How to Record a Loom Video

To record a Loom video, install the Loom desktop app or the Chrome extension, click the Loom icon, and choose Screen and Cam, Screen Only, or Cam Only. Pick your microphone and camera, then press Start Recording. A short countdown runs, you record, and the moment you stop, Loom uploads the video and hands you a shareable link.

That's the whole loop. Below is each step in detail, the Mac permissions that trip people up, how to trim and share, and how to record a talking-head video that actually looks like you're talking to someone.

Set up Loom on your Mac

Loom runs two ways: a desktop app and a Chrome extension. The desktop app gives you the most control (full screen recording, system audio, drawing tools), so grab it from the Loom download page if you record often. The extension is fine for quick browser-tab captures.

Here's the part people miss. macOS blocks screen and camera access until you grant it by hand. The first time you record, the Mac will prompt you, but it's faster to set it up first:

1. Open System Settings, then Privacy & Security.

2. Turn Loom on under Screen Recording (called Screen and System Audio Recording on newer macOS).

3. Turn Loom on under Camera and Microphone.

4. Add Loom under Accessibility too, if you want the on-screen drawing and control tools.

Quit and reopen Loom after you flip those switches. If your face or screen shows up black in the preview, a permission is still off. That's the cause nine times out of ten.

Pick what to record: screen, cam, or both

Click the Loom icon (menu bar for the app, toolbar for the extension) and you get three recording modes:

• Screen and Cam: your screen plus a small webcam bubble in the corner. This is the default for demos and walkthroughs, because people see your face and your work at once.

• Screen Only: just your screen, with voiceover. Good for a quiet tutorial where your face isn't the point.

• Cam Only: just your webcam, full frame. This is the talking-head video: an intro, an update, a pitch, a quick message to a client.

In the same control panel you choose your camera, your mic, and whether to capture the full screen or a single window. Set those once and Loom remembers them.

Record your video step by step

With your mode picked, recording takes four moves:

1. Frame yourself. Check the webcam preview. Camera at eye level, light in front of you, not behind. A window facing you beats a lamp behind you every time.

2. Press Start Recording. Loom counts down 3, 2, 1, then rolls.

3. Use the control bubble. A small floating controller sits at the edge of your screen. From there you can pause, restart, delete and start over, or draw on screen while you talk.

4. Press Stop when you're done. Loom ends the take and immediately starts uploading.

A few things make takes go smoother. Pause instead of restarting when you stumble: you can trim the gap later. Keep a glass of water nearby, because talking-head videos run dry fast. And if you fumble the first ten seconds, just keep going. You'll cut the intro anyway.

Want to read your script without your eyes sliding off the camera?

Reading from a doc next to your webcam reads as exactly that: reading. An invisible notes overlay like Oculta puts your script up by the lens and keeps it out of the Loom recording.

In practice, a few lines sit right under your camera. You read them while looking straight into the lens, so it still feels like eye contact. Because the overlay never enters the screen capture, you can record Screen and Cam, or even your whole desktop, and it stays invisible to Loom and to anyone you send the link to. Arrow keys move you line to line, so there's no scrolling or clicking on camera. It won't write your script or memorize it for you. It just keeps your talking points by the lens and out of the video.

Rather keep it simple with Loom and a printed page? Here's the rest of the workflow.

Trim and edit before you share

The second you stop recording, Loom opens the video in your browser. You don't have to edit, but a 30-second cleanup makes a real difference.

• Trim the ends. Drag the handles on the timeline to cut the dead air at the start (you settling in) and the end (you reaching for Stop).

• Cut a stumble in the middle. Use the split tool to remove a flubbed sentence, then stitch the two halves together.

• Add a title and a call to action. A clear title helps the viewer, and Loom can drop a button or link at the end.

• Drop a thumbnail. Pick a frame where you look engaged, not mid-blink.

Paid plans add more (filler-word removal, auto chapters), but the free editor handles trimming and splitting, which is most of what a clean video needs.

Share your Loom video

Loom is built around the link, not the file. When the upload finishes, click Copy Link and paste it into Slack, an email, a Notion doc, or a ticket. Anyone with the link can watch in the browser, no Loom account required, and you can see who viewed it.

Need an actual file? Use Download to save an MP4 you can upload to YouTube, attach somewhere, or drop into a slide. You can also set link permissions: public, anyone with the link, or restricted to your workspace.

One more tip for screen recordings. Before you hit record, close the extra tabs, silence notifications, and turn on Do Not Disturb. A banner sliding across your screen mid-take is the most common reason people re-record. If you're walking through slides or an app, the same care that goes into sharing your screen without showing your notes on a live call applies here: only what's on screen ends up in the video.

Tips for a talking-head video that looks natural

Cam Only is where Loom gets hard, because there's nothing to hide behind. A few habits carry most of the weight:

Look at the lens, not the preview. Your instinct is to watch yourself in the little window. Resist it. The viewer feels eye contact only when you look at the camera, not at your own face on screen. The same thing that makes notes during a remote interview work (notes up near the camera, not down on the desk) makes a Loom talking-head land.

Prep, don't memorize. Write the three or four points you need to hit. You prepared, so you don't have to wing it, and you don't have to recite a word-for-word script in a flat voice. Bullet points keep you sounding like a person.

Light your face. The cheapest upgrade in video is a window in front of you. Side or front lighting beats a bright background, which throws your face into shadow.

Keep it short. A Loom is not a webinar. Two or three focused minutes beats a rambling ten. If you're past five minutes, it's probably two videos.

Smile on the first frame. Your thumbnail is the first thing people see. Open with a little energy and you set the tone before the play button is even pressed.

FAQ

Can you record a Loom video for free?
Yes. Loom's free Starter plan lets you record screen and cam videos and share them by link. It currently caps each video's length and the number of videos you keep, so check Loom's plans if you need longer recordings or a bigger library.

How do you record yourself and your screen at the same time in Loom?
Choose Screen and Cam before you record. Loom captures your screen and overlays your webcam in a small, movable bubble (usually a circle in the corner). You can reposition or resize the bubble, or hide it mid-recording from the control panel.

How do I record a Loom video on a Mac?
Install the Loom desktop app, then grant it Screen Recording, Camera, and Microphone access in System Settings, Privacy and Security. Open Loom from the menu bar, pick your recording mode, and press Start Recording. If the preview is black, a permission is still switched off.

Where do Loom recordings save?
Loom uploads your recording to your Loom library in the cloud and gives you a shareable link right away, so there's no file to manage by default. If you want a local copy, open the video and use Download to save it as an MP4.