How to Migrate From Loom to a Local-First Screen Recorder

Loom's model of recording to the cloud and sharing a link in seconds revolutionized quick communication. However, as Atlassian restricts free plans and raises subscription prices, creators are experiencing subscription fatigue.

Paying $180/year per user just to record and download videos has led many teams to migrate to local-first alternatives.

If you are ready to make the switch, here is how to migrate your recordings and adapt your sharing workflow without losing efficiency.

Step 1: Export Your Existing Loom Library

Before canceling your Loom subscription, you must back up your video library.

If you are on a paid plan:

1. Go to your Loom Library.
2. Select the videos you want to keep.
3. Click the download icon to save them as MP4 files.

If you are stuck on the free plan and cannot download files natively, you can use our manual recovery guide to extract your MP4 links: How to Download a Loom Video for Free.

Step 2: Set Up Local Storage & Organization

Cloud recording tools handle file organization for you. When moving to a local workflow, having a dedicated folder structure is essential:

• Create a primary folder named ~/Movies/Screencasts/.
• Sub-divide this by project, client, or date.
• ScreenKite automatically saves files with clean, timestamped filenames, making them easy to locate via Spotlight or Finder.

Step 3: Replicate the "One-Click Share" Workflow

The primary reason people stick with Loom is the instant sharing link. You can replicate this easily using cloud drives you already pay for (Google Drive, Dropbox, or iCloud Drive):

1. Configure your cloud drive application to sync your screen recording folder.
2. In Finder, right-click the newly recorded MP4 file.
3. Select Copy Share Link from Google Drive or Dropbox.
4. Paste the link into Slack or email.

This workflow takes the same amount of time as copying a Loom link, but keeps your files stored in your secure, private cloud storage instead of a third-party server.

Why Local-First Wins in the Long Run

Migrating to a local-first model gives you complete control over your video content. There are no monthly limits on video counts, no resolution caps, and no cloud processing queues. Your videos are stored securely on your hard drive, allowing you to edit them instantly and share them on your terms.