How to Screen Record with Audio on Mac: Mic, System Sound & Voiceover

When people say they want audio in their screen recording, they usually mean one of two things: their own voice (microphone input) or the sounds the Mac is playing — music, app sounds, notification chimes, video playback audio (system audio). Some workflows need both.

macOS handles mic audio easily in almost every screen recorder. System audio is a different story — Apple doesn't expose a direct API for capturing what the speakers are playing, so most apps need a virtual audio driver to intercept it. This is why you'll see apps like BlackHole or Loopback mentioned in audio-capture guides.

Knowing which type of audio you need determines which tool is right for your workflow.

QuickTime Player's File → New Screen Recording lets you select a microphone source before you start. Click the dropdown arrow next to the record button and choose your mic. This works great for voiceover-style recordings — tutorial narration, commentary, demos.

System audio capture is not built in to QuickTime. To capture Mac system audio alongside a QuickTime recording, you need to install a free virtual audio driver like BlackHole (existential.audio/products/blackhole). Once installed, you create a Multi-Output Device in Audio MIDI Setup that routes system audio to both your speakers and BlackHole, then select BlackHole as QuickTime's microphone input. It's a one-time setup and it works reliably.

For most tutorial creators, mic-only QuickTime is sufficient. If you need system audio — for example, recording a software demo where alert sounds are part of the story — set up BlackHole first.

Pressing Command+Shift+5 opens the macOS screenshot toolbar. The Options menu in this toolbar has a Microphone section where you can choose an input device. Any mic connected to your Mac will appear there, including AirPods and external USB mics.

Like QuickTime, the screenshot toolbar has no native system audio capture. The same BlackHole workaround applies if you need it. The recordings are saved as .mov files to your Desktop (or wherever you configure in Options).

One advantage of the screenshot toolbar is speed — it's always one shortcut away and requires no app launch. For quick impromptu recordings where you just want mic narration, it's the fastest option on the Mac.

OBS Studio (free, obsproject.com) is the most capable audio-capable screen recorder available on Mac. It supports multiple audio sources simultaneously: mic input, desktop audio via BlackHole, application-specific capture, and more. You can mix levels in real time with its built-in audio mixer.

OBS also supports noise suppression filters, compression, and EQ directly inside the app — useful if you're recording in a noisy environment. The output can be streamed live or saved as a local file.

The trade-off is complexity. OBS has a scene-based interface designed for live streaming, and it takes an hour or two to get comfortable with it. If all you need is a clean screen recording with mic narration, OBS is more tool than you need. If you're doing a regular content workflow with professional audio, it's worth the setup time.

Limelight is a macOS screen recorder focused entirely on visual polish: auto-zoom on clicks, keystroke badges, cursor spotlight, freehand annotations, and a built-in trim/speed editor. It does not record audio — no mic input, no system audio. This is by design, keeping the app lightweight and fully offline.

If you're using Limelight and need a voiceover, the simplest workflow is to record your narration separately in Voice Memos (free, built into macOS) or Audacity (free, audacityteam.org), then sync the two tracks in iMovie, DaVinci Resolve, or ScreenFlow. Most tutorial creators record in one take anyway, so syncing is just aligning the two files at the start.

For many use cases — software product demos, tutorial GIFs, social media clips — audio isn't needed at all. Limelight's auto-zoom and keystroke display communicate what's happening without narration. If your content works silent, Limelight's focused feature set is a strength, not a limitation.

Recording your voiceover after the screen capture is often higher quality than recording both simultaneously. You can focus on delivering clean narration without worrying about accidental mouse clicks or keyboard noise leaking into the mic.

Voice Memos on Mac is the fastest way to record a clean voiceover — open the app, hit the red button, narrate while watching your screen recording play. Export the Voice Memo as m4a, bring both files into iMovie, and align them. iMovie is free on every Mac and handles basic multi-track sync well.

If you want more control, Audacity (free) lets you record, clean up background noise with its noise reduction filter, and export as MP3 or WAV. DaVinci Resolve (free tier) is the most powerful free option for syncing audio and video with frame-accurate control.

Use a USB or XLR microphone instead of your MacBook's built-in mic. Built-in mics pick up keyboard clicks, fan noise, and room echo. Even a $50 USB mic like a Blue Snowball makes a significant difference.

Record in a soft-furnished room. Hard surfaces cause echo. Closets, bedrooms with carpet and curtains, and rooms with bookshelves absorb reflections. If you're in a reflective space, hang a blanket behind your monitor.

Enable system audio capture (BlackHole or similar) only when you actually need it. Recording system audio while you have Spotify or YouTube open in the background will capture that audio too. Close everything you don't want recorded before starting.

Normalize your audio levels after recording. Audacity's Effect → Normalize brings your audio to a consistent loudness level, which prevents the jarring volume difference between videos in a series.