Yes. Cap is open source: the code is public and installing it costs nothing. At most you pay for hosting if you put it on a server, often a few euros a month. Loom, on the other hand, costs €15 a month.

Do I need to code to install Cap?

No. The level is beginner and the install takes about 5 minutes with the prompt from the page: Claude does the work, you answer its questions.

How is it different from Loom?

Cap does most of what Loom does, without a subscription, and your data stays with you. The point by point comparison is on the page.

Yes. With an open source tool installed on your side, your files stay on your machine or your server. Nobody can close your account or change the price.

Free alternative

Free alternative to Loom

Loom costs €15 a month. Cap does the same job for free, in open source: you install it on your machine or a small server, and you stop paying.

Public entry price, taken from Loom’s website (loom.com). Over a year, that is €180 that stays in your pocket.

What replaces Loom

The main alternative

Cap

🟢 Beginner⏱️ ~5 min to installSave €15/mo

Cap is the open source alternative to Loom, and the project says so itself. You hit record, it captures your screen, your webcam and your mic, and you get a video to share. Two ways to work. Instant mode uploads the video while you talk, and the link is already copied when you stop: that is the Loom reflex. Studio mode records locally, in 4K if you want, then opens an editor: background, automatic zoom on your clicks, blur on sensitive areas, captions, export to a file. Nothing leaves for a server until you ask for a link. The app runs on Mac, Windows and, recently, Linux. The code is AGPL-licensed with close to 22,000 stars on GitHub, and the web part deploys on your own server with Docker Compose: your videos, your database, your storage. There is also a screenshot mode, and a command line so Claude Code can record for you.

Loucash’s verdict on Cap

8/10

If you pay for Loom to send screen videos, Cap does the same job, and the Studio mode editor is frankly a level above: automatic zoom, background, blur, captions, without opening editing software. The project is alive, commits every week, close to 22,000 stars, and you can host everything at home with Docker Compose. What stings is the model. The app you download from cap.so is free for personal use only: as soon as you record for a client or to sell a course, Cap asks for a desktop license at €25 a year. The code stays AGPL, so if you build it yourself that clause no longer applies, but let's be honest, few people will. Free share links stop at 5 minutes per video, and the AI (titles, summaries, transcription) as well as plugging your own S3 into their cloud are reserved for Cap Pro, €10 a month. On Linux, the .deb package is brand new: expect surprises. It is here to replace Loom, not Supademo: Cap makes videos, not clickable demos where a visitor walks through your product. And if you only want to record your screen without sharing or editing, your system's native tool or OBS is enough.

Who it is for: You pay for Loom, or keep hitting its 5-minute wall on the free plan, and you want the same gesture with videos that stay with you.

See the full page →See the tool ↗

Cap versus Loom: the match

Price
Cap
€0 for personal use, €25/year for business use
Loom
€15 per person per month
Recording length
Cap
No limit locally (Studio mode)
Loom
5 minutes on free, unlimited on paid
Where your videos go
Cap
Your machine, your server or your S3
Loom
Their servers

Loom ↗

VS	Cap	Loom ↗
Price	€0 for personal use, €25/year for business use	€15 per person per month
Recording length	No limit locally (Studio mode)	5 minutes on free, unlimited on paid
Where your videos go	Your machine, your server or your S3	Their servers
Editing	Auto zoom, background, blur, captions, included	Basic at €15, advanced with AI at €21
Platforms	Mac, Windows, Linux (brand new .deb)	Mac, Windows, mobile, Chrome extension
Code	AGPL, to read, fork or build	Closed

The prompt that installs Cap

Paste this prompt into Claude: it checks the repository, asks you its questions and installs the tool step by step.

Installe Cap sur ma machine (l'enregistreur d'écran open source, alternative à Loom, repo GitHub CapSoftware/Cap) : télécharge la dernière version pour mon système depuis cap.so/download ou depuis les releases du repo, installe-la, puis guide-moi pour autoriser l'enregistrement de l'écran et du son système, le micro et la caméra. Si l'app demande de se connecter, explique-moi ce que ça implique et laisse-moi faire cette partie. Ensuite, règle l'app pour que mes vidéos restent sur ma machine par défaut : mode Studio, un dossier d'enregistrement local que je choisis, et aucun partage en ligne tant que je ne le demande pas. En option, seulement si je te le dis : branche mon propre stockage S3 compatible (Cloudflare R2, MinIO ou autre) dans les réglages, sans jamais me demander de coller mes clés dans le chat, ou déploie la partie web sur mon serveur avec Docker Compose depuis le repo CapSoftware/Cap, en changeant les secrets par défaut, puis relie l'app à cette adresse. Vérifie avec un court enregistrement test que la vidéo se lit et que le fichier est bien dans mon dossier. Explique chaque étape simplement, je débute.

Review the GitHub repository and check whether it is safe to install given my machine and my infrastructure. Ask me as many questions as possible, using widgets, to clarify my request and be as precise as you can.

Frequently asked questions

Is Cap really free?: Yes. Cap is open source: the code is public and installing it costs nothing. At most you pay for hosting if you put it on a server, often a few euros a month. Loom, on the other hand, costs €15 a month.
Do I need to code to install Cap?: No. The level is beginner and the install takes about 5 minutes with the prompt from the page: Claude does the work, you answer its questions.
How is it different from Loom?: Cap does most of what Loom does, without a subscription, and your data stays with you. The point by point comparison is on the page.
Do I own my data?: Yes. With an open source tool installed on your side, your files stay on your machine or your server. Nobody can close your account or change the price.