How to Record a FaceTime Call

Can you record a FaceTime call? Yes, if it's a FaceTime audio call with one other person. Your iPhone or Mac has a Call Recording button for it, both of you hear a notice, and the recording lands in the Notes app with a transcript.

FaceTime video calls are harder. Apple doesn't document any way to capture the other person's voice on a video call, and the screen-recording tricks you'll read about elsewhere don't reliably record their audio.

Here's a common case. Leah, a freelance bookkeeper, has a monthly FaceTime check-in with a client. Last month the client read out four invoice numbers and a payment date, and Leah caught two.

This month she called on FaceTime audio instead of video, asked "Mind if I record this so I get the numbers right?", and tapped Call Recording. The numbers were in the transcript before she'd closed the app. (Leah is an illustration, not a real customer.)

This guide shows how to record a FaceTime call on iPhone and Mac, method by method. Every step was checked against Apple's support pages on November 8, 2026 (iOS 27 and macOS 27). You'll also see who gets notified, what the law expects, and how to turn the recording into notes.

Which FaceTime recording method fits your call

Start with the table. Find your call type, then jump to that section.

Two things stand out. Only the first and fifth rows record the whole conversation, and only the first one tells the other person for you. Whatever you choose, ask out loud before you start.

Once you have the recording, ParrotNotes can turn it into a summary and action items (steps near the end).

How to record a FaceTime audio call on iPhone

This is the method Apple documents. According to Apple's guide to FaceTime audio call tools, "in some countries and regions, you can record a FaceTime audio call when you're talking to one other person." It arrived in iOS 18 and is on by default.

Here's how to record a FaceTime call on iPhone:

1. Open the FaceTime app and start an audio call (not video) with one person.
2. During the call, tap the More button, then tap Call Recording.
3. Both of you hear a notice that the call is being recorded.
4. To stop, tap the Stop button, or tap More, then Stop next to Call Recording. Hanging up also stops it.
5. Open the Notes app and go to the Call Recordings folder to play it.

In supported regions and languages, a transcript appears in the same note, with the speaker of each statement labeled. It may say the transcription is in progress for a minute. You can search it with Find in Transcript, copy it, or save the audio with Save Audio to Files.

Don't delete the audio until you've copied what you need. Apple notes that deleting the recording also deletes the transcript.

No Call Recording button?

Check these three things:

• Your region. Apple's call recording guide says it "isn't currently available" in the European Union and in Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.
• The setting. Go to Settings > Apps > Phone > Audio Call Recording and make sure it's on.
• The call type. It's one-to-one audio only. A video call or a Group FaceTime won't show it.

The same button works for regular phone calls in the Phone app. Our guide to recording phone calls on iPhone covers that, plus the short list of languages Apple transcribes.

Can you record a FaceTime video call on iPhone?

You can record the picture. Recording the sound is where it falls apart.

Screen recording. Apple's screen recording guide works like this:

1. Swipe down from the top-right corner to open Control Center.
2. Touch and hold the Screen Recording button.
3. Tap Microphone to turn it on, then tap Start Recording.
4. After the 3-second countdown, go back to your FaceTime call.
5. To stop, tap the red indicator at the top of the screen, then tap Stop. The video saves to Photos, under Collections > Media Types > Screen Recordings.

Apple's page doesn't say whether call audio is included. It only warns that "some apps might not allow you to record their content."

The guides that rank for this search disagree: Riverside's guide says the screen recorder "captures video but not audio" on a call, while others say the microphone picks the call up.

With the microphone on, expect your own voice at minimum. Make a test call with a friend before you rely on it for anything that matters.

Local Capture. Since iOS 26, Control Center has a Local Capture control for video calls. Apple's guide to recording video calls says it records "high-quality audio and video directly to your iPhone" and suggests sharing the file with the other participants so it "can be combined with other participants' recordings" in an editing app. In other words, it's pitched at podcasters recording their own side. Apple doesn't present it as a way to capture the person you're talking to, and its guide doesn't name FaceTime.

So for a video call where you need both voices, use the second-device method below.

How to record a FaceTime call on Mac

FaceTime audio calls. The Mac has the same button. Apple's FaceTime for Mac guide says to click the More button during a one-to-one audio call, then Call Recording. Both people hear a notice, and the recording and transcript appear in Notes > Call Recordings on your Mac.

FaceTime video calls. Use the built-in Screenshot tool:

1. Press Shift-Command-5.
2. Choose Record the entire screen or Record a window, then click the FaceTime window.
3. Click Options and pick a microphone under Microphone.
4. Click Record. To stop, click the stop button in the menu bar.

The recording saves as a .mov file. QuickTime Player's File > New Screen Recording opens the same tools. For audio-only recordings, see how to record audio on a Mac.

Apple's Mac screenshot guide lists only microphones as audio sources, so the other person's voice is captured only if your Mac's speakers play it loud enough for the mic to hear. Headphones cut them out entirely.

Does the other person know you're recording a FaceTime call?

It depends on the method:

• Call Recording: yes. Apple says both people hear a notice.
• FaceTime Live Photos: yes. Apple's Live Photo guide says "you both receive a notification that the photo was taken."
• Screen recording and Local Capture: Apple doesn't document any notice. Assume they won't know unless you tell them.

That last point is the reason to say it out loud. A hidden recording can break the law and can break trust.

In the US, some states let you record a call you're part of, and others require everyone on the call to agree. Our guide to one-party consent states lists each state's rule and what to do when the two of you are in different states.

Outside the US, check your country's rules. This article is general information, not legal advice.

Here's a consent line that works on almost any call:

"Before we start, is it OK if I record this call so I don't miss anything? I'll only use it for my notes."

Wait for a clear yes, and let it be the first thing on the recording.

When the phone can't record it: a second device on speaker

For a FaceTime video call, a Group FaceTime, or a country where the button is missing, the dependable route is a second device. Put the call on speaker and record the room with another phone, an iPad, or a laptop. The same method works for other call apps, as our guide on how to record a WhatsApp call shows.

This is where ParrotNotes fits. It doesn't record FaceTime audio inside the call, and it can't. On a second phone, it records the conversation through the microphone like any in-person meeting, then gives you a transcript, a summary, and action items. Our guide to recording a meeting on iPhone has tips on where to put the device.

Here's how that plays out. Tomás runs a small design studio in Madrid, so his iPhone has no Call Recording button. When a client in Lisbon calls on FaceTime video to approve a logo, Tomás asks if he can record for his notes, gets a yes, and records on a spare Android phone beside his laptop.

Ten minutes later he has the three changes the client asked for, in order. (Tomás is an illustration.)

If that's the kind of call you take every week, try ParrotNotes free on your next one.

Turn a FaceTime recording into notes

A built-in recording already has a transcript in some languages. To get a summary, action items, or a transcript in a language Apple doesn't cover:

1. Open Notes, then Call Recordings, and tap the call.
2. Tap the recording, tap the More button, then tap Save Audio to Files.
3. Open ParrotNotes and import the file.
4. Read the summary and action items. On Pro, it can also draft the follow-up email.

As of November 2026, the free plan includes 100 minutes of recording a month (up to 30 minutes per recording), an AI summary on every recording, and three audio or video imports a month. Pro is $19.99 a month, or $14.99 a month billed annually, and adds transcription in 99+ languages. Transcription needs an internet connection.

Only need one short call transcribed? Our free audio to text tool handles a file up to 10 minutes long.

Conclusion

How to record a FaceTime call comes down to the call type:

• FaceTime audio, one person: tap More, then Call Recording, on iPhone or Mac. It's free, it notifies both of you, and it saves to Notes.
• FaceTime video: screen recording captures the picture, but don't count on the other person's audio. Test first.
• Group calls or blocked regions: put the call on speaker and record on a second device.
• Every time: ask first, and check the consent rules where both of you are.

Then use the recording while the call is still fresh. Download ParrotNotes to turn your next recorded call into a summary and action items.