Stagewright vs ScreenCI

What ScreenCI is, in its own words

ScreenCI’s headline is “Tutorial videos of your app, from one prompt,” and its subhead is “Describe a feature and paste the prompt into your coding agent. It records a narrated walkthrough of your real app.” A coding agent writes a Playwright script, it records locally, a web editor syncs narration edits back to the script, and “Add to CI” re-records on every release so a broken flow fails the build. The CLI and authoring API are MIT-licensed.

How they differ

The recording is close to the same in both. If a narrated video from a script is all you need, ScreenCI is simpler and has published prices.

Stagewright’s work is what happens after the recording. On a pull request, each affected walkthrough runs against the preview, and the result is a verdict rather than pass or fail: unchanged, changed on purpose (approve it, and the player and help article update when the PR merges), or broken (filed with the clip, assigned to the PR’s author, handed to a coding agent if you like, and replayed on the fix PR to prove it). Published videos carry the build they came from, and drop-off is measured by the second against the narration.

Side by side

The recording

The recording: Stagewright and ScreenCI

Capability	Stagewright	ScreenCI	Source
Script in your repo	YAML walkthrough, or import from Playwright tests	A .screenci.ts Playwright script	source
Written by a coding agent	Copy prompt, MCP server, Claude Code and Codex plugin	"paste the prompt into your coding agent"	source
Records locally	Yes	Yes	source
Narration	AI voice, timed to each step	AI narration with per-cue style	source
Auto-zoom	Yes	Yes	source
Overlays and slides	Animated slide templates, or React compositions in the repo	Overlays from your own React, Vue or Svelte components	source
Redaction	No. Masks exclude regions from diffs only; blur in video is planned	Redaction before capture	source
Languages	Each locale recorded and checked on the PR	79 languages, localized recordings and subtitles (by plan)	source
License	Not decided yet	CLI and authoring API are MIT; rendering, editor and hosting are paid	source

Last verified 2026-10-11 against ScreenCI's public pages, linked in each row.

The workflow around it

The workflow around it: Stagewright and ScreenCI

Capability	Stagewright	ScreenCI	Source
When it runs in CI	Every pull request, only the walkthroughs the change affects	"Add to CI" re-records on every release	source
PR check and comment with before and after frames	Yes	No. Not found in their public material as of October 2026	source
Approve intended changes	Yes	No. Not found in their public material as of October 2026	source
Regressions filed with video, fix proven on the fix PR	Linear, Jira Cloud, GitHub Issues	No. A failed flow fails the build	source
Help-center publishing	Productlane, Intercom, Zendesk	No	source
Editing without the repo	Script mode and Propose change in the dashboard	A web editor that syncs narration edits back to the script	source
Verified stamp, drop-off by narration	Yes	No	source
Price	Not priced yet (private beta)	Pro $99/mo, Business $249/mo, Enterprise custom	source

Last verified 2026-10-11 against ScreenCI's public pages, linked in each row.

Where ScreenCI is better

• Licensing. Its CLI is MIT open source today. Stagewright’s license is undecided.
• Languages and polish. 79 languages, speed ramps, redaction before capture, and overlays from your own components.
• Clear pricing, from $99 a month.
• Simplicity. One job, done well, with nothing else to set up.

Choose ScreenCI if

• You want narrated tutorial videos from scripts, re-recorded each release, and nothing more.
• Open-source tooling or many languages matter most.

Choose Stagewright if

• You want the verdict on the pull request, with frames, and approvals as the gate to publishing.
• Broken flows should land in your issue tracker with the video, and fixes should be proven.
• Support and product need the content in the help center, current, with numbers on where viewers stop.

FAQ

Can I start from Playwright tests? Yes. stagewright import playwright tests/team.spec.ts converts a test to a walkthrough, and the @stagewright-ai/playwright fixture records tagged tests as they run.

Do I need an account to try it? No. npx stagewright init and record work offline.