How to Use Bandicam

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Last Updated: August 10, 2021

Do you want to share your gaming prowess with the rest of the world, or record a tutorial on how to use your favorite program? Bandicam is a screen recording program that allows you to easily record full screen games or any part of your desktop with minimal impact on your system. You can use Bandicam to show off your skills or help others learn a difficult program. See Step 1 below to learn how to install, configure, and record with Bandicam.

Part 1

Part 1 of 6:

Installing Bandicam

1
Download the Bandicam setup file. Bandicam can be downloaded for free from the Bandicam website. Bandicam is only available for Windows. The free version of Bandicam is limited to 10-minute recordings, and all recordings will have a watermark (logo) on the video. You can purchase the full version to remove these restrictions.
- When downloading Bandicam, use the Bandisoft download link. Downloading from Softonic will include adware in your installation file.
2
Install Bandicam. Bandicam's installation is straightforward, and you shouldn't have to make any changes to the default settings. You can choose where you want Bandicam icons to appear (desktop, quick launch, and Start menu).
3
Start Bandicam. Once Bandicam is installed, you can start it up to begin configuring it for recording. You may be asked for an administrator password if you are not using an administrator account.

Part 2

Part 2 of 6:

Configuring Sound

1
Open the "Record settings" window. You can access this menu by selecting the Video tab on the Bandicam window, and then clicking the "Settings" button in the "Record" section. Make sure that the Sound tab is selected in the "Recording settings" menu.
2
Choose whether you want to record sound. Bandicam can record all of the sounds the program you are recording makes, as well as input from a microphone. This can be especially useful if you are recording a tutorial on how to use a program on a computer, or want to include commentary with a game you are playing.
- Check the "Record sound" box to enable sound recording. Your final file will be larger if you choose to record sound.
3
Choose your primary sound device. If you want to capture the sounds made by the program you are recording, ensure that the "Primary Sound Device" drop-down menu has "Win8/Win7/Vista Sound (WASAPI)" selected.
- Click the Setting... button to open the Windows sound device settings.
4
Choose your secondary sound device. If you want to use your microphone while you are recording a video, select it from the "Secondary Sound Device" drop-down menu.
- Check the "Two Sound Mixing" box to mix both audio inputs into one track. This will help keep the file size smaller.
- You can set a hotkey for the microphone if you only want to record your voice at certain times. Make sure you set the hotkey to a key you don't normally use while using the program you are recording.

Part 3

Part 3 of 6:

Setting Your Video Options

1
Open the Video Format settings menu. You can change the settings of your video recording to get the best possible quality for your computer. Click the Video tab on the main Bandicam window, and then click the "Settings" button in the "Format" section.
2
Choose your resolution. By default, this is set to "Full Size". This means that the final video will be the same resolution as the original recording. If you are recording a full screen program, the resolution will be the same as that program. If you are recording a window, the resolution will be the size of the window.
- If you want, you can change the resolution to a set size. This is useful if you are going to be putting the video on a device that only supports specific resolutions, but may result in stretching and skewing if the resolution is a different ratio than the original recording.
3
Set your frames-per-second (FPS). The FPS of your video is the number of frames that are recorded each second. By default, this is set to 30, which is the maximum FPS currently allowed on YouTube. If you want a higher quality recording, you can increase the FPS.
- Higher FPS will result in larger files and will put more strain on your system while recording. You may notice significant performance issues if your computer is not powerful enough to record at a high FPS.
4
Choose your codec. The codec is the software that processes the video while it is recording. By default, this will be set to Xvid, as this is supported by most systems and devices. You can choose a different codec if your video card supports it.
- If you have a high-end Nvidia card, you can choose the "H.264 (NVENC)" for the best recording quality. Lower end Nvidia cards can choose the "H.264 (CUDA)" option, AMD users can choose "H.264 (AMP APP)", and if you are using Intel integrated graphics, you can choose "H.264 (Intel Quick Sync)".
- If you have multiple video card options (Nvidia and Intel, for example), choose the option that uses your active video card. If your monitor is connected to your motherboard, you will most likely want to choose the Intel codec. If your monitor is connected to an Nvidia or AMD card, choose the codec that matches your card.
5
Set the video quality. The "Quality" drop-down menu allows you to set the general video quality of your recording. These are represented by numbers, with a higher number meaning a higher quality. A higher quality video will mean a larger file, but if you set the quality too low you will lose a lot of clarity and detail.

Part 4

Part 4 of 6:

Recording Part of Your Screen

1
Add mouse cursor highlighting effects. If you are recording a tutorial on how to use a program, it may help to highlight your mouse cursor. This will make it easier for your audience to tell what you are doing. Click the "Settings" button in the Record section of the main Bandicam interface. Click the Effects tab.
- You can enable a click effect that appears every time the left or right mouse buttons are clicked. Click the blank buttons next to each option to set the color.
- You can add a highlighter effect to your cursor so that the audience can always see where it is. Click the blank button to set the color. Yellow is one of the most common mouse-highlighting colors, as it stands out and is easy on the eyes.
2
Click the "Rectangle on a screen" button. This is located at the top of the Bandicam main interface, next to the button depicting a game controller. An outline of the recording window will appear on your screen when you click it.
3
Set your recording area. Your recording area should completely encompass the window that you want to record. You can click and drag the edges to resize the window, or you can click the dimensions in the top bar to choose from a variety of presets. Everything within the red border of the window will be recorded.
4
Click the REC button to begin recording. You can click the REC button in the upper-right corner of your recording window, or click the REC button in the Bandicam main interface. When recording starts, the blue border of the window will change to red, and the timer will start.
5
Take a screenshot. If you want to take a screenshot of your recording at any time, click the Camera icon at the top of the recording window. A screenshot will be taken of what is currently inside the recording window.
6
Finish your recording. Click the Stop button on either the recording window or the Bandicam main interface to end the recording. You can view your newly-made video by clicking the folder icon in Bandicam. This will open the Output folder, and you can open your new video file in your favorite media player.^{[1]
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Part 5

Part 5 of 6:

Recording a Game

1
Click the Controller button. Clicking this button will change the recording mode to full screen mode, which is designed for capturing gameplay and other full screen programs.
2
Enable the FPS counter. Bandicam overs an FPS counter overlay that lets you know the FPS your game is running at. This can be useful for determining how much of a performance impact Bandicam has on your game. Click the FPS menu in the Bandicam main interface and ensure that the "Show FPS Overlay" box has been checked. You can choose where on the screen you would like the overlay to appear.
- It can be very helpful to have the FPS counter enabled, as it changes color to indicate whether you are recording or not.
3
Set the recording hotkey. In the Video section of the Bandicam interface, you can set the key that will start and stop recording. By default, this is set to F12. You can change this to whatever key you'd like. Make sure that it isn't a key that you use during gameplay.
- F12 is the default screenshot key in Steam, meaning that every time you press the key to start or stop a recording, Steam will take a screenshot as well. If you are recording games played through Steam, you might want to change the hotkey.
4
Start your game. Start up the game you want to record as you normally would. You should see the green FPS counter if you have it enabled.
5
Start recording. As soon as you are ready to start recording, press the recording hotkey. You will see the FPS counter change from green to red to indicate that you are currently recording. Your entire screen will be recorded, so make sure you aren't recording any username or login information.
6
Finish your recording. After you are finished with what you want recorded, press the recording hotkey again to stop the recording process. Your video will be created and placed in the Bandicam output folder. This can be accessed by clicking the folder icon at the top of the Bandicam window.

Part 6

Part 6 of 6:

Finishing Your Video

1
Preview your finished video. Open your output folder and watch the video that you just created. Make sure that it contains everything that you wanted to capture, and that it does not have any excess footage or footage that shouldn't be there. You can open your output folder by clicking the folder icon at the top of the Bandicam window.
2
Encode the video to make it smaller. There's a pretty good chance that your new game video is quite large, especially if you were recording for a while. You can lower the size of the video by encoding it using programs such as Handbrake or Avidemux. This will lower the quality of the video but significantly reduce the file size.
- Encoding your video can make uploading it to YouTube a much quicker process. If you are planning to burn it to a DVD or just want to keep it on your computer, you can probably leave it as it is.
3
Add effects using video editing software. Bandicam doesn't have any video effects options, so you can use other programs such as Windows Movie Maker or Sony Vegas to add effects and transitions to your videos. You can insert text cards between scenes, splice together multiple recorded clips, add transitions, credits, and much more.
4
Upload the video to YouTube. YouTube is one of the best places to share your gameplay videos and tutorials. You can even make some money off of them if they get popular enough!
- Note that some companies do not allow you to make money off of videos of their products. These restrictions vary from company to company, so it's wise to investigate the specific policy for the game you want to upload.
- See this guide for details on uploading videos to YouTube.
- See this article for tips on monetizing your videos.
5
Burn the video to DVD. If you'd rather burn the video to DVD so that you can store it, watch it later, or give it to friends and family, you can easily do so with most DVD burning programs. Burning your video to DVD will allow you to delete it from your computer, saving space. This is specifically good for very large videos. See this guide for details on how to burn a DVD video.

Community Q&A

Question

How do I select a recording target window when trying to record a game?

Community Answer

Press the Game Recording Mode; it looks like a controller on the very far side. Then open a game and hit F12 to start. There should be an FPS indicator on the top left corner of the screen which tells you that it's recording. Press F12 to stop it again.
Question

I have the free version of Bandicam. What are the new options available with the full version upgrade?

Community Answer

On the free version, you can only record for 10 minutes, whereas with the full version, you can record as long as you want. Also, at the top of a video published with the free version, there is a fairly large "watermark" showing the url of Bandicam's website. There is no watermark on the full version.

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How to Use Bandicam

Steps

Installing Bandicam

Configuring Sound

Setting Your Video Options

Recording Part of Your Screen

Recording a Game

Finishing Your Video

Community Q&A

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References

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