How to record a Zoom meeting on a Mac

Option 1: Zoom's own recorder

Zoom's Record button saves the meeting to your Mac. It works on the free plan too, in the Zoom desktop app, but not on iPhone or iPad.

By default only the host can use it. Everyone in the meeting is told, and people who join while it records are asked to stay or leave.

• If you're the host: click Record in the meeting controls, then Record on this Computer. The file lands in Documents/Zoom on your Mac when the meeting ends.
• If you're a participant: ask the host. They open Participants, click More next to your name and choose Allow Record. They can also make you an alternative host.
• Cloud recording saves to Zoom's servers instead. It needs a paid plan, and only hosts and co-hosts can start it.

Good for: meetings you host, when you want the video. Not good for: someone else's meeting when the host says no.

Recording when you're not the host

Zoom's own tools always need the host's permission. Recording on your own Mac doesn't go through Zoom, so it doesn't need it, but the recording laws where everyone is still apply. See the note on telling people below.

Two ways work without the host: the macOS screenshot tool, for sound from macOS 27, and a recorder app. Neither joins the meeting or shows up in the participant list.

Option 2: macOS itself

From macOS 27, the screenshot tool can record the other people's voices. Press Shift-Command-5, choose Record, open Options and pick Include System Audio. On macOS 26 and earlier it records only your microphone, so you'd hear just your side.

You get a video file of your screen with sound. There's no transcript, no summary and no search.

Option 3: a recorder app on your Mac

A recorder app captures what your Mac plays and what your microphone hears, with the system audio permission macOS asks for. It works in Zoom whether or not you're the host, and nothing joins the meeting.

Parrot is one of these. It's free and open source, transcribes on your Mac while you talk, and writes a report when you hang up. When Zoom starts using the microphone, Parrot asks whether to record. Here's how to set it up:

1. 1

   Download Parrot and pick a model

   Open the DMG, drag Parrot to Applications, and choose a Whisper model on first launch. It downloads once and runs on your Mac from then on.

2. 2

   Allow two permissions

   System audio for the other side and microphone for yours. The welcome tour opens the right settings panes. On macOS 14 the system audio permission is called Screen Recording, but Parrot records sound only.

3. 3

   Hit record when the call starts

   Click record or press Command-R. The transcript appears as people talk, and the report is ready when you stop.

Other apps work this way too, such as Granola, Meetily and Anarlog. See how they compare.

Compare meeting recorders

Three ways to record Zoom on a Mac

Tell people you're recording

The law depends on where everyone is. In the US, federal law allows a recording if one person on the call agrees, but California and about ten other states need everyone's consent. In the UK and EU, data protection law expects you to tell people when you record for work.

This isn't legal advice. The simple habit that covers you almost everywhere: say at the start that you're recording, and why.

Questions

Can I record a Zoom meeting if I'm not the host?

With Zoom's own Record button, only if the host allows you. With a recorder app like Parrot, or the macOS 27 screenshot tool, yes, because they record on your Mac without going through Zoom. Tell the others you're recording.

Will Zoom tell people I'm recording?

Zoom's own recorder always does. A recorder app on your Mac sends no notice, which is why you should say it yourself.

Where does Zoom save recordings on a Mac?

Recordings to your computer go to the Zoom folder in Documents (/Users/your name/Documents/Zoom) when the meeting ends. Cloud recordings stay in your Zoom account online.

Can I record Zoom on the free plan?

Yes. Recording to your computer works on the free plan in the Zoom desktop app. Cloud recording and transcripts need a paid plan.

More recording guides

• How to record a meeting on a Mac without a botThree ways to record a Zoom, Google Meet or Teams call on a Mac with no bot in the meeting: the meeting app's own recorder, macOS itself, or a recorder app.
• How to record a Google Meet call on a MacGoogle Meet records only on some paid plans, for the host or people they allow. Three ways to record a Meet call on a Mac, including on a free Gmail account.
• How to record a Microsoft Teams meeting on a MacTeams records only with a Microsoft 365 licence, and guests can't. Three ways to record a Teams meeting on a Mac, including as a guest or on free Teams.