How to send a screen recording in Slack
Four ways to send a screen recording in Slack from a Mac: Slack clips, drag in a file, paste the video with ⌘V, or a link. Limits and tips for each.
A ten-second screen recording often explains a bug or a change better than three paragraphs. Slack gives you several ways to send one, and they behave differently: some cap the length, some need another account, some send the file itself. Here are four, from built-in to polished, with the limits of each.
1. Record a clip inside Slack
Slack has its own recorder. In the message box, open the clip option, choose video, and share a window or your screen before or after you start. According to Slack's help center, clips:
- can be up to five minutes long,
- are available on all Slack plans,
- get captions, and an optional transcript.
Use it for: quick replies in a thread, when nothing needs to look polished. Limits: five minutes, no editing beyond the basics, and the clip only lives in Slack.
2. Record with ⇧⌘5 and drag the file in
Press ⇧⌘5 on your Mac, record the screen or a part of it, and stop from the menu bar. The recording is saved as a .mov file (on the desktop by default). Drag it into the Slack message field. Slack accepts files up to 1 GB and up to 10 files at once when you drag and drop (Add files to Slack).
Use it for: longer recordings, for free, with nothing to install. Limits: raw full-resolution recordings get large quickly, there's no camera bubble, and small text can be hard to read in the preview.
3. Paste the video with ⌘V (Dolly Quick share)
This is the fastest way if you record often. Dolly, our Mac screen recorder, has Quick share: when you press Stop, it renders a 1080p, 30 fps MP4 sized for the web and puts it on your clipboard.
- In Dolly's Settings, set After recording to Quick share, or choose Stop and Quick share from the stop menu on the recording pill.
- Press ⇧⌘2, pick a display, window or area, and record.
- Press Stop. A small card in the corner shows the progress.
- Click into Slack and press ⌘V. The video itself is pasted into the message; add a line of text and send.
Because Dolly zooms in on your clicks and smooths your cursor while it renders, the part you're talking about is large enough to read in Slack's player. From the card you can also drag the file somewhere else, open it in the editor to trim it, show it in Finder, or use the macOS share sheet.
Use it for: everyday updates, bug reports and walkthroughs, with no time limit, even on the free plan. Limits: Dolly is Mac only (Apple silicon), and it sends a file, not a link: there are no view counts and no comments on the video itself. Free exports carry a small "Made with Dolly" logo in the corner; Pro removes it.
4. Send a link (Loom, Cap or a drive)
Link-based tools upload the recording and give you a URL to paste. Slack shows a preview, and the video streams from the tool's site.
- Loom: free Starter recordings stop at 5 minutes, with 25 videos per person at up to 720p and a Loom watermark; Business is $18 per user per month (loom.com/pricing, checked 14 October 2026). You get view counts, comments and reactions.
- Cap: free shareable links of up to 5 minutes, unlimited cloud sharing on Cap Pro (cap.so/pricing).
- A drive link: upload the file to Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive and share it with the channel.
Use it for: viewers outside your workspace, or when you need to know who watched.
Which one to use
| Max length | Extra account | Looks polished | Who watched | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slack clip | 5 min | No | No | No |
| ⇧⌘5 + drag | Up to 1 GB file | No | No | No |
| Dolly Quick share | No limit (1 GB file in Slack) | No | Yes | No |
| Loom link | 5 min free, unlimited paid | Yes | No | Yes |
Tips for screen recordings in Slack
- Write the point above the video. "Fixed: export no longer hangs at 99%. 40-second demo below." Many people read the text and only play the video if they need to.
- Record a window, not your whole 5K display. It keeps text legible and the file small.
- Keep it short. Under a minute is ideal in a thread; split long topics.
- Hide private things. Close other tabs and notifications before you record. In Dolly you can blur a region afterwards.
Want to try the paste-the-video way? Dolly is free for Mac, with no time limit. For a wider view on doing async work without links, see async video messages without Loom.
Sources
- Record audio and video clips in Slack, Slack help center
- Add files to Slack, Slack help center
- Loom pricing, checked 14 October 2026
- Cap pricing, checked 14 October 2026
- Loom Free limits (5 minutes per video, 25 videos, 720p, Loom watermark) from Layerpath, checked 7 September 2026
