Yes, iPhone screen recording captures sound by default, but you control what gets recorded
When you start a screen recording on an iPhone, the microphone turns on automatically and records whatever sound is happening around you — conversation, background noise, app audio, everything. If you do not want sound in your recording, you have to turn the microphone off before you hit record. The setting is a toggle you access from the Control Center, and it stays in whatever position you last left it.
This matters because many people discover mid-recording that they have captured their own voice, their dog barking, or a notification sound they did not want. Once the recording is done, you cannot remove the audio afterward — you have to re-record if you want it silent.
Key Takeaways
- Screen recording on iPhone records audio from your microphone by default, including your voice, background noise, and app sounds.
- To record without sound, swipe up from the bottom of your screen to open Control Center, press and hold the Screen Recording button, then toggle the microphone off before tapping Start Recording.
- Once you finish recording, you cannot remove the audio — you must re-record if you want a silent version.
- The microphone setting remembers your last choice, so if you turned it off once, it stays off until you manually turn it back on.
How to turn the microphone on or off before recording
Open Control Center by swiping down from the top-right corner of your screen (or swiping up from the bottom on older iPhones). Find the Screen Recording icon — it looks like a filled circle inside a larger circle.
Press and hold the Screen Recording icon. A menu appears with two options: the microphone toggle at the bottom, and a Start Recording button. The microphone icon shows whether it is currently on (microphone symbol visible) or off (microphone with a line through it). Tap the microphone icon to switch it, then tap Start Recording. Your choice takes effect when ready.
If you do not press and hold — if you just tap the icon once — the recording starts with whatever microphone setting was active the last time you used it. That is why many people accidentally record sound when they meant not to.
What sounds get recorded and what does not
When the microphone is on, screen recording captures audio from your device's built-in microphone. This includes your own voice if you are speaking, background noise in the room, notification sounds from apps, and audio from videos or music playing on your phone. It does not matter whether the audio is coming from the app you are recording or from somewhere else — if your microphone picks it up, it goes into the file.
When the microphone is off, the recording is completely silent. No audio from the device itself, no ambient sound, nothing. This is useful if you are recording a tutorial and want to add your own voiceover later, or if you are recording in a noisy environment and do not want the background sound.
Why you might want to record without sound
Recording without audio makes sense when you are demonstrating how to navigate an app or website — the visual is what matters, and you can narrate it later in a video editor if you want. It also prevents accidental capture of private conversations, notifications with sensitive information, or background noise that would distract from what you are showing.
Some people record without sound because they plan to add music or a voiceover in editing software later. Others do it because they are recording in a public place — a coffee shop, a library, a classroom — where capturing ambient sound would be distracting or inappropriate.
How to check what you recorded before saving
After you stop recording, your iPhone shows a preview thumbnail in the bottom-left corner of the screen. Tap it to open the full recording in the Photos app. You can play it back to hear whether audio was captured. If you do not want to keep it, swipe left on the video and tap Delete, then confirm. You can then re-record with different microphone settings.
The recording is not automatically saved to your Photos library until you close the preview or tap Done. If you tap Delete during the preview, the file is removed and you start over.
The microphone setting persists between recordings
iPhone remembers whether you had the microphone on or off the last time you recorded. If you turned it off for one recording, it stays off the next time you open Control Center — you have to manually toggle it back on. This is helpful if you always record without sound, but it is also the reason people accidentally record silence when they meant to capture audio, or vice versa.
Before you start any recording, take two seconds to open Control Center, press and hold the Screen Recording button, and verify the microphone is set the way you want it. That one habit prevents most recording mistakes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I edit out the audio after I finish recording?
No. Once the recording is saved, the audio is part of the file. You would need to use a video editor to remove it, and most built-in iPhone tools do not offer audio removal — you would need a third-party app. It is faster to straightforward re-record with the microphone off.
Does screen recording capture audio from apps like Spotify or YouTube?
Yes, if the microphone is on. The recording captures whatever sound is playing through your phone's speaker or headphones at the moment you record. Some apps have their own restrictions on recording (like Netflix), but that is separate from whether your microphone is on.
Will people on a FaceTime call hear me if I start screen recording?
No. Screen recording uses your device microphone to capture ambient sound in the room, not the audio from your FaceTime call itself. The person on the call will not hear the recording start or know you are recording unless you tell them.
What if I want to record my screen but not my voice?
Turn the microphone off before you start recording. Press and hold the Screen Recording button in Control Center, toggle the microphone off (you will see a line through the microphone icon), then tap Start Recording. Your voice and all other ambient sound will not be captured.
Does screen recording work differently on iPad?
No. iPad screen recording works the same way — the microphone is on by default, and you toggle it off the same way in Control Center. The process and the audio behavior are identical.