The Ultimate List of GIF Recorders, Which is the Best?
This article introduces 15 powerful Windows and Mac GIF recorders according to real use experiences. You can definitely find your desired one.
Editor's Pick: AnyRec Screen Recorder
- Record a GIF with high quality at most 4K resolution.
- Take up little storage and record smoothly without lags.
- Quickly modify the output size, frame rate, and more.
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Now you want to record an animated GIF. You have found a brilliant and funny video as the GIF material. How to find a GIF recorder to turn the video on the screen into GIF? Regular screen recorders are doing a great job at generating movie files such as MP4 and MOV, but having trouble in creating more dynamic GIF files easier to be shared on social media. In this article, the editor team would break down the popular options as GIF recorders for all the scenarios.
Guide List
[Editors' Pick] Overall Best Way to Record GIF 14 Honorable GIF Recorders for Windows and Mac FAQs about Recording GIFs[Editors' Pick] Overall Best Way to Record a GIF
When you want to turn your screen into a GIF, AnyRec Screen Recorder easily ranks at the top of all the popular GIF recorders. It provides 7 different recording modes to capture the screen as GIF files. For both beginners and power users, it provides a complete set of GIF recording tools that fits all levels of users.
Record customized region or full screen with high quality.
Easily export to GIF files with advanced settings.
Customize GIF compression rate freely.
Great editing tools for GIF creators.
Control GIF recordings with custom hotkeys.
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Step 1.Download and Install Screen Recorder program. On the main screen, click on the "Video Recorder" button to proceed.
Step 2.Click on the "Custom" button to select a specific area or window for recordings. Click on the "Output" button to open up the "Preferences" window. On the "Output" tab, change the output format into GIF. Click on the "OK" button to confirm.
Step 3.Click on the "REC" button to start recording GIFs. Later, click on the "Stop" button to terminate the recording. At last, click on the "Done" button to finish the process.
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Further Reading
How to Add GIF Overlay to Videos Easily on Windows/Mac/Android/iPhone14 Honorable GIF Recorders for Windows and Mac
Top 1: Gyazo - Fast Screen Recording and Back Up Your GIF
Elegantly designed app endorsed by many high profile eSports content creators, Gyazo has been chosen by many enterprise-level customers for its simplicity, security, and speed.
- Pros
- Incredibly fast screen recording process. Let you turn the screen into GIFs as fast as a Ninja.
- Cloud syncing and backup of your captured GIF, extremely easy for sharing.
- Cons
- Doesn't have an option to save files locally.
- Get only 7 seconds of GIF recording/10 viewable GIFs for the free version.
Top 2: Licecap - Effective and Simple for HQ GIF Recording
Licecap is the personal antidote of Gyazo. It has a bare minimum list of features specifically for GIF screen captures. For less than 1MB in file size, you get a complete package of GIF recorder solutions.
- Pros
- Simple and Effective tiny program for HQ GIF recordings.
- Supports both Windows and Mac.
- Cons
- Editing features are not included.
- The GIF it creates is oversized. A seven seconds animation would be over 0.5MB.
Top 3: ShareX - Open-Source GIF Recorder Offering Great Flexibility
As an open-source GIF recorder, the beauty of ShareX is its customizability to automize your workflow, this would come as super handy for advanced users.
- Pros
- Open-source Software.
- General screen capture software with screen to GIF feature.
- Cons
- The interface doesn't look attractive for beginners.
- It depends on the FFmpeg library for screen recording features, which may prove to be unusable for users without a technical background.
Top 4: Gifox - Delightful UI with Powerful GIF Compression Feature
As one of the better-designed options, Gifox shares a delightful UI anchored on the Mac menu bar. Its smart position feature is also highlighted.
- Pros
- Excellent design.
- Good GIF compression control.
- Cons
- Lacking features to trim a GIF.
- There is a 10 seconds limitation put on the free version.
Top 5: Giphy Capture - Easily Record GIF with Basic Editing Features
No list is complete without mentioning GIPHY. It is the de facto monopoly of GIF sharing platform with a GIF recording feature.
- Pros
- Easy sharing and get inspiration.
- Basic editing feature.
- Cons
- Online services have 30 seconds limitations.
- You could convert videos to GIFs, but you need separate software to record videos first.
Top 6: Capture to a GIF - Easily Capture Chrome Web Page Contents
If you need to capture the content of webpages to an animated GIF within Chrome browser, this simple tiny extension is the most highly rated choice.
- Pros
- Very easy to use. You do not even need to modify settings.
- Cons
- It is a Chrome extension, which means you need an Internet connection to make it work.
- Due to limitations, Chrome extensions are generally more lagging than stand-alone software.
Top 7: ScreenToGif - Freely Record GIF with Webcam Recorder Features
No need for further introduction, this app is dedicated to turning your screen into GIFs. It also has built-in webcam recorder features.
- Pros
- Simple, Free for GIF animation.
- Integrate a screen, webcam and sketchboard recorder to make screen to GIF online.
- Cons
- Doesn't show up in Start Menu or apps list.
- The GIF recorder is for Windows Only.
Top 8: GifCam - Easily Drag with Your Mouse to Adjust Recording Size
Alongside the excellent configured and rich features, the fun factor this GIF recorder app provides cannot be underestimated.
- Pros
- Well-configured app with surprisingly powerful features.
- Adjust the GIF recording screen size by dragging with your mouse.
- Cons
- Software development seems to be ceased after 2016. Compatibility issues arise with the new OS.
Top 9: GifCap - Quickly Record GIF Online without Privacy Concerns
For people who need to find an online website for GIF recording, Gifcap is an excellent choice which only needs a modern browser.
- Pros
- No installations.
- Client-side only, no privacy concerns.
- Blazingly fast GIF rendering.
- Cons
- No timestamp in the editor.
- Created GIF lacks precision and is over-speeded.
Top 10: ScreenPal - Record 720P GIF and save it online
This program allows you to select the desired recording area of the desired part. It supports recording high-quality GIFs in 720P resolution and 24 fps frame rate. Moreover, you can add annotations on your GIF and trim its duration.
- Pros
- Able to add annotations to your recorded GIF.
- Double-click to zoom the recording area.
- Cons
- Can't set the frame rate of your GIF.
- Can only select an area to record.
Top 11: Gif Screen Recorder - Tiny recorder only for recording GIFs
This is a small GIF screen recorder that only takes up a little storage space on your Windows/Mac. You can easily capture a video and export it in GIF format with the desired frame rate and high quality.
- Pros
- A very small software that takes little storage space.
- Record high-quality GIF with 1080P.
- Cons
- Unable to change the recording area freely by dragging.
- Can only set the frame rate to at most 20 fps.
Top 12: Jumpshare - Record a GIF and Manage it on Cloud
This GIF recorder can record your screen while adding annotations on it. When you finish recording, it will automatically upload the animated GIF to its cloud and save your storage space. Moreover, you can change the GIF aspect ratio to any size for sharing on different social platforms.
- Pros
- Add annotations and text to your GIFs.
- Quickly set the aspect ratio to 1:1, 16:9, or 4:3.
- Cons
- Can't directly save your GIFs to your computer.
- Free record only for 30 seconds.
Top 13: Kapwing - Record a GIF with Versatile Editing Features
This online GIF recorder has many editing features like trimming, cropping, filters, and even color correction. Before recording GIF animations, you can set the quality to 4K resolution. And if you think the size is too large, you can also compress it as you like.
- Pros
- Offer many editing features and color-correction functions.
- Export high-quality GIFs in 720P, 1080P, and 4K.
- Cons
- You need to pay for many extra features.
- You need to sign in to export your GIFs.
Top 14: VEED.IO - Fast Online GIF Recorder
VEED.IO is a famous online editor and GIF recorder. It can capture all screen activities quickly with high quality. Since it’s also a professional video editor, you can crop, trim, add text, and enhance your recorded GIFs.
- Pros
- Provide many editing features like trimming, filters, color correction.
- Export high-quality GIFs with 1080P and 30 fps.
- Cons
- You need to sign in to download your recorded GIFs.
- The GIFs will be automatically compressed after you record.
FAQs about Recording GIFs
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1. What is a GIF file?
GIF files have popularized the Internet since the early 90s. On the surface, GIF has been a ubiquitous element of Internet Culture since the very beginning. In reality, it sits right at the creative core of the Internet and gained the heart of generations of content creators.
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2. Are there GIFs free to use?
There are royally-free GIFs that are available on popular sharing platforms, such as GIF Paradise, Alphr, and Giphy. GIFs are subject to copyright laws while popular usage falls in the category of Fair Use doctrine.
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3. Why recording screen videos to GIFs?
Because animated GIF is a photo format, which is compatible with all the social media websites. Moreover, the GIF files enable you to playback the content automatically compares to the video files.
Conclusion
To sum up, the article has reviewed the most popular GIF recorders that have been well-considered. If you prefer a screenshot app that fits your need the best, look no further than AnyRec Screen Recorder as your selected choice.
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