.mp4
Plays everywhere
Fragmented MP4 opens on any phone, browser or editor, and is recoverable after a crash.
- Upload straight to YouTube
- Safe if the recording stops suddenly
Record your show on your Mac, safe even if it crashes
Vidyst records the wide and the tall version of your show at the same time, in full quality, with or without going live. Files are saved as you go, so a crash or a flat battery doesn't cost you the take.
Included in every plan · 14-day free trial · Apple silicon, macOS 14.2+
Maya MakesEpisode 12 · Synth basics
Maya Makes
0:00:00Ready to record
MOV · Best for Final Cut and Premiere. Recoverable after a crash.
File types
MP4, MOV or MKV. All three survive a crash.
Vidyst writes each file in small pieces as it records, so there's no long “finishing” step that a crash can interrupt.
.mov
Best for editing
Edit-friendly MOV for Final Cut Pro and Premiere, written in 2-second pieces so it survives a crash too.
- Drops straight into Final Cut
- Recoverable after a crash
.mkv
The most crash-proof
MKV stays playable even if recording stops abruptly. Remux it to MP4 when you edit.
- Best for long, unattended shows
- In every plan
How it works
Pick a canvas, press Record
Choose what to record
Vidyst records what the canvas tabs show: Horizontal, Vertical or Both. Both gives you two separate files, one for YouTube and one for Shorts, TikTok and Reels.
HorizontalVerticalBothRecord, or let it start itself
Press Record any time, live or not. Or turn on Starts recording whenever you go live and never forget again. Pause and resume with a hotkey.
Starts recording whenever you go liveFind it by name
Files land in your folder named by date and time. Add the show, layout or canvas to the name if you like. Your chat is saved next to it as a text file.
07-Nov-2026-08-14-32-PM-horizontal.mov
07-Nov-2026-08-14-32-PM-vertical.mov
chat · 07-Nov-2026.txt
Quality
Your recording isn't limited by your internet
Your stream has to fit your upload speed. Your recording doesn't. Vidyst records with its own settings, at a much higher bitrate, on the Mac's media engine.
Great · the default. 50 Mbps HEVC at 4K60, scaled to your canvas size and frame rate.
HorizontalHEVC
18 Mbpsabout 8.1 GB an hour
VerticalH.264
27 Mbpsabout 12.2 GB an hour
1080p canvases at 60 fps. The horizontal file uses HEVC to stay small; the vertical one uses H.264 so every phone and app can open it.
Never lose a take
Things go wrong. Your recording keeps going.
- Your Mac crashes or loses powerThe file is already on disk and plays up to that moment
- Your Mac goes to sleepRecording pauses and picks up again when it wakes
- The hardware encoder stops respondingVidyst restarts it and carries on from the next keyframe
- You end the stream or a destination dropsThe recording keeps going until you stop it
- One recording folder failsYour other locations keep recording
- Your drive is filling upYou get a warning when under 30 minutes of space is left
- You quit Vidyst mid-recordingRecordings are always finished before Vidyst quits
- You record for hoursNo display sleep or screen saver while recording
The details
Small things that save editing time
Pause and resume
Take a break without ending up with two files. Record and pause each have their own hotkey.
Split into parts
Start a new file every 15, 30 or 60 minutes with no gap between parts. Easier to upload and back up.
Record to two drives
Add an external drive as a second location for an instant backup. See the space and hours left for each.
File names that make sense
Build the name from the date, time, show, layout and canvas, in the order you choose.
Chat saved with it
A .txt of the whole chat is saved next to your recording, ready for show notes.
Runs on the media engine
Encoding uses Apple silicon’s media engine, so recording in high quality doesn’t slow your show down.
Plans
Recording is in every plan
Basic
$10 a month
Record both canvases in MP4, MOV or MKV, with dual canvas, multistreaming to 2 destinations and 2 guests.
Try free for 14 daysCreator
$35 a month
Everything in Basic plus 7 destinations and 10 guests.
Try free for 14 daysFAQ
Recording questions
Can I record without going live?
Yes. Press Record any time to record your show on your Mac, whether or not you are streaming. You can also have recording start by itself whenever you go live.
Can I record the horizontal and vertical versions at the same time?
Yes. Pick the Both tab and Vidyst records two separate files at once: a 16:9 one for YouTube and a 9:16 one for Shorts, TikTok and Reels. The canvas name is added to each file name to keep them apart.
What happens to my recording if my Mac crashes?
MP4, MOV and MKV recordings are written in small pieces as you go, so the file on disk stays playable up to the moment it stopped. There is nothing to repair.
Which file type should I use?
MP4 plays everywhere. MOV is best for Final Cut Pro and Premiere. MKV is the most crash-proof; remux it to MP4 when you edit. All three are in every plan.
Is the recording better quality than my stream?
Yes. Recording keeps its own settings and is not limited by your upload speed, so it can use a much higher bitrate than your stream. Choose Good, Great or your own codec and bitrate.
Where are my recordings saved?
In the folder you choose in Settings › Recording. You can add more than one location, such as an external drive, and Vidyst shows how many hours of space are left.
Does my recording stop when my stream ends?
No. If you end the stream or a destination drops, the recording keeps going until you stop it.