Where screen recordings go on a Mac, and how to find one you lost.
You pressed Stop and the video is nowhere obvious. On a Mac it is almost always in one of two places: the desktop, or the folder someone chose in the Options menu months ago. This page gives the default, the setting that changes it, the file name to search for, and a search routine for a recording that seems to have vanished.
7-day trial · $49 once · no subscription · Apple Silicon · macOS 14+The short answer
Mac screen recordings save to the desktop by default, as a file named “Screen Recording [date] at [time].mov”. To change the folder, press Shift-Command-5, click Options, and pick a location under “Save to”. To find a lost one, open Spotlight and type Screen Recording kind:movie, then check which location has the checkmark under Options > Save to.
The recording workflow
Look on the desktop first
Apple’s default is the desktop. If your desktop is crowded, open a Finder window, click Desktop in the sidebar, and sort by date.
Read the “Save to” setting
Press Shift-Command-5 and click Options. The location with the checkmark under “Save to” is where recordings are going now. Press Esc to close the toolbar without recording.
Search by name
Press Command-Space and type Screen Recording kind:movie. Built-in recordings start with the words “Screen Recording”, and kind:movie is the Spotlight keyword Apple lists for video files.
Change the folder for future recordings
In Options, choose one of the preset locations under “Save to”, or click Other Location and pick a folder such as Movies > Screen Recordings.
Record five seconds to confirm
Make a short test recording and watch where the thumbnail’s file lands. It takes ten seconds and saves a search later.
The default: the desktop, as a .mov file
Apple’s support article on screen recording states it directly: “By default, recordings are saved to your desktop.” The file is a QuickTime movie with the .mov extension.
The file does not appear the instant you stop. With Show Floating Thumbnail on, the Mac User Guide says the thumbnail floats in the bottom-right corner for a few seconds so you can drag it into a document, mark it up, or share it “before it’s saved to the location you specified”. Swipe the thumbnail to the right to save immediately.
Clicking the thumbnail opens a window where you can trim the recording or share it, and you can drag the thumbnail straight into a document, an email, a note, or a Finder window.
How to change where screen recordings save on Mac
The setting lives in the Screenshot toolbar, not in System Settings. The Mac User Guide describes it as: below “Save to”, choose one of the preset locations or click Other Location and navigate to the folder you want.
A dedicated folder is worth two minutes. Recordings pile up fast, each one is large, and a desktop full of them is the usual reason one gets deleted by accident.
- In Finder, create the folder you want, for example Movies > Screen Recordings.
- Press Shift-Command-5.
- Click Options.
- Under “Save to”, click Other Location, select your folder, and confirm.
- Press Esc to close the toolbar, or record a short test to confirm the new location.
- The Mac User Guide adds: “Depending on where you chose to save the screenshot or recording, an app may open.” If an app opens after you stop, the recording went to that app and not to a folder.
The file name: Screen Recording [date] at [time].mov
Apple’s article gives the pattern: when saving automatically, the Mac uses the name “Screen Recording [date] at [time].mov”. The Mac User Guide says the same in other words: filenames begin with “Screen Recording” and include the date and time.
That makes two searches reliable. The first two words find every built-in recording you never renamed. The date in the name tells you which take is which without opening them. Once you rename a file, the name search stops finding it, so move finished recordings into a project folder when you rename them.
Recordings made by QuickTime Player itself behave differently. For a New Movie Recording or New Audio Recording, the QuickTime guide says the app gives recordings a placeholder name such as Untitled, and you choose File > Save to name the file and pick a location.
How to find a lost screen recording on Mac
Work down the table. The first three rows cover nearly every case.
One limit to know before you spend an hour: Apple’s documentation describes no folder of unsaved or temporary screen recordings and no recovery step for a recording that was interrupted by a crash or a shutdown. If the search below finds nothing, treat the take as gone and re-record.
| Situation | Where to look | How |
|---|---|---|
| You never changed any settings | Desktop | Finder > Desktop, sort by date |
| Someone changed the save location | The folder ticked under “Save to” | Shift-Command-5 > Options |
| You do not know the folder | Everywhere, by name | Spotlight: Screen Recording kind:movie |
| You renamed the file | Everywhere, by type | Finder search, set Kind to Movie, sort by date |
| An app opened when you stopped | Inside that app | The save location was an app, not a folder |
| You dragged the thumbnail somewhere | The document, email, or note you dropped it on | Open that item |
| You pressed Esc before clicking Record | Nowhere | Esc cancels; nothing was recorded |
Check what is inside the saved file
Two free checks tell you what you have before you send it anywhere.
In Finder, select the file and choose File > Get Info. The size is at the top, and Apple’s article on converting MOV files points to the More Info section, where the Codecs line shows H.264 or HEVC.
In QuickTime Player, open the file and choose Window > Show Movie Inspector, or press Command-I. Apple’s QuickTime guide says the inspector shows the compression format, size, and frame rate, among other details. These are the real figures for your Mac; Apple does not publish them for built-in recordings in general.
Where OBS Studio and other recorders save
A third-party recorder has its own setting, so the Screenshot toolbar’s “Save to” does not apply to it.
In OBS Studio the folder is called Recording Path and sits under Settings > Output. OBS names files by year, month, date, and time by default, so searching for “Screen Recording” will not find them; sort the Recording Path folder by date. OBS recommends the MKV format, so the file may end in .mkv.
Where Qreata keeps recordings, and what it does after a crash
Qreata does not drop files on the desktop. Every recording is a project in its Library, with a thumbnail, search, rename, a storage dashboard, and a Show in Finder command. On disk the recordings folder is ~/Movies/Qreata by default; to move it, open Settings → “Recordings folder” → “Change…”, and “Reset” returns to the default. The video you send to someone is an MP4 you export, and the export sheet has its own Show in Finder button.
The part the built-in recorder has no answer for is the interrupted take. Qreata writes a recording in 5-second chunks with a journal. If the app crashes, is force quit, or the Mac loses power, the next launch scans for unfinished recordings and rebuilds them: the Library marks the result “Recovered”, or “Interrupted” when it could not be rebuilt. What you lose is the unsealed tail, roughly the last 5 seconds.
Qreata also watches the disk while recording. It warns when about 120 seconds of estimated recording time are left, again at 30 seconds, and then stops by itself before the files are damaged. It refuses to start when there is not enough space.
Honest limits: Qreata recovers only its own recordings. It does not import video files, so it can’t bring back or open a lost QuickTime .mov. It is a paid app, $49 once for three Macs, with a full 7-day trial, for Apple Silicon Macs on macOS 14 or later.
Before you share
- You have read the checkmark under Shift-Command-5 > Options > Save to.
- Spotlight finds your recordings with Screen Recording kind:movie.
- Recordings go to a dedicated folder, not a crowded desktop.
- A five-second test recording landed where you expected.
- Finished recordings are renamed and moved into the project they belong to.
Questions about this workflow
Where do screen recordings go on a Mac?
To the desktop, unless the location was changed. Apple’s article says recordings are saved to your desktop by default, as “Screen Recording [date] at [time].mov”. The current location has a checkmark under Shift-Command-5 > Options > Save to.
How do I change where screen recordings are saved on my Mac?
Press Shift-Command-5, click Options, and under “Save to” choose a preset location or click Other Location and select a folder. Files you recorded earlier stay where they are.
Why can’t I find my screen recording on my Mac?
Usually because “Save to” points somewhere other than the desktop, or the file was renamed. Check Options > Save to, then search Spotlight for Screen Recording kind:movie. If you pressed Esc before clicking Record, nothing was recorded.
Can I recover an unsaved screen recording on a Mac?
Apple documents no way to do it. Its screen recording article and Mac User Guide describe no temporary folder and no recovery of an interrupted recording. Recorders that write in chunks can: Qreata rebuilds its own interrupted recordings at the next launch, losing roughly the last 5 seconds.
What is a Mac screen recording file called?
“Screen Recording [date] at [time].mov”. The name always begins with the words Screen Recording and includes the date and time, which is why a name search finds every recording you have not renamed.
Do QuickTime screen recordings save to the same place?
Yes on current macOS. QuickTime Player’s File > New Screen Recording opens the Screenshot toolbar, so the same “Save to” setting applies. On Macs where QuickTime Player does the recording itself, Apple says it opens the recording automatically when you stop.