Loom lets you record your screen and face, share a link, and let the other person watch when it suits them. It is a good way to explain a task, give feedback or hand over work. If Loom's free plan is too small, or the paid plan costs more than you want, there are several alternatives, and some are already in tools you use.
All facts below come from each vendor's own pages, as of October 2026. Prices are in US dollars.
What Loom offers today
From the Loom pricing page:
- Starter (free): 25 videos per person, screen recordings of up to 5 minutes, video quality up to 720p, and up to 50 members.
- Business: $18 per user a month billed monthly. Unlimited videos and recording time, basic editing, no Loom branding, uploads and downloads.
- Business + AI: $24 per user a month billed monthly. Adds AI editing, auto summaries and meeting notes.
Loom says paying yearly saves up to 17%.
The short version
- Slack clips: your team already works in Slack and videos are short.
- Zoom Clips: you already use Zoom and want a Loom-style library.
- Vidyard: you send a few videos a month to clients or prospects.
- Built-in recorders on Mac or Windows: you want something free with no new account.
- OBS Studio: you want full control and do not mind some setup.
Slack clips
Slack says all its plans, including free, offer unlimited use of audio and video clips (Slack clips). Clips can be up to five minutes long. You can share your screen, turn your camera on or off and blur your background. Viewers can change the speed, turn on captions or read the transcript.
Suits you if your team already talks in Slack. Less of a fit if you send videos to clients outside Slack, or need videos longer than five minutes.
Zoom Clips
From the Zoom Clips pricing page:
- Clips Basic: included with the free Zoom Workplace Basic plan. Up to 5 recordings per person, a 3-minute limit per screen recording, and video up to 720p.
- Clips Plus: $6.99 per user a month billed monthly, or $5.83 billed yearly. Unlimited recordings and length, video up to 4K, transcripts and captions.
Clips Plus is also included in Zoom's paid Workplace plans.
Suits you if you already pay for Zoom, or want a low-cost paid option. Less of a fit if you only need the free plan, since 5 recordings run out fast.
Vidyard
Vidyard's free plan allows 5 recorded videos a month, each up to 30 minutes long (Vidyard Free limits). Your library has no limit, and old videos do not expire. Deleted videos still count toward your monthly limit.
Suits you if you send a handful of longer videos to clients each month. Less of a fit if you record many quick updates for your team.
Built-in screen recorders
You may not need a new tool at all.
- Mac: press Shift, Command and 5 to open the Screenshot tools, then choose to record the whole screen, a window or part of it (Apple Support).
- Windows: open Snipping Tool and choose Record, or press the Windows key, Shift and R (Microsoft Support).
You then share the file through your usual cloud drive. There are no view stats, comments or instant links, but there are no limits or new accounts either.
Suits you if you send a few videos and already share files through a drive. Less of a fit if you want to see who watched.
OBS Studio
OBS Studio describes itself as free and open source software for video recording and live streaming. It runs on Windows, macOS and Linux (OBS Studio). It is built for both recording and live streaming, so there are more settings to learn than in a one-click recorder.
Suits you if you record training videos or courses and want full control. Less of a fit if you want to click one button and share a link.
How to choose
- Count how many videos you record in a month and how long they usually run.
- Note who watches them: your team, clients, or both.
- Start with a tool you already have, such as Slack, Zoom or your computer's own recorder.
- Record the same short walkthrough in two tools and send it to a colleague.
- Upgrade only when you hit a real limit, such as video length or count.
Short videos work best for tasks you explain more than once. Record the explanation once, then link it from your SOP template. It also helps when you delegate tasks or manage a remote team, since people can watch at their own pace.