OBS Studio vs Riverside

OBS Studio

• Live streamers who want detailed control of scenes, sources and audio
• Recording gameplay, tutorials or presentations without paying for software
• Linux users: there is an official Flatpak and an Ubuntu PPA

Riverside

• Podcasters and interviewers recording remote guests in high quality
• Marketing teams turning long recordings into social clips
• Hosts who want recording, editing, hosting and live streaming in one tool

OBS Studio

• It captures and mixes video in real time; the feature list on its site does not include editing a recording afterwards.
• Downloads are offered for Windows 10 and 11, macOS 13.0 or newer, and Linux; no mobile or browser version is listed.
• The Game Capture source is Windows only, according to the quick start guide.
• Help comes from a knowledge base, forums and a community Discord server rather than a vendor support desk.

Riverside

• The Free plan allows 2 hours of multi-track recording, tops out at 720p and puts a Riverside watermark on exports.
• Separate-track downloads are capped each month: 15 hours on Pro, 20 on Grow and 25 on Webinar.
• Live streaming starts on Grow, and registration, Q&A and polls for webinars need the Webinar plan.
• Collaborative editing, custom roles, SSO and API access are limited to Business; the desktop app is listed for Mac only.

OBS Studio

Scenes and sources

Compose a scene from window and display captures, webcams, capture cards, images, text and browser windows, and set up as many scenes as you need.

Recording and live streaming

Record to a local file or stream to one of the included services or a custom server. A replay buffer can save recent footage with a hotkey.

Audio mixer with filters

Each audio source can take filters such as a noise gate, noise suppression and gain, and VST plugins are supported.

Studio Mode and Multiview

Studio Mode lets you preview and adjust a scene before it goes live. Multiview shows 8 scenes at once and cues any of them with a click.

Virtual camera

Sends an OBS scene, or a single source, to any app that accepts a webcam, such as Zoom or Discord.

Plugins and scripting

An API supports native plugins and scripts written in Lua or Python, and community-made plugins are shared in the site's Resources section.

Riverside

Local multi-track recording

Audio and video are recorded on each participant's own device and uploaded in the background, giving a separate track per person in up to 4K.

Text-based editor

Edit a recording through its transcript, with AI tools that remove silences and filler words. Paid web plans include unlimited transcriptions.

Magic Clips and AI show notes

AI selects short clips for social media and drafts show notes. Magic Clips is also listed on the Free plan.

Live streaming and webinars

Grow adds Full HD live streaming to multiple destinations. The Webinar plan adds registration, Q&A, polls, email reminders and analytics.

Podcast hosting and publishing

Each studio has its own podcast hosting, analytics and website, and can publish to YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Instagram and LinkedIn.

Mac and mobile apps

The Mac app records a shared screen locally as its own track. The iOS and Android apps can record, invite guests and serve as a second webcam.

OBS Studio

• OBS Studio$0

  The complete program for Windows, macOS and Linux, including recording, live streaming, the virtual camera, plugins and scripting.

Riverside

• Free$0

  2 hours of multi-track recording, unlimited single-track recording, 720p video and a Riverside watermark.

• Mobile Plus$9.99

  per month

  For the mobile apps only: removes watermarks and exports up to 4K video and WAV audio.

• Pro$24

  per month, billed annually at $288 ($29 monthly)

  Up to 4K video and 48 kHz audio, no watermark, 15 hours of separate-track downloads a month and 1 studio.

• Grow$34

  per month, billed annually at $408 ($39 monthly)

  20 hours of separate-track downloads a month, 2 studios, and Full HD live streaming with multistreaming.

• Webinar$79

  per month, billed annually ($99 monthly)

  25 hours of separate-track downloads, 3 studios, and webinars with up to 100 registrants, Q&A, polls and analytics.

• BusinessCustom

  Unlimited studios and separate-track downloads, up to 10,000 webinar registrants, API access, SSO and a dedicated CSM.

OBS Studio

No public discounts listed.

Riverside

• Annual discount

  Save up to 20% with yearly billing

  Annual billing drops Pro from $29 to $24 per month, Grow from $39 to $34 and Webinar from $99 to $79, which Riverside describes as saving up to 20%.