Best Clipping Software for PC in 2026: 8 Tools Compared

Outplayed, from Overwolf, automatically captures highlights for supported games, such as kills, wins and key moments, without you pressing a button during play. It also offers instant replay and manual clipping, plus editing tools to trim clips and share them to social platforms or Discord. That automation is why Outplayed is popular with competitive players who cannot pause to record.

Outplayed runs on the Overwolf platform, which some users dislike, and performance impact varies by game and hardware. Game support also varies, so check that your main games are supported before relying on automatic highlights, but for supported titles, Outplayed saves the most effort.

Medal makes it easy to clip, edit and share gaming moments, with a social feed where you can follow friends and creators and discover clips. Its instant replay and manual recording work across many games, and its editor lets you trim, add text and share to TikTok, YouTube and Discord quickly. That sharing focus suits creators who post clips daily.

Free storage and clip length limits apply, with Premium needed for longer clips, higher quality and more storage, so heavy creators should check Premium pricing. Performance impact is generally low, but varies by hardware, so test Medal with your main game before committing to it as your primary clipper.

OBS Studio is a free, open source recording and streaming tool that many gamers use for manual clipping and full session recording. It offers high quality recording, multiple sources, scenes and filters, with no watermarks, storage limits or subscription. Its replay buffer feature can save the last seconds or minutes after a great play, if configured in advance.

OBS does not automatically detect highlights, so you must press a hotkey or use the replay buffer manually, and initial setup takes longer than Outplayed or Medal. For users who want free, unlimited, high quality recording and are willing to learn the settings, OBS Studio is the most powerful and flexible option.

Nvidia ShadowPlay, now part of GeForce Experience and the Nvidia app, uses your Nvidia GPU hardware to record with low performance impact. Its Instant Replay buffer saves the last minutes of gameplay after a great moment, while Highlights automatically captures key events in supported games. That hardware acceleration makes ShadowPlay efficient and smooth for Nvidia owners.

It only works with Nvidia GPUs, so AMD and Intel GPU owners need another tool, and GeForce Experience or the Nvidia app is required. Highlight support varies by game, so check your titles, but for Nvidia owners who want free, low impact clipping, ShadowPlay is an excellent built in choice.

AMD ReLive, built into AMD Software, offers instant replay, recording and streaming using AMD GPU hardware, with low performance impact similar to ShadowPlay. It suits AMD GPU owners who want a free, built in clipping tool without installing a third party app, and it integrates with AMD's driver settings and performance tools. That integration keeps setup simple for AMD users.

ReLive only works with AMD GPUs, and its interface feels less polished than Nvidia's app or Medal's editor. Game support and highlight detection vary, so test ReLive with your main games, but for AMD owners, it is the most efficient free clipping option.

SteelSeries Moments, part of SteelSeries GG software, offers free clipping with automatic capture for supported games and instant replay for manual saves. Its interface is simple, which suits casual players who want to save and share highlights without learning OBS or managing a complex editor. Clips can be shared to social platforms and Discord from the app.

SteelSeries GG is required, which adds software even if you do not own SteelSeries hardware, and game support is more limited than Outplayed's. Editing tools are basic compared with Medal, so creators who edit heavily should use another editor, but for casual clipping, Moments is easy and free.

Xbox Game Bar is built into Windows 10 and 11, so every PC gamer already has a clipping tool without installing anything. Pressing Windows plus G opens the overlay, where you can record, capture screenshots, check performance widgets and save the last 30 seconds with a hotkey, depending on settings. That built in convenience makes Game Bar the easiest clipping option to try first.

Performance, quality and game compatibility vary, with some games and fullscreen modes working better than others, and editing tools are minimal. For casual clips and quick captures, Game Bar is fine, but serious creators should use Outplayed, Medal or OBS for better quality and editing.

Streamlabs is built on OBS and adds easy overlays, alerts, chat and widgets for streamers, plus recording and clipping for highlights. That combination suits creators who stream on Twitch or YouTube and want to clip highlights from streams without switching tools. Its interface is more beginner friendly than OBS Studio, with themes and widgets that are quick to set up.

Streamlabs is heavier than OBS Studio and can impact game performance more, especially on lower end hardware, and some advanced features need a Prime subscription. If you stream regularly, Streamlabs is a convenient all in one tool, but if you only clip, Outplayed or Medal will be lighter.