Short answer: Cap is a sharing-first recorder, record, upload, send a link, like an open-source Loom. Girato is a production-first recorder, record, auto-edit into a cinematic clip, export a file. Same price, genuinely different jobs. Plenty of people could justify both.
Where they're similar
- Both record locally and respect your footage, a rarity in a category full of cloud-only tools.
- Both have real free tiers (Cap's is for personal use only) and the same $12/mo Pro price, about $8/mo billed yearly.
- Both run on Mac and Windows, and both zoom in on your clicks automatically.
Where they differ
| Girato | Cap | |
|---|---|---|
| Primary job | Cinematic production (demos, tutorials, social clips) | Instant sharing (async updates, links) |
| Auto-zoom on clicks | Yes, in the desktop apps (by hand in the browser) | Yes, on every click |
| Cinematic 3D tilt on zooms | Yes, signature feature | Not listed on its site |
| Typing sound + animation from keystrokes | Yes | Not listed on its site |
| Backgrounds / stage / aspect reframing | 26 backdrops · 16:9, 9:16, 1:1, 4:5 | Wallpaper, gradient or colour, with padding, corners and shadow |
| Cloud storage & shareable links | No, deliberately local-only | Yes, its core Pro feature |
| Runs in the browser (no install) | Yes, full editor | Desktop apps, plus a Chrome extension |
| Free tier | Full editor, 1080p, commercial use allowed; badge after 3 clean exports a month | Personal use only; 4K60, share links up to 5 min |
| Lifetime option | $99 once | $58 once or $29 a year (Desktop License) |
Decided?Start free in your browser or get lifetime, $99 once
Cap details from cap.so, checked 29 Oct 2026.
Choose Cap if…
Your bottleneck is distribution: you record quick updates for teammates and want a link in the clipboard ten seconds later. Cap is excellent at that job, and its open-source angle is genuinely great.
Choose Girato if…
Your bottleneck is polish: the recording is easy, but making it look like a produced video, zooms that follow the cursor, click and typing effects, a proper backdrop, vertical exports for social, normally costs an hour in an editor. Girato does that part automatically, exports a file you own, and never uploads anything.
- Want cinematic output and hosted links?
- Some teams use a producer (Girato) for the video.
- Then they paste the MP4 into their existing sharing tool.
- The formats are standard.
- Nothing locks you in either direction.
Try the whole Girato pipeline in your browser first, no download, no card, and you'll know within five minutes which job you actually needed solved.
Frequently asked questions
Is Cap or Girato better for product demos?
- Girato, for a polished demo.
- It builds zooms from your real clicks.
- It adds click and typing effects and a backdrop.
- It exports a file you own.
- Cap is better at quick shareable links for teammates.
How much do Cap and Girato cost?
- Both Pro plans are $12 a month.
- Billed yearly: Girato Pro $8 a month, Cap Pro $8.16.
- Cap also sells a Desktop License: $29 a year or $58 once.
- Girato's lifetime licence is $99 once.
- Prices checked on each vendor's page on 29 Oct 2026.
Do both run on Windows?
- Yes, both do.
- Cap has apps for macOS, Windows and Linux.
- Girato runs on Windows and macOS.
- Girato also runs in the browser with no install.
See it on your screen
- Record and edit in your browser, nothing to install
- Desktop apps zoom on every click
- Free to start, no time limit