The short version

Make one video with one job: a launch, a landing page, or onboarding.

Write a 30 to 45 second script and a shot list before you open the recorder.

Record a clean demo account with seeded data at 1080p. Hide anything personal.

Edit with cuts, zooms and captions. Export 16:9, 1:1 and 9:16.

You can do it yourself, use an AI generator, or pay someone. Each option costs money, time, or both.

A SaaS demo video shows your product doing one useful thing. Buyers, new users and people who saw your launch post use it to decide whether to look closer. This guide walks through the steps in order. It ends with the three ways to get the video made.

Pick the one job the video does

Most SaaS demo videos do one of three jobs:

A launch video for Product Hunt, a launch post, or your X account. It shows one flow and ends on the sign-up link.
A landing page video for the hero or the section under it. It shows the core value in the first few seconds.
An onboarding video for new users. It walks through the first action that makes the app useful.

Choose one. A video that tries to launch, sell and teach at once usually does none of them well. Write the job in one sentence at the top of your script file, for example: “Show a new user sending their first invoice in under 40 seconds.” Every later step checks against that sentence.

Write a 30 to 45 second script

Keep the script short. Structure it in four beats:

The problem, in words your buyer uses.
The product doing the job, in one flow.
The result on screen.
The next step: a link, a button, or a sign-up.

Read the script aloud with a timer. If it runs past 45 seconds, cut a sentence, not the result. Write the voiceover and the on-screen text together, so the words and the pictures agree.

Skip the tour of every feature for a first video. A tour moves too fast to read. One flow, shown well, does more.

Build a shot list with seconds per shot

Each video type needs its own shots. Write the shot list before you record, with a start and end time for each shot. The times below are a starting point. Adjust them after you read your script aloud.

Onboarding video, about 40 seconds:

0 to 4 s: the empty state of a new account, with the first task visible.
4 to 12 s: the first click, and a form filled with seeded data.
12 to 25 s: the result appears on screen.
25 to 35 s: the next step the user takes.
35 to 40 s: an end card with the link.

Feature video, about 30 seconds:

0 to 5 s: the problem, as a screen the buyer will recognise.
5 to 20 s: the feature in use, in one flow.
20 to 27 s: the result.
27 to 30 s: an end card with the link.

Pricing video, about 30 seconds:

0 to 5 s: the plan the viewer is on today.
5 to 15 s: the limit or feature that a paid plan unlocks.
15 to 25 s: the upgrade screen.
25 to 30 s: the price and the button.

Keep one action in each shot. If a shot shows two things, split it.

Record the browser cleanly

Recording is where most DIY videos lose quality. Set up these four things before you hit record:

A clean demo account, seeded with believable data. Use invented names and invented numbers. Never use a real customer’s data.
A 1080p capture. Size the browser window to 1920 by 1080 if you can, and zoom the page so the text reads at phone size.
A hidden personal layer: close other tabs, turn off notifications, hide the bookmarks bar, and sign out of any other account on the screen. Check the recording for your email address, your name in the corner, and other browser profiles.
Short takes. Record each shot on its own, then cut them together. Move the cursor slowly, so the viewer can follow it.

If your app uses two-factor codes, set up the demo account so you can log in during the recording without a code on screen. Share the demo login through a password manager, not by email.

Edit with cuts, zooms and captions

Editing turns a screen capture into a demo. Work through the edit in this order:

Cut dead time: loading spinners, long typing pauses, and wrong clicks.
Zoom into the click or field that matters. Zoom back out before the next scene, so the viewer knows where they are.
Add captions on every line of voiceover. Many people watch social video with the sound off, so captions carry the message for them.
Keep the music quiet, or leave it out. A demo is about the product, and loud music competes with the voiceover.
End on a card with the link and one short line that names the next step.

Check the video at full speed once. If a zoom makes you dizzy, shorten it. The viewer should notice the product first.

Export three sizes

One recording can make three files. Export each one from the same edit:

16:9, 1920 by 1080, for your landing page, your docs, and YouTube.
1:1, 1080 by 1080, for posts on X, LinkedIn and Instagram feeds.
9:16, 1080 by 1920, for YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels and TikTok.

Check each platform’s upload size limit before you export. Keep a poster frame, the still image shown before the video plays, that shows the product screen, not a blank page.

Put the video where buyers look

A video works best where the decision happens. Start with these places:

The landing page hero, or the section right below it. Use the 16:9 file with the poster frame.
The launch post, with the 1:1 or 9:16 file.
The onboarding page or in-app help, with the 16:9 file.
Your welcome email, as a linked still with a play button.

Put a text line under the video that says what the viewer will see. People who cannot play video still read it.

Choose how to make it

You have three real options. Pick the one that fits your time and budget.

Do it yourself. You need a screen recorder, an editor and a few hours for the first video. Later videos get faster. Screen Studio is a Mac recorder that adds zooms and cursor motion for you, but you still write, record, edit and export. The Screen Studio comparison covers that trade-off in detail.

Use an AI generator. An AI tool can turn your public website into a short video in minutes, for a few dollars or less. It builds from your public pages, so it shows what your landing page says more than the product in use. Good for a first cut and a quick test. The AI demo video generators page compares the two approaches.

Pay someone. A freelancer, an agency or a studio makes the video for you. Prices range from about $50 for a freelance gig to $40,000 for a studio film. The launch video options compared page lists seven of them, with the prices we checked on 18 October 2026.

Swoopcut is one paid option. It records your app in a real browser at 60 fps. The Launch Clip is $149 for one 20 to 45 second clip, shot at 1080p60 in 16:9, with a social cut under 10 MB, captions and a thumbnail. The Launch Pack is $399 for three clips, or $133 per clip you keep, in 16:9, 1:1 and 9:16. You send your app’s link, a demo account with seeded data, and one line on the flow to show. You get a watermarked preview within 48 hours of working access. If the video isn’t usable, you don’t pay.

How to make a SaaS demo video