How to Use the Rockstar Editor in GTA 5 (Full Tutorial)

The Rockstar Editor is GTA 5’s built-in tool for recording, editing and exporting gameplay videos. On PC you hold Alt and press F1 to start recording and F2 to stop, then edit your clips from the Rockstar Editor tab of the Story Mode pause menu.

That’s the easy part. The catches show up later: the editor menu doesn’t exist in GTA Online, your clips aren’t video files you can upload, and the free camera won’t fly as far as you want. This Rockstar Editor tutorial covers where it runs today, how to go from clips to a finished MP4, the limits you’ll hit, and which tool to grab when it falls short.

Key Takeaways
– On PC, hold Alt, press F1 to start and F2 to stop a clip. You can record in GTA Online, but the editor itself opens only from the Story Mode pause menu.
– Clips are replay data, not videos. You only get a file you can upload after you build a project and export it.
– Rockstar removed the Rockstar Editor from PS4 and Xbox One and deleted the clips stored there. It still runs on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.
– Clips run 30 to 90 seconds, the stock export tops out at 1080p, and first-person clips can’t be re-angled later.
– Use the Rockstar Editor for camera work, OBS or Game Bar for long sessions, a desktop editor for finishing, and a vertical tool for Shorts.

What Is the Rockstar Editor?

The Rockstar Editor is a replay editor built into GTA 5. It records the game state around you, not a flat video, so you can go back later and place the camera wherever you like, change speed, add filters and export the result. It also includes Director Mode, which lets you play as other characters and set the weather and time of day.

Where it runs has changed. Rockstar pulled the editor from the last-gen console versions and deleted the clips and projects saved there, as Video Games Chronicle reported.

If you play on PS4 or Xbox One, skip to the alternatives section. Console capture is your only built-in option there.

How to Record Clips for the Rockstar Editor

Rockstar’s support page on recording clips in GTA 5 on PC lists the default controls:

• Keyboard: hold Alt, press F1 to start recording, F2 to stop.
• Controller: hold the Switch Characters button (down on the D-pad) to open the same recording options.

Recording works in both Story Mode and GTA Online. A few habits save you pain in the edit:

• Stay in third person. PC Gamer’s Rockstar Editor guide points out that clips recorded in first-person view won’t let you adjust the camera later. Third person keeps every angle open.
• Expect short clips. Per GTABase’s Rockstar Editor guide, a clip runs 30 to 90 seconds depending on how busy the action is. Record the build-up and the payoff as separate clips if the moment is long.
• Set a storage cap. Clips add up. Go to Pause Menu > Settings > Rockstar Editor to limit how much disk space they can use.
• Use Action Replay for surprises. Action Replay keeps a rolling buffer, so you can save a crash or a stunt after it already happened. Turn it on before a chaotic session.

Playing on a FiveM server? Most servers let you open the editor with /rockstareditor or from the pause menu. Our guide on how to record GTA 5 covers FiveM and the other capture tools in full.

Rockstar Editor Tutorial: From Clips to a Finished Video

Here’s the full workflow, from saved clips to a video file.

1. Switch to Story Mode. The editor menu isn’t available in GTA Online, per Rockstar’s support page. Clips you recorded in Online still show up.
2. Open the editor. Pause, scroll to the rightmost tab, Rockstar Editor, and launch it.
3. Check Clip Management. Preview your clips, delete the misfires and mark the keepers.
4. Create a new project. Projects are where editing happens. A raw clip can’t be exported on its own.
5. Build the Project Timeline. Add clips, drag them into order and trim each one to the part you need.
6. Edit a clip with markers. Open a clip in Clip Edit mode and place markers along it. Each marker can change the camera, playback speed, filter and depth of field from that point on.
7. Set the camera. Pick a preset camera or the free camera, then point it at the player or a nearby character or vehicle. The blend setting between markers decides whether the camera cuts, glides in a line or curves; our GTA cinematic guide explains when to use each, along with Director Mode.
8. Add music and text. The timeline takes tracks from GTA’s radio stations plus simple text overlays.
9. Export. Choose the frame rate and quality, then render. The game turns the project into a regular video file you can upload anywhere.

Director Mode is worth knowing before you shoot. It sets weather, time of day and the cast, but it won’t open while you’re wanted, in a vehicle or on a mission.

Rockstar Editor Limits You’ll Hit

The Rockstar Editor’s strength is camera work: it re-renders the scene from a new angle instead of cropping a flat video. It falls short in other places.

Mods like Rockstar Editor+ are for single-player only. Keep them away from GTA Online.

Rockstar Editor Alternatives by Job

There’s no single Rockstar Editor alternative, because the editor does four jobs at once. Pick the tool for the job that’s failing you.

The decision rule is simple. Use the Rockstar Editor when the shot depends on the camera: a slow orbit, a low angle on a car, slow motion on a crash. Use OBS when you stream or play for hours and need the whole session as a file. Use a desktop editor once you have the shots and need the edit to land on the beat. Our guide to GTA edits and montages covers that finishing stage.

Got hours of GTA footage and no time to scrub it? Eklipse surfaces candidate moments from your recordings and VODs so you review and post the best ones. Continue with Twitch

Turn Rockstar Editor Videos Into Shorts

A Rockstar Editor export is widescreen. TikTok, Reels and YouTube Shorts are vertical. Most of the work is the cut-down:

1. Pick the strongest 10 to 60 seconds. Usually the payoff and the shot right before it.
2. Put the payoff first. Open on the jump or the crash, not the drive up to it.
3. Reframe to 9:16. Keep the car or character centered. Close-ups and tracking shots survive the crop better than wide shots.
4. Add captions when someone talks. RP clips need them. A pure stunt clip usually doesn’t.

For a single clip, the GTA clip maker is free and reframes it to 9:16 with captions in the browser. For regular editing, Eklipse Studio handles vertical templates, editable captions and the 9:16 export.

If you stream GTA RP or heists, the moments are buried inside hours of VOD. Eklipse’s GTA stream clipper looks for police chases, heist getaways, stunt jumps and RP moments, then hands you a shortlist to review. You still pick what goes out.

FAQ

Why can’t I open the Rockstar Editor in GTA Online?
The editor menu isn’t available in GTA Online. Record your clips in Online, then switch to Story Mode, pause and open the Rockstar Editor tab. Your Online clips will be there.

Is the Rockstar Editor on PS4 or Xbox One?
No. Rockstar removed it from the PS4 and Xbox One versions and deleted the clips and projects stored there. It’s still on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.

How do I turn Rockstar Editor clips into an MP4?
Add the clips to a project, edit them on the timeline and export the project. Raw clips are replay data, so the export is the step that creates a video file.

Can you use the Rockstar Editor in FiveM?
On many servers, yes. Players usually open it with the /rockstareditor command or from the pause menu, depending on how the server is set up.

Will GTA 6 have a Rockstar Editor?
Rockstar hasn’t confirmed one. GTA 6 is announced for PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, and both consoles have built-in gameplay capture.

Conclusion

The Rockstar Editor is still the best way to shoot GTA 5 from angles you never played: hold Alt with F1 and F2 to record, stay in third person, then build a project in Story Mode and export. Know its limits going in. Clips are short, the menu is missing in Online, export stops at 1080p and last-gen consoles lost it entirely.

When it falls short, swap tools by job instead of fighting it. OBS covers the long sessions it can’t hold. The Rockstar Editor does the camera work, and everything after that, from the final cut to the vertical Short, belongs to other tools.

Streaming GTA as well as editing it? Let Eklipse find candidate highlights in your VODs and turn the keepers into Shorts. Continue with Twitch