Skype is a product that really “got in on the ground floor” – with all of the free videoconferencing solutions that we have today, Skype may be the only one that’s really a household name. Long before iPhones came with FaceTime, people were saying to each other: “I’ll Skype you.”

It wasn’t just that Skype got there first. This product also came about at the same time that many of us were breaking free of the new and improved Ma Bell; that is, finding free ways of doing long-distance voice. Skype gave us all that and more – it added video, becoming one of the world’s most famous incarnations of the old “Dick Tracy wrist watch” that seemed so science-fiction-y just a few decades ago.

But now, many of us are asking how we make these digital conversations permanent. How do you record Skype calls?

This question posed on the now-popular Q&A site Quora is just one example of a user base looking for ways to get Skype communications preserved for posterity. In reality, consumers have a lot of choices for creating digital archives of their Skype sessions.

Here is a list of tools that are among the top Skype recording resources out there. Many of these have their own established fan bases, and evidence from web forums shows how popular many of these tools are. Each of them supports various operating systems, comes with its own bells and whistles, and has its own system requirements, and configuration and installment options.

Provider

OS

Cost

Features

SoftComfort Calls Recorder Windows 7 Free
  • Detects automatically when calls begin
  • Organization and file storage tools
  • Record any sound through a microphone/line in
My Screen Recorder Microsoft Windows 8 / 7 / Vista / XP / 2012 / 2008 $49.95 (full license)
  • Supports .wmv or .avi results
  • Dual recording from speakers/microphone
  • Pro model adds features
IMCapture Mac OS X 10.4 or higher

Microsoft Windows 7, Windows Vista or Windows XP

$49.95 (single license)
  • Tools record FaceTime, Skype, Yahoo! Messenger
  • Save in multiple formats including MP3, Quicktime, WMA, AAC
  • Online support
Wiretap Studios Mac OS X 10.7 or later Free Trial, $69.00 (Full License)
  • Lossless audio
  • Record all audio
  • Drag and drop exporting features
Pamela Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8 Free Basic Version, Pro Version $30.39, Bus. Version $48.66 (Full License)
  • Answering Machine
  • Birthday Reminders
  • Contact Customization
  • And more!
Supertintin Win8, Win7, Vista, XP, Windows 2000, Windows Server 2003 Free Trial, $29.95 (Full License)
  • Picture-in-Picture, Side-by-Side, Remote-Only, or Local-Only views
  • Easy to use
  • Adjustable resolution and frame rate
Call Recorder for Skype

 

Mac X 10.8 or newer Free Trial, $29.95 (Full License, Free Lifetime Updates)
  • Multi-Track Editing Tool
  • Quality HD Recordings
  • Export Options include MP3 for podcasts, YouTube, etc.
Audacity (2.0.6) Windows 2000/XP/Vista/Windows 7/Windows 8
Mac OS X 10.4 to 10.9.x
Linux
Free
  • Multi-track editing
  • Supports a variety of file formats including WMV, MP3
  • Audio Only!
VodBurner Win 2000, XP, Vista, Win7 & Win8 $99.95 per PC (Full Lifetime License)
  • Export format MP4, WMV
  • Clear frame resolution
  • Split-Screen Option
MP3 Skype Recorder Windows Vista, 7,  8 Desktop Free
  • Parental control features
  • Stealth Mode
  • Automatic Recording Mode
  • Audio Only!

One thing you’ll see here is a wide range of prices. Many of these products offer a free trial, but in these cases, users may be limited to a certain length. For example, many of these products’ free trial versions cut off after 15 minutes. And that might be a dealbreaker for what you want to do when you’re trying to record Skype calls.

There’s also the issue of how files will be stored, and in what format they can be put together. Many of these tools cater to users who want to get their digital conversations into formats like MP4, WMV, AVI and others, to export to devices, put on social media, or link to the web.

There’s also the fact that two of these options, Audacity and MP3 Skype recorder, only record audio and not video. Why are these included? Lots of people still prefer to use audio archives, either because of the additional data requirements for video, or other reasons. Some really like Audacity because they’re used to using it for musical projects or other audio tasks.

When using any of the above tools, there’s an important disclaimer — check the law in your local area. In some places, recording a phone or a Skype conversation without the other party’s consent is illegal. That means in addition to doing the complex shopping for Skype recording tools – (and we’re hoping the above chart helps!) — you may have to navigate some aspects of federal, state or local law.