Best Clipping Software for PC in 2026: 10 Tools Compared

ShadowPlay, part of the NVIDIA app and GeForce Experience, remains the default answer for many PC gamers with NVIDIA cards. Instant Replay keeps a rolling buffer of gameplay, so you press a hotkey after a great play and save the last minutes without recording the whole session. GPU encoding keeps the performance cost low, often under 5 percent in published comparisons.

The tool is free with a supported GPU, which makes it hard to beat on value. The limits are hardware and editing. You need NVIDIA hardware, and you will likely trim clips in another editor if you want captions, effects, or vertical formats. For pure capture with minimal FPS loss, ShadowPlay is still the benchmark.

Medal.tv is built around one idea: press a key, get a clip, share it fast. The desktop app runs in the background, saves instant replays, and can auto-clip kills, aces, and clutch plays in supported titles. A built-in editor lets you trim, add text, and export, and one-click links make Discord, TikTok, and Reddit sharing simple.

Medal is free to start, with paid plans listed from $6.99 per month for ad-free use and $9.99 per month for full Premium in third-party comparisons. Free downloads have been listed with a watermark and a 720p cap in some comparisons, so check the current free terms if you post clips often. For casual and social gamers, Medal offers the best mix of speed and sharing.

OBS Studio is not a clipper out of the box, but its Replay Buffer turns it into one. You set a buffer length, OBS keeps the recent gameplay in memory, and a hotkey saves that buffer to disk. That gives you full control over bitrate, codec, resolution, and audio tracks, including separate game, mic, and Discord tracks with routing.

OBS is free and open source, with no watermark and no subscription, and it also handles full streaming to Twitch, YouTube, and Kick. The catch is setup. You must configure scenes, encoding, and the buffer yourself, and default settings can use more CPU than GPU tools. Power users who want control will love it. Casual gamers who want one-click clips should start with Medal or ShadowPlay.

Xbox Game Bar is already on most Windows gaming PCs, which makes it the easiest clipper to try. Press Windows plus Alt plus G to record the last moments, or Windows plus G to open the full overlay with capture, audio, and performance widgets. There is no download, no subscription, and no new account to create.

The tool suits casual players who clip occasionally and do not want another app running. It does not auto-detect kills or wins, and its editor only covers basic trimming. If you clip a few times a week and share raw highlights, Game Bar is enough. If you clip every match, Medal or ShadowPlay will save more time.

SteelSeries Moments, part of SteelSeries GG, captures gameplay in the background and auto-clips key moments in supported titles, with a focus on FPS and MOBA games. You can also clip manually with a hotkey, trim the result, and share it without leaving the app. The tool is free, and it runs with low overhead on most gaming PCs.

The main limit is game coverage. If your main game is not on the supported list, you will rely on manual clipping, which works fine but loses the auto-highlight advantage. Moments is a good pick if you already use SteelSeries gear or GG software, and you play supported competitive titles most of the time.

Outplayed, by Overwolf, watches supported games for in-game events and saves those moments automatically. Instead of scrubbing a full match, you get a highlight reel of kills, wins, and key plays, ready to trim and share. That saves a lot of time for players who forget to press a hotkey in the middle of a fight.

The core app is free, with some premium features on Overwolf plans. The catch is the platform. Outplayed runs through Overwolf, which some players prefer to avoid, and event detection depends on title support. If your game is supported and you like automatic reels, Outplayed is one of the most hands-off options on PC.

Eklipse works differently from local clippers. It processes your stream VOD in the cloud after you broadcast, finds highlights with AI, and cuts vertical clips with captions for TikTok, Shorts, and Reels. Because processing happens in the cloud, it has no impact on your in-game FPS, which matters for streamers pushing high refresh rates.

Pricing has changed over time. Recent 2026 listings put Premium at $24.99 per month on the web, $112.99 every six months, or $179.99 per year, and note that the free plan shows highlight previews but does not export or download clips. That makes Eklipse a paid tool in practice for creators who need exports. For streamers who want highlights without local recording, it is still a strong pick.

AMD Software Adrenalin, formerly Radeon ReLive, is the AMD equivalent of ShadowPlay. It offers Instant Replay, recording, and streaming tools inside the driver software, with GPU encoding that keeps performance impact low. If you own an AMD card, you already have a capable clipper without installing another app.

The tool covers manual and instant replay capture well, but editing is basic, and some advanced features depend on your card and driver version. For AMD owners who want clean clips with minimal setup, Adrenalin is the logical first try. For auto highlights and social editing, pair it with Medal or Eklipse.

Bandicam is a long-running screen recorder that many PC gamers use for high frame rate capture. It records gameplay, webcam, and audio with low overhead, and it handles long sessions well. That makes it useful for tutorials, full matches, and creators who want clean source footage to edit later.

Bandicam is not a clipper in the instant replay sense. You record manually, then cut highlights in an editor, so it suits creators who plan their footage rather than players who want auto clips. The free version is limited, and the full version requires a license, so check the current price on the vendor site. For raw recording quality, Bandicam remains a reliable option.

EaseUS RecExperts combines recording and editing in one app, which appeals to creators who want to capture and polish clips without switching tools. You can record gameplay or a screen region, add webcam and audio, then trim, cut, and export from the same interface. That workflow is simpler than OBS plus a separate editor.

The trade-off is automation. RecExperts does not auto-detect game events, so you record manually or with a hotkey, then find highlights yourself. The free tier is limited, and full use requires a paid plan, so check current pricing on the vendor site. For tutorial makers and casual creators who value editing over auto clips, it is a practical pick.