What’s the best way to improve video quality with ShareX?
- Thread starter Gnbnexi
- Start date
ChloeSEOHub
Registered Member
- Mar 23, 2026
- 85
- 17
You can usually improve quality by increasing the bitrate and switching to a better codec in ShareX settings. Also recording at native screen resolution and higher FPS can make a noticeable difference. Took me a bit to tweak settings, but quality improved after that.
TrafficMotive
Registered Member
- Mar 23, 2026
- 63
- 21
Try checking your ShareX capture settings, lowering compression or switching to a higher FPS/codec usually helps improve quality. Also make sure your screen resolution is set correctly before recording. HD recording is possible, just need a bit of tweaking in settings.
Sharex is decent for quick captures, but yeah, the quality can be a letdown. make sure you're using the right codecs and settings within sharex itself. check the video encoder, bitrate, and frame rate. higher settings mean better quality, obviously, but also bigger file sizes
PhoneGrid
Registered Member
- May 15, 2026
- 57
- 20
Check the screen recording settings and make sure you are recording video, not GIF. Then adjust FFmpeg settings: use MP4, H.264/x264, 30 or 60 FPS, and a lower CRF value like 18–23 for better quality. Also record at your actual screen resolution instead of resizing the output.
If you still get poor quality, OBS may be easier for HD recording, especially for longer videos.
If you still get poor quality, OBS may be easier for HD recording, especially for longer videos.
RankPilot860
BANNED
- Jun 9, 2026
- 42
- 8
one thing nobody mentioned, sharex defaults to a low bitrate even after you fix the codec. go into screen recording options, then the ffmpeg settings, and manually bump the bitrate or drop the CRF... thats usually the real culprit, not resolution.
also if youre capturing a fast moving window 30fps will look smeary, push it to 60 if your machine can handle it. file size goes up but the difference is night and day.
honestly for anything longer than a couple mins id just switch to obs. sharex is great for quick clips but it starts fighting you on longer recordings.
also if youre capturing a fast moving window 30fps will look smeary, push it to 60 if your machine can handle it. file size goes up but the difference is night and day.
honestly for anything longer than a couple mins id just switch to obs. sharex is great for quick clips but it starts fighting you on longer recordings.
Adsmith2026
Registered Member
- Jun 25, 2026
- 78
- 14
yeah the default ffmpeg config in sharex is pretty bad out of the box. you usually have to manually download the latest ffmpeg exe and point sharex to it, then drop the crf to about 20. but honestly... its a rabbit hole. if you are doing anything longer than a quick 10 second screen grab to show a VA, just use OBS. saving 5 minutes of setup is not worth the headache.
UrbanClicks
Newbie
- Jun 25, 2026
- 36
- 16
Yeah @Adsmith2026 is right about the ffmpeg path, but one thing people miss is the actual capture method. If you are using the default "GDI grab" in sharex it will look choppy no matter how high you set the bitrate. You need to install the "screen-capture-recorder" device in the screen recording options. Once you switch to that and drop the CRF to 20 it actually looks decent. But honestly if you are recording more than a quick gif for a client just use OBS... sharex is a screenshot tool first and foremost.
I have built solutions for video encoding for years to HLS/DASH using H.264, H.265, and AV1 for multiple devices: web, mobile, and TV apps. Most of these scripts are not good to use by default without FFmpeg customization and packaging params. If you are on an OTT solution or video streaming platform (ios,tvOS, android, androidTV, fireOS) and care about service quality, reach out to me.
PPCPirate
BANNED
- Jun 25, 2026
- 60
- 14
Yeah @Adsmith2026 and @UrbanClicks are right about the ffmpeg setup and switching off GDI grab. But honestly if you are trying to make landers, VSLs or anything that needs to look clean, just ditch sharex for video. I only use it for quick 5-second utility gifs to show my devs or VAs what is broken. For actual high quality screen recording that doesnt lag or look like a potato, OBS is the way to go. It takes like 10 mins to set up once and you never have to worry about codec issues again... sharex is just a screenshot tool at heart.
diegorivas215
Newbie
- Jan 26, 2024
- 12
- 0
ShareX isn't primarily designed for high-quality video recording, so the default recordings can look compressed. If you're using FFmpeg with ShareX, try increasing the bitrate or using a higher-quality preset. For frequent HD screen recording, many people prefer OBS Studio, which gives much better control over resolution, bitrate, and overall video quality.