A Cap alternative: your own storage, without running servers
Cap is an open-source screen recorder for Mac, Windows and Linux, with a good editor. You can self-host it, or pay for Cap Pro to use cloud sharing and your own S3 bucket.
Showthrough starts from the same idea, that you should own your recordings, and makes it one click. It sets up storage in your own Cloudflare account for you, with no servers to run.
Cap prices checked on 10 November 2026 from Cap’s pricing page. Prices change; check there before you buy.
Cap vs Showthrough at a glance
| Cap | Showthrough | |
|---|---|---|
| Open source | Yes, on GitHub | No |
| Runs on | Mac, Windows and Linux desktop app | Chrome on Mac, Windows, Linux and ChromeOS |
| Your own storage | Self-host, or your S3 bucket on Cap Pro | Your Cloudflare, set up in one click |
| How you pay for sharing | Per user: Cap Pro subscription | One payment ($29) |
| Share link limits | 25 a month, 5 minutes each on Free | None |
| Editor | Yes, Studio Mode | Coming soon |
| AI features | On Cap Pro | Coming soon |
Cap pricing
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Free | Personal use only. 25 shareable links a month, up to 5 minutes each. |
| Desktop License | $29 per year or $58 one-time, per user | Commercial use of the desktop app. Cloud sharing and custom storage are not included. |
| Cap Pro | $12 per user per month, or $8.16 billed annually | Cloud sharing, AI features, your own S3 bucket |
Showthrough is one payment, currently $29. The only other cost is Cloudflare storage past its free 10 GB, billed by Cloudflare at about $0.015 per GB a month. Viewing is always free. See pricing.
Where Cap is better
- Cap is open source. You can read the code and run the whole thing yourself.
- It is a desktop app with a full editor and 4K export.
- Its Desktop License is a one-time purchase if you only need local recordings.
Where Showthrough is better
- Owning your videos takes one click: Showthrough creates the storage, video app and database inside your own Cloudflare account. No servers to run or update.
- Sharing isn't billed per user per month. One payment covers sharing too.
- Nothing to install beyond a Chrome extension, so it works on Chromebooks.
Which one should you pick?
Pick Cap if open source matters to you, you want a desktop editor, or you're happy to self-host.
Pick Showthrough if you want your videos in your own cloud without running anything, and one price for sharing.
Questions about Cap and Showthrough
Is Showthrough open source?
No. Showthrough isn't open source, but your videos, titles, comments and views live in your own Cloudflare account, not on our servers. Connecting it is one click; we handle the rest.
Does Cap have a lifetime licence?
Cap sells a Desktop License for $58 one-time per user. It covers commercial use of the desktop app; cloud sharing and custom storage need Cap Pro, a monthly or yearly plan.
What does Showthrough set up in my Cloudflare?
Private R2 storage for videos, a small video Worker, and a D1 database. You don't set any of it up yourself: it's one click to sign in to Cloudflare and press Allow, and we handle the rest in about 30 seconds.
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