the stop button to preview and save.

It is perfect for quick clips of part of your screen, though it offers fewer audio controls than the other two methods.

Getting your audio right

The single most common screen-recording mistake on Windows is ending up with a silent video. There are two separate audio sources, and you usually want to be deliberate about both:

• Microphone — your narration. Enable it when you are explaining what you are doing.
• System audio — the sound your computer plays (a video, a game, an alert). Enable it when the content itself has sound.

If your recorded video has no sound, the cause is almost always a disabled toggle or a microphone permission that was never granted. Our deep dive on recording internal audio in a browser covers every fix.

Which method should you use?

For most people creating tutorials, bug reports, or how-to videos, the browser recorder is the sweet spot: no install, no watermark, full-screen capture, and both audio sources in one place. When you are ready, you can start recording in your browser right now.

Frequently Asked Questions