Instant Mode

Instant Mode is the fastest way to capture and share your screen with Cap. Record your screen, stop, and get a shareable link quickly. There is no file management and no extra steps. Once processing completes, your link is ready.

How Instant Mode Works

Instant Mode quickly uploads your recording to the Cap cloud (or your self-hosted instance) when you stop. This means:

Quick upload processing after you stop recording
A shareable link is generated quickly after processing
The link is ready to copy and share
Viewers can start watching immediately

This makes Instant Mode ideal for quick walkthroughs, bug reports, async standups, and any situation where speed matters.

Starting a Recording

From the App

Open Cap Desktop.
Make sure Instant Mode is selected (this is the default).
Choose what you want to capture using the screen selector.
Optionally enable your camera and microphone.
Click the Record button.

Using a Keyboard Shortcut

You can start recording without even opening the Cap window:

macOS: Cmd + Shift + 2
Windows: Ctrl + Shift + 2

This uses your last recording configuration (screen selection, camera, microphone settings).

Choosing What to Record

Before recording, select your capture source:

Full Screen - Captures everything on your selected display. Best for demos that span multiple windows.

Specific Window - Captures only one application window. The recording will follow that window even if you resize or move it. Best for focused tutorials.

Camera Overlay

Toggle the camera button to include a webcam overlay in your recording. The camera overlay appears as a floating circle that shows your face while you present.

You can:

Choose which camera to use if you have multiple connected
Position the overlay in any corner of the recording
Resize the overlay

See Camera & Microphone for detailed configuration options.

Microphone Audio

Toggle the microphone button to narrate your recording. Audio narration makes recordings significantly more useful and engaging.

You can:

Choose which microphone to use
Monitor audio levels before recording

See Camera & Microphone for audio settings and troubleshooting.

During Recording

While recording, you will see a recording indicator. Continue using your computer normally. Everything on the captured screen or window will be recorded.

To pause: Use the pause keyboard shortcut to temporarily pause recording. This is useful if you need to handle something private before continuing.

To stop: Click the Stop button in the Cap toolbar, or press the stop keyboard shortcut:

macOS: Cmd + Shift + 2
Windows: Ctrl + Shift + 2

After Recording

The moment you stop recording:

Cap finishes processing the video in the background.
A shareable link is generated and ready to share.
You will see a notification confirming the link is ready.
Copy the link and paste it anywhere to share it.

The recording also appears on your Cap dashboard where you can rename it, adjust share settings, view analytics, or delete it.

The shareable link takes viewers to a dedicated page where they can:

Watch the recording in a high-quality video player
Adjust playback speed
Read AI-generated captions
Leave timestamped comments
Download the video (if enabled)

For more on share settings, see Share a Cap.

When to Use Instant Mode

Instant Mode is perfect for:

Bug reports - Show the exact steps to reproduce an issue and paste the link in your issue tracker.
Quick tutorials - Walk someone through a process step by step.
Async standups - Record a quick update for your team instead of writing it out.
Code reviews - Walk through your changes visually.
Customer support - Show a customer how to do something in your product.
Feedback - Record your screen while reviewing a design, document, or pull request.

Instant Mode vs Studio Mode

Feature	Instant Mode	Studio Mode
Upload	Automatic after stopping	Manual, saves locally first
Share link	Available quickly after processing	Available after editing and uploading
Editing	None	Full editing suite
Background customization	No	Yes
Zoom effects	No	Yes
Trimming	No	Yes
Best for	Quick communication	Polished, professional content

If you need editing tools, background customization, or zoom effects, use Studio Mode instead. For everything else, Instant Mode gets you a shareable link in the least amount of time.