5 Best Free Open Source Video Recording Software For Windows

Here is a list of best free open video recording software for Windows. These software are similar to their non open source counterparts which can record videos using the webcam feed. But, unlike non open source software, these software let you download and manipulate their source codes without any restriction. With the use of these software, you can capture game videos, tutorial videos, educational videos, etc.

Most of these software can also record a video by using the screen feed. Plus, in some software, you can also capture both screen and webcam feed at the same time. Before recording the video, you can easily adjust various output video parameters like Video Resolution, FPS, Aspect Ratio, Codec, etc. After adjusting video parameters, you can start the video recording. In each software, you get different output video formats in which you can save the recorded videos such as MP4, AVI, MPEG, FLV, etc. A few open source video recording software also let you stream video on streaming platforms like Twitch, YouTube Live, etc.

Besides recording the video, these software can also take snapshots of any part of the screen. Plus, some additional features like drawing features, transition effects, video GIF maker, etc., can also be found in these software. In general, all of these are quite featured yet easy to use. To further simplify video recording task, I have also included video recording steps. Go through the list to find your favorite software.

My Favorite Open Source Video Recording Software For Windows:

OBS Studio is my favorite software because it can record videos using multiple webcam and screen feeds. It also gives you options to record only webcam feed, screen feed, or just audio. Plus, you can also add transition effects using it.

You can also check out lists of best free Open Source Video Player, Open Source Screen Sharing, and Meeting Recording software for Windows.

OBS Studio

OBS Studio is a free open source video recording software for Windows. With the use of this software, you can record both webcam feed and screen feed at the same time. You can also choose to only record webcam feed, audio, or screen feed. The main advantage of this software is its ability to live stream video on platforms like Mixer, Twitch, etc.

How to record video using this open source video recording software:

• Launch this software and go to the Sources Section and add a Video Capture Device. As soon as you add a video recording device, you can view the webcam feed on its interface.
• Now, to add the desktop feed, again go to Sources Section and select Display Capture option to view the Desktop feed.
• According to your need, you can define the video recording area and screen capture area using the resize dots.
• Lastly, just press the Start Recording Button to start the video recording.

In this software, you can also adjust various video recording parameters before recording the video like Video Resolution, Frame Rate, Aspect Ratio, Video Format (AVI, MP4, MOV, MKV, TS, etc.), etc.

After the successful video recording, go to its File Menu and select the Show Recording option to view all your recorded videos. Along with Video, you can also adjust video parameters and if needed, you can completely disable audio from the recording. It also comes with a handy Scene Transition Section through which you can add transition effects and transition effect duration in the video.

In general, it is one of the best free open source video recording software.

Captura

Captura is another free open source video recording software for Windows. Through this software, you can easily record the whole screen, webcam feed, and audio. Plus, options to separately record webcam feed and screen are also available in it. In this software, you get five webcam and screen recording options and one audio recording option namely Full Screen, Screen, Window, Region, Desktop Publication, and Only Audio.

Let’s take a look at all video recording options:

• Full Screen: This option allows you to record the full screen along with webcam feed at the same time. Plus, feature to record the screen and webcam feed separately is also present in it.
• Screen: It is similar to Full Screen option with an added ability to manually select a part of the screen which you want to record.
• Window: Using it, you can record the webcam feed along with a specific window present on your screen.
• Region: This option gives a predefined dotted region window that allows, you to record a specific part of the screen. However, you will not be able to increase or decrease the predefined region window size like the Screen option. Still, you will be able to record the webcam feed and predefined region at the same time.
• Desktop Publication: It is a dedicated game recording option through which you can record your games and webcam feed at the same time.

Before recording the video, you can also tweak some video parameters from its interface like FPS, Quality, Video Resolution, etc. To record video with proper audio, use its SharpAvi Option that saves the recorded video in AVI format. A GIF recording option is also available in it. Through this software, you can also stream video on streaming services including Twitch and Youtube Live. Some other additional features which you get in it are highlight cursor, hide cursor, screenshot capturer, etc.

ScreenToGif

ScreenToGif is yet another free open source video recording software for Windows. As its name implies, it is mainly used to convert the recorded screen feed to GIF file format. However, it also lets you record webcam feed with ease. In it, you mainly get three recording sections namely Recorder, Webcam, and Board.

Let’s check out all three recording sections of this open source video recording software:

• Recorder: This section allows you to record the full screen of your system. In it, you also get options to set the video resolution, frame rates along with a screenshot capturing button.
• Webcam: It basically lets you record the webcam feed. Plus, a viewer to show the live webcam feed is also available in it. Few other important options to change frame rate, to scale video, and to set maximum and minimum frame rates are also available in it.
• Board: This section opens up a drawing window in which you can manually draw shapes or designs through your mouse. You can easily record the entire drawing process by clicking on the Record button.

After recording the video using any of these three available recording features, an inbuilt Editor Window will automatically open up. Its Editor window provides various options through which you can easily edit individual frames of the video, add transition effects, insert image, preview video, change resolution, add delay to video, etc. All the editing features present in its editor are quite simple and easy to operate. After making the desired changes in the recorded video, you can use the save as option that allows you to save the recording in AVI, GIF, APNG, PSD, etc. formats. However, this software does not record the audio which is the main limitation of this software.

VLC Media Player

VLC Media Player is a free and popular media player software that you can also use as an open source video recording software. In it, you get a simple video capture feature through which you can record webcam feed with proper audio. It also provides a lot of video settings and modification options that you can use to tweak various output video and audio parameters.

How to record the video using VLC Media Player:

• Launch this software and go to Media > Open Capture Device menu. From this menu, select your webcam and audio device.
• After that, press the Play Button to view the webcam feed and then go to the Playback Tab and press the Record Button to start the webcam feed recording.
• Once recording gets completed, again go to the Playback tab and press the Stop Button to stop the recording.

In the Open Capture Device menu, you also get an Advanced Options menu using which you can set the Aspect Ratio, Video Standard, Input Chroma Format, Audio Sample Rate, Audio Bits Per Sample, etc. parameters.

By default, this software saves the recorded video in AVI format. To save the recorded video in other video formats like MP3, FLV, WebM, MPEG, ASF, WMV, etc., go to Media > Convert/Save Menu and open the Capture Device Section. In this section, you get another convert/save option that opens up the Convert Menu. From this menu, click on Edit Selected Device Menu and select the desired output video format. Besides video formats, you can also modify video codec, audio codec, subtitle, etc. properties from this menu.

Overall, it is another good software to record webcam feed.

Webcamoid

Webcamoid is the next free open source video recording software for Windows. Through this software, you can easily record webcam feed as well as screen feed. However, at a time, you will only be able to record either webcam feed or screen feed. To switch between feeds, use its Configure Sources Menu. After selecting one of the feeds, go to Record Video Menu to configure various video configuration options that you can tweak such as Video Format, Video Resolution, FPS, Video Format, Codec, Audio Codec, Bitrate, etc. On the right side panel of the Record Video menu, you get a lot of video formats that you can select for the output recording such as 3GP, DV, MPEG, MP4, PSP MP4, etc.

This software also comes with various video effects like ASCII Art, Aging, Blur,  Cartoon, Cinema, Edge Detection, Distort, and more. You can access video effects from the Configure Effects menu. After adding effects and configuring video parameters, you can start the video recording by pressing the Record Button. Besides recording the video, you can also take snapshots of both screen and webcam feed through this software.

In general, it is a simple and straightforward software through which you can easily record a video using the webcam or screen feed at a time.