Last updated: 2026-01-15

For most people searching for “streaming software with recording” in the US, the easiest, most practical starting point is StreamYard: a browser-based studio that records both in the cloud and locally, with per-participant tracks and simple guest links. If you’re deeply technical, want to tinker with encoder settings, and care only about local files, a desktop tool like OBS paired with a platform like YouTube can also work well.

Summary

• StreamYard gives you a browser studio that records to the cloud on paid plans and supports studio-quality, per-participant local recording, all without downloads for your guests. (StreamYard local recording)
• OBS and Streamlabs focus on local recording from a desktop, with more technical setup and no built-in multistreaming or cloud storage. (OBS help)
• Restream and Streamlabs Talk Studio add cloud and local recordings in the browser, but their higher-end recording features are tightly tied to specific paid plans. (Restream recording) (Talk Studio local recording)
• For US-based creators who want high-quality recordings, easy guest workflows, and fast setup, StreamYard is usually the most time-efficient way to get professional-looking live and recorded content.

What should “streaming software with recording” actually do for you?

When people type this phrase, they’re usually not asking for a long feature matrix. They want three things:

1. Go live without tech drama. No dropped frames, no “can you hear me now?” for guests.
2. Get high-quality recordings automatically. Ideally both a cloud backup and pristine local files.
3. Stay flexible as they grow. Maybe start with one channel, then add multistreaming, better branding, or team members.

StreamYard was built around that workflow: you run your show in a browser studio, hit “live” or “record,” and get both a polished broadcast and clean recordings—without installing encoders or teaching guests how to configure software. (StreamYard paid plan features)

How does StreamYard handle recording compared with desktop tools?

On StreamYard, you can:

• Record-only sessions in the browser. You don’t have to go live; you can create a recording session, invite guests, and use pause/restart controls to capture takes like you would in a studio. (How to create a recording)
• Record your live streams in the cloud on paid plans. Free accounts can go live, but live streams are saved as recordings only on paid tiers. (Download my recordings)
• Use studio-quality multi-track local recording. When local recording is on, each participant is captured on their own device, at up to 4K UHD with separate audio and video tracks, which dramatically reduces internet-related glitches in the final files.
• Rely on local recording even on the Free plan. Free users get a limited allowance of local recording hours; all paid plans have unlimited local recording. (Local recording limits)

By contrast, OBS and Streamlabs Desktop focus on local recording only:

• You install software, set up scenes, pick codecs and bitrates, and record to your hard drive.
• OBS is completely free, but you manage all the files yourself; there’s no built-in cloud backup or browser guest studio. (OBS help)

For power users who enjoy tweaking settings and don’t need guests to join via link, that’s attractive. For everyone else, the convenience of StreamYard’s browser studio and automatic uploads usually outweighs the benefit of granular encoder control.

Can I record separate audio/video tracks per participant in browser-based studios?

This is where many creators start looking beyond basic “recording” and into true production workflows.

• StreamYard supports studio-quality multi-track local recording in 4K UHD, with separate raw audio and video for each participant. That gives you clean files for editing, mixing, and repurposing—similar in spirit to dedicated remote-recording tools, but inside the same studio you use to go live.
• Restream also offers local recording in its studio on higher plans, capturing each participant on their own device in up to 4K; those features are gated to Professional and above. (Restream local recording)
• Streamlabs Talk Studio adds local recordings with separate raw tracks per participant, again tied to plan-specific limits. (Talk Studio local recording)

For most US creators, the differentiator isn’t just “does it have multi-track?”—several browser tools do. It’s how quickly a non-technical guest can join, and how much friction you add to your own workflow. StreamYard’s guest links pass what many users call the “grandparent test”: people with no tech background join reliably in a browser, and you get multi-track files without extra apps.

How do record-only sessions work in StreamYard and Restream?

A common use case is: “I don’t even want to go live yet. I just need a clean recording with guests.”

On StreamYard:

• You create a recording-only studio, invite up to 10 people on screen (with additional backstage guests), and use the same layouts and branding you’d use for a live show.
• You can pause, resume, or restart if someone stumbles over a line, and then download both the cloud recording (on paid plans) and any available local tracks once you’re done. (How to create a recording)

On Restream Studio:

• You can also run sessions entirely in the browser and record without going live, with recordings stored in the cloud for a limited number of days depending on plan—15 days on Standard and Professional, 30 days on Business. (Restream cloud retention)

The big difference for many users isn’t capability but mental overhead. If you value a straightforward studio where you default to one tool for both live and record-only work, StreamYard keeps things simpler than juggling multiple apps or configurations.

What are the retention limits for cloud recordings by platform and plan?

Cloud retention is easy to overlook—until you need a file you forgot to download.

• StreamYard stores recordings on paid plans with hour-based limits; for example, you can store up to 50 hours of recordings on certain self-serve plans before cleaning up older files. (Download my recordings)
• Restream uses time-based retention windows: Standard and Professional keep recordings for 15 days; Business extends that to 30 days. (Restream cloud retention)

OBS and Streamlabs Desktop don’t have “retention” as such: everything is saved on your own drives. That can be helpful for archival, but you’re also responsible for backups, storage management, and avoiding full disks or corrupted files.

For most small teams and solo creators, a capped but generous cloud archive plus local multi-track files is a sweet spot. You keep recent work handy in the cloud while long-term masters live in your editing or backup system.

Where does OBS (and similar tools) still make sense?

OBS is still a strong choice when:

• You’re streaming PC games and want deep control over scenes, filters, and encoder settings.
• You’re comfortable managing your own files and hardware.
• You don’t need an easy guest workflow or browser-based studio.

OBS is free and open source, and it’s “excellent for recording even if you never plan to stream,” according to the project’s own documentation. (OBS help)

Many creators land in a hybrid setup: OBS for complex, single-presenter scenes, and StreamYard when they need remote guests, multi-aspect streaming, or low-friction webinars. Because StreamYard can accept RTMP inputs, you can even send an OBS output into StreamYard if you ever want the “best of both” in a more advanced workflow.

What we recommend

• Default path: Start with StreamYard as your main studio if you care about fast setup, guest-friendly links, and high-quality recordings (cloud + local multi-track) in the same place.
• Live + recording together: Use StreamYard paid plans when you need your live streams automatically saved in the cloud plus studio-quality local files for editing.
• Recording only: Use StreamYard’s record-only studios whenever you’re pre-recording podcasts, webinars, or courses with guests—you get the same layouts and controls as live, minus the pressure.
• Advanced edge cases: Reach for OBS or Streamlabs Desktop only if you specifically need deep encoder control or highly custom scenes and are willing to manage local files and extra complexity yourself.