PC clipping software compared
Best clipping software for PC: 8 tools compared
Want to save a play with one key, right next to your FPS, temperatures and app volume? Pick SysCubes. Clips edited and shared fast, Medal. Automatic highlights in supported games, Outplayed. Full control over scenes and audio tracks, OBS Studio. Already on an NVIDIA or AMD card, its Instant Replay is built in.
- 8 tools side by side
- Choose by your next step
- Sourced from each maker
Explore the interactive preview
Enable 5-40 seconds of Replay history or start a longer recording, with performance, volume and media controls in the same Windows workspace. Save locally and continue with your preferred separate editing or sharing tools.
Explore SysCubes captureChoose your priority to explore an illustrative starting point for your capture setup.
Quick answer
The short answer: pick the tool that fits what you do after a good play.
Choose SysCubes when you want a free replay you save with one key, beside performance, volume and media controls in one overlay. Choose Medal or Outplayed when editing, sharing or automatic highlights matter, and OBS Studio when you need custom scenes or separate audio tracks. Xbox Game Bar and your graphics card's app also include a basic replay. Save one real clip on your PC before settling on a workflow.
Start with your next step
The best clipping software for each kind of player.
Find the row that matches what you want to do after a good play.
| If you want | Start with | Why |
|---|---|---|
| A replay beside your FPS, temps and volume | SysCubes | Free 5-40 second replay saved with one key, next to performance, volume and media widgets. |
| Nothing extra to install | Xbox Game Bar | Included with Windows 11 and 10; saves up to the last 10 minutes. |
| The longest replay with an NVIDIA card | NVIDIA App | Free Instant Replay of up to 20 minutes on GeForce cards. |
| The longest replay with an AMD card | AMD Software | Free Instant Replay of up to 20 minutes on Radeon cards. |
| Clips you edit and share quickly | Medal | Capture, a built-in editor and hosted sharing in one app. |
| Automatic highlights in supported games | Outplayed | Event highlights, full matches and a session library. |
| Custom scenes and separate audio tracks | OBS Studio | Free, open source and fully configurable. |
| Clips of games you play on Steam | Steam Game Recording | Built into Steam, with a timeline to cut and share clips. |
SysCubes is our app, and every row comes from each maker's own documentation, linked in the sources below. Save a real clip on your PC before you switch. For setup steps for each free tool, read how to clip on PC. For a focused comparison of replay setup effort, see SysCubes vs OBS Studio.
Compare the requirement
Eight PC clipping tools: cost, compatibility and what happens after saving.
The matrix summarizes documented capabilities. Check current settings, supported games and plan details in the linked official documentation before committing to a workflow.
| Tool | Cost | Works with | Save after the moment | After saving |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SysCubes | Free download via Overwolf | Windows 11 and 10 with Overwolf | Replay of 5-40 seconds, or manual recording | Local files beside PC controls |
| Xbox Game Bar | Free, included with Windows | Windows 11 and 10, any graphics card | Last 15 seconds to 10 minutes | Local files in Videos/Captures |
| NVIDIA App | Free | NVIDIA GeForce graphics cards | Instant Replay up to 20 minutes | Local files |
| AMD Software | Free with Radeon drivers | AMD Radeon graphics cards | Instant Replay up to 20 minutes | Local files |
| OBS Studio | Free, open source | Any Windows PC | Replay Buffer, length you set | Local files; separate audio tracks; streaming |
| Steam Game Recording | Free in Steam | Games launched from Steam | Background recording with a timeline | Cut, save and share clips in Steam |
| Medal | Free, optional Premium | Windows | Replay and supported automatic highlights | Built-in editor and hosted sharing |
| Outplayed | Free Core, paid Premium; account required | Windows with Overwolf | Highlights, Full Match, Full Session or Manual | Session library, editing and sharing |
Decide what you want preserved
A replay buffer, an event clip and a full session are different tools.
Save the last moment: choose Replay
Enable the rolling buffer before playing. When something worth keeping happens, trigger Save. Only retained history is available. Decide how much lead-up you need, then test that the save captures the start and end of a typical play.
Let supported events create highlights
Choose a tool whose event list matches your game. Specify the events you actually care about rather than collecting every possible moment. Verify a known event in a real test; basic video capture support does not prove that the app can identify a kill, win or match boundary.
Keep the whole story: choose a longer recording
Record a full session when the useful footage may occur outside short clips. Confirm start/stop behavior, enough disk space and playable output. A full-session file gives more context but increases the footage you must review and archive.
In SysCubes you pick one mode at a time: Replay for surprise moments, or a manual recording for a planned session. If you need capture instructions rather than software selection, use the PC game clipping guide. If a configured recording fails, move to recording troubleshooting.
Plan the edit before recording
Separate tracks matter when you want to fix the mix afterward.
| Question | Why it changes your choice |
|---|---|
| Will I mute Discord later? | Look for independently recorded sources, not only a Windows playback volume slider. |
| Will I send the file without editing? | Verify the default playback track contains the sound you want; ordinary players may play one track. |
| Do I need captions or several clips on one timeline? | An integrated clip editor or a separate editing application becomes part of the workflow. |
| Does the microphone need its own adjustment? | Record a short spoken test and open it in the editor or player you will actually use. |
SysCubes captures game or desktop audio with an optional microphone. During active-game capture, system audio follows the game process, so notification sounds and other apps stay out of your clip. When you want to rebalance separate sources such as a Discord call in an editor, OBS's recording tracks and Medal's multi-track workflow are built for that. Follow the game, Discord and microphone audio guide to plan the result.
Keep a file you can find again
Local storage, upload settings and backups need separate checks.
Locate the original video
Find the capture directory and play the real file outside the recorder. A library entry, thumbnail or shared URL alone does not prove that you have a usable local backup.
Check cleanup and upload rules
Read whether older recordings can be deleted automatically and whether uploads occur without an explicit share. Medal documents an Auto Upload Never option. Outplayed provides a storage manager. Configure the policy to match what you want kept.
Preserve what matters before switching
Copy important videos to a separate backup location and verify playback. Keep editing projects and library data if they are part of your workflow. A new recorder does not automatically recreate the old app's organization or published posts.
Local files are not exclusive to one of these tools. Hosted links are useful for quick sharing, but their access and retention rules are separate from the file on your PC. Choose the destination deliberately and make a backup appropriate to the importance of the footage.
The useful performance result is yours
Compare equivalent saved output on the PC you play on.
Record your baseline
Repeat a short game scene without capture. Keep the game settings, display mode and background apps the same. Note the gameplay behavior that matters to you, including sudden stalls rather than only an average FPS number.
Enable one capture workflow
Choose a practical quality target and comparable output between tools. Do not interpret 1080p at 30 FPS against a much larger output as a fair speed comparison. Save a clip and inspect actual motion, resolution and sound.
Repeat and choose your everyday workflow
Run the same scene again, then try the editing, sharing or archive steps you need. For SysCubes, include the widgets you plan to keep open. Choose the setup that gives you useful controls, satisfactory footage and an acceptable workload on your PC.
Explore the original guides
Read the source behind each capability.
Use the official product and support guides to check capture modes, editing, recording tracks and upload settings.
- Microsoft: Xbox Game Bar capture settings
Background recording and how much recent gameplay to keep.
- NVIDIA App overview
Instant Replay, recording and overlay for GeForce graphics cards.
- AMD: Instant Replay in AMD Software
Replay length up to 20 minutes and hotkey settings.
- Steam Support: Game Recording
Background recording, clips and sharing in Steam.
- Medal capture and free-use overview
Replay choices, optional Premium and recorded-audio capabilities.
- Medal editor
Post-capture trimming, captions and multi-clip editing.
- Medal event highlights
Automatic clipping and supported-game requirements.
- Medal upload settings
Automatic sync controls, including Never.
- Outplayed product overview
Recording, library, editing and sharing roles.
- Outplayed capture modes
Highlights, Full Match, Full Session and Manual capture; account access and event support.
- Outplayed plans
Free Core and paid Premium; check current terms for the required features.
- OBS recording and Replay Buffer
Recording setup, buffer activation and save hotkeys.
- OBS multiple audio tracks
Source assignment and the distinction between editor tracks and normal-player playback.
Your questions, answered
PC clipping software compared FAQ
What is the best clipping software for PC?
It depends on what you do after saving. SysCubes keeps a replay you save with one key next to performance and audio controls, Medal suits fast editing and sharing, Outplayed supports automatic highlights in supported games, and OBS Studio gives full control over scenes and audio tracks. Xbox Game Bar, the NVIDIA App and AMD Software also include a basic replay. Test a real clip on your PC before choosing.
Which game clipping software is free?
SysCubes is a free download via Overwolf, with no account needed. Xbox Game Bar, the NVIDIA App, AMD Software, OBS Studio and Steam Game Recording are also free. Medal has free use with optional Premium, and Outplayed has a free Core plan and a paid Premium plan. Check current plan terms rather than assuming every feature is in a free tier.
What is the best clipping software for a low-end PC?
One that shows you what recording costs. SysCubes puts its Replay control next to live CPU, GPU and FPS readings, so you can play the same scene with replay on and off and keep the setup your PC handles. Give any built-in replay you already have the same test.
What is the difference between replay clips and automatic highlights?
Replay keeps a rolling history that you explicitly save after an interesting moment. Automatic highlights use supported game events to decide when to capture or bookmark. Full recording keeps the whole session you started. A replay button does not imply automatic kills, event markers or a complete session archive.
Which clipping app has the lowest FPS impact?
It depends on your hardware, encoder, resolution and game, so the useful answer comes from your own PC. SysCubes makes that test easy: its FPS widget stays on screen while Replay runs, so you can play the same scene with capture on and off and compare.
Can I record game sound, Discord and microphone separately?
Choose a workflow that records independently editable tracks if you need to rebalance voices afterward. OBS documents assigning sources to multiple recording tracks, and Medal documents multi-track audio. SysCubes records clean game sound, filtered to the game, plus your microphone when you turn it on, so notification sounds and other apps stay out of your clips.
Should I run two game recorders at once?
Test one capture tool at a time. Running two can change resource use, audio routing and troubleshooting, making the result hard to interpret. Keep the recorder you already trust available while testing another, and back up important footage first.
Your PC. In your hands.
Bring capture into your everyday PC workspace.
Explore SysCubes recording, Replay and screenshots beside useful PC controls. Download SysCubes for Windows via Overwolf and set up your personal workspace today.
Free • No credit card or account needed • Instant 1-minute setup • Windows 10/11