The short version: all three apps freeze your webcam in a video call. Faux Pause is the one with a free tier and no watermark, a one-time unlock instead of a subscription, a fake bad-connection mode, and a camera that switches by itself when your MacBook lid closes.
If you are searching for a way to freeze your camera in Teams, Zoom, Google Meet or FaceTime on a Mac, you have probably found FreezingCam and FrostCam. Both are good at the core job. This page lays out where Faux Pause differs, so you can pick the right one. Prices and features are as published on each app's own site on 22 September 2026, and we will keep this page honest if they change.
| Faux Pause | FrostCam | FreezingCam | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free: 5 minutes of frozen time a day, and a freeze already running is never cut short. Pro: one-time unlock for unlimited, £4.99 in the UK and priced locally elsewhere | Free with a watermark, or $14.99 one-time for Pro | $9.99 a month or $49 a year, 7-day trial |
| Watermark on the free tier | No | Yes, removed with Pro | No free tier |
| Freeze on a still frame | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Loop with natural movement | Yes, Full Loop | Yes | Yes |
| Fake bad connection | Yes, Bad Connection mode | No | Yes |
| Global keyboard shortcut | ⌥⌘F, from any app | Yes | Yes |
| Camera switches by itself when the lid closes or a camera drops | Yes, to your iPhone or another camera, and back | No | No |
| Where you get it | Mac App Store | Mac App Store | Direct download |
| Network access | None. No accounts, no analytics | Stated as none | Licence check |
| macOS | 13 or later, Apple silicon and Intel | 13 or later | 12.3 or later |
Sources: frostcam.app and freezingcam.com, checked 22 September 2026.
Five minutes a day, free, with every mode included and no watermark. That is enough to cover most of the moments you actually need: the door, the kettle, the parcel. If you find yourself wanting more, Pro is a one-time unlock, not a subscription.
Bad Connection mode stutters your last few seconds on a loop, so leaving the frame reads as a patchy line rather than a still photo. FrostCam does not offer this. FreezingCam does.
Close the lid on a MacBook and the built-in camera dies with no warning. Faux Pause notices at once and moves to your iPhone on Continuity Camera, or to any other camera you have, then comes back when you open the lid. As far as we know, neither alternative does this.
Faux Pause makes no network connections, has no accounts, and includes no analytics or third-party code. Every frame stays on your Mac. That is our whole privacy policy.
Install Faux Pause, open Photo Booth, and choose Faux Pause as the camera. Press ⌥⌘F. That is the whole test, and the free tier is enough to run it as many times as you like.