Using a Better Video Format – How To Record MP4 in QuickTime

As a company, Apple loves to build walls around its ecosystem and be unique, and its proprietary QuickTime Player file format is a testament to that.

While they've done a great job creating a high-quality container format for video, audio, and subtitles, Apple's QT file format and MOV files aren't always the best option for Mac content creators and users who upload videos to various online platforms.

That's why it's often necessary to save QuickTime screen recordings as MP4 files, and that's precisely what this guide is all about. Stay with us to learn whether QuickTime can record MP4 files and how to get around Apple's restrictive file format.

Can QuickTime Record MP4?

Unfortunately, Apple's built-in media player, the QuickTime Player app, can't natively record MP4 videos. It uses Apple's proprietary QuickTime File Format (QTFF) and only exports videos as MOV files.

These files are called QuickTime movies and have the recognizable ".mov" extension. However, there is a workaround to screen recordings in MP4 with QuickTime.

How To Save a QuickTime Screen Recording as MP4

As mentioned, Mac users can't natively create QuickTime screen recordings in MP4. That's why saving QuickTime screen recordings in the MP4 format requires an additional conversion step, so let's dive into the process and see how you would do it.

Record Your Screen in QuickTime

You'd first need to create a simple screen recording with QuickTime, which will use Apple's proprietary QTFF and export your video as a MOV file. Here's how you can do that:

1. Open the Mac's Applications folder and launch the QuickTime Player app.
2. Tap the File menu and choose the New Screen Recording option.

   

3. Tap the Options button to change the app's Save To location, set a Timer, choose a Microphone, and adjust additional Settings.

   

4. Choose between Record Entire Screen and Record Selected Portion and tap the Record button at the right side of QuickTime Player's menu bar.
5. When you're ready to stop, click the Circle button at the top right in the Mac's menu bar. QuickTime Player will automatically end and open the screen recording.

   

As you can see in the name of the opened screen recording file, your new video has a .mov file extension. You can't save a QuickTime screen recording in MP4 format yet because when you head to File > Export As, your only options are 4K, 1080p, 720p, and 480p resolutions and Audio Only.

Convert the Recording Into MP4

Once you've made a QuickTime screen recording and have the MOV file ready, you can move on to the conversion part of the process. There are dozens of online and offline tools that can convert your MOV videos into MP4, but for the sake of this tutorial, we'll use an online tool - Media.io.

You can follow these steps to convert your QuickTime screen recording to MP4 with Media.io:

1. Open your browser and head to Media.io's online MOV to MP4 converter web page.
2. Tap the Convert Your Video button, and Media.io will open its online video, audio, and image converter.

   

3. Hit the Choose Files button and select your MOV video recorded by QuickTime. You can also select additional MOV files, as Media.io has batch-conversion features that let you convert multiple items simultaneously.

   

4. When ready, tap the Convert button and give Media.io's online converter time to upload, convert, and prepare the files for download. If you're converting multiple files simultaneously and don't want to wait on the web page, you can also tick the Notify me when it is finished box.

   

5. Once the web app's converter finishes, you can hit the Download button to save the converted MOV videos as MP4 files.

   

Suppose you'd like to avoid using online converters. In that case, some tremendous offline options include the free, open-source HandBrake video converter and a third-party media player - the VLC player, which is also open-source and free.

An Alternative MP4 Video Recorder to Consider - DemoCreator

While converting QuickTime screen recordings to MP4 is often effortless, it'll always take a few minutes. For a single video, that's not that big of a deal, but when you have multiple MOV files waiting to be converted to MP4 before you can upload them, it can quickly turn into a nightmare.

Moreover, conversion of any kind can hamper the quality of your video, resulting in stutters and visual glitches that can even go unnoticed before uploading a video somewhere.

Because of these drawbacks, many Mac users are interested in alternative screen recorders and tools capable of exporting MP4 videos. Fortunately, that's precisely where Wondershare DemoCreator comes in, becoming the perfect alternative to QuickTime Player and bringing various advantages with it, including the following:

• Separate and simultaneous screen, webcam, and audio recording modes;
• 4K/8K video resolution and up to 120FPS recordings;
• Various screen drawing tools to highlight key elements in your footage;
• A built-in Video Editor enriched with AI-powered tools;
• Effortlessly usable interface;
• Multiple video file format support, such as MOV, MP4, MKV, etc.

How To Use the QuickTime Alternative to Record MP4 Screen Videos

Thanks to its remarkably straightforward user interface, recording your Mac's screen as an MP4 video with DemoCreator is effortless.

1. Download, install, and open DemoCreator on your Mac and click the All-in-One Recorder option.

   

2. Enter a custom resolution in the Capture Area field or select one of the premade resolution options by clicking the dropdown menu.

   

3. If you'd like to include audio in your MP4 screen recordings, enable and adjust the app's System Audio and Microphone settings to use the correct devices.
4. You can also turn on the WebCam recording mode and adjust it to use your Mac's FaceTime HD Camera or a third-party webcam.

   

5. If everything is set to your liking, tap the red REC button or hit the OPTION + COMMAND + 2 keys to start recording your Mac's screen with DemoCreator. Use the same key combination to pause or resume.

   

6. When done, press the SHIFT + COMMAND + 2 keys to stop the recording entirely.
7. DemoCreator will now open its Video Editor, and you can trim, cut, rotate, and apply video effects, transitions, stickers, and much more.

   

8. When ready, tap the Export button in the top right, change the Format from MOV to MP4, adjust the Preset, and hit Export to save a screen recording as an MP4 file.

   

The Importance of Using MP4

There are dozens of reasons to use MP4 files instead of Apple's proprietary MOV video format. After all, MP4 is advantageous in multiple areas, including some of the following:

• Compatibility - Unlike MOV files, MP4 files can be opened and played on almost any device. Nearly all electronics, from smartphones to computers to smart TVs, support MP4 files.
• Efficiency - While MP4 is a lossy video format, its compression techniques can reduce the file size while retaining high-quality video and audio.
• Versatility - MP4 files are digital containers that can store audio, video, images, subtitles, and metadata, making them highly versatile and convenient for anything from personal videos to streaming content.

Whatever your reasoning, converting MOV files to MP4 is entirely justified. You can choose between a built-in QuickTime player paired with a conversion tool and a third-party recording and editing software that can natively record in the MP4 format.

Conclusion

Apple's QuickTime Player uses the company's proprietary QuickTime File Format and can only save screen recordings in the MOV format. However, this isn't an exceptionally versatile video format, prompting many users to ask: Can it record MP4 files?

Unfortunately, the answer to that question is no. However, you can save QuickTime screen recordings as MP4 files with a little workaround, and we've shown you how to use the integrated QuickTime Player in conjunction with a video converter.

You can also use an alternative, Wondershare DemoCreator, which natively records MP4 videos and offers much better recording features than QuickTime. At the same time, its built-in Video Editor lets you take your screen recordings to another level with its AI-powered tools.