Last updated: 2026-01-15

For most content creators in the US, StreamYard is the best starting point for screen recording because it runs in the browser, records your screen and camera together (with local multi-track files), and is built for easy repurposing and distribution. When you need fully offline, highly tunable capture or ultra-quick async updates, OBS and Loom are strong secondary options.

Summary

• StreamYard is a browser-based studio that records screen + camera, supports multi-participant sessions, and gives you local multi-track recordings suitable for editing and reuse. (StreamYard)
• OBS Studio is a free desktop application with deep configuration and no vendor time caps, but it expects more setup and stronger hardware. (OBS)
• Loom focuses on quick, shareable async videos with a generous paid tier, but the free Starter plan limits you to 5‑minute, 25‑video screen recordings. (Loom)
• For most creators, we recommend using StreamYard for presenter‑led screen recordings and interviews, OBS for heavy local capture, and Loom as an optional add‑on for short updates.

What should creators look for in screen recording software?

Before you compare logos, get clear on what actually matters for real-world content creation:

• Fast setup: You want to hit record without wrestling with encoders, drivers, or virtual audio devices.
• Clear, presenter-led storytelling: The best recordings keep the focus on you and your screen, not on fiddly tools.
• High-quality output on typical laptops: You shouldn’t need a gaming rig to capture a clean 1080p tutorial.
• Instant reuse and distribution: Record once, then slice, edit, and publish across platforms.
• Reliability: Long interviews or walkthroughs should not be at the mercy of a single unstable connection or misconfigured setting.

Most creators don’t wake up wanting “more codecs”; they want smooth, repeatable workflows. That’s where a browser studio like StreamYard has a natural advantage for day‑to‑day production.

How does StreamYard handle screen recording for creators?

At StreamYard, we built the studio so screen recording feels like running a live show—because that’s often exactly what you’re doing.

Core capabilities that matter for creators:

• Presenter-visible screen sharing with controllable layouts. You can bring your screen on and off, switch layouts, and decide when your face is full-screen, side‑by‑side, or minimized.
• Independent control of screen audio and mic audio. This makes it easier to keep system sounds, music, and your voice balanced without complex routing.
• Local multi-track recordings for post-production. Paid plans support per‑participant local recording with separate audio/video files, so you can pull clean tracks into your editor later. (StreamYard)
• Landscape and portrait outputs from the same session. You can design the session once and export content suited for YouTube, Shorts/Reels, and Stories.
• Live branding baked in. Overlays, logos, and lower‑thirds are applied as you record, which reduces editing time afterward.
• Presenter notes that only you see. You can keep prompts and talking points handy without them ever appearing in the recording.
• Multi-participant screen sharing. Guests can share their screens too, making collaborative demos and interviews straightforward.

Because StreamYard runs primarily in the browser, you avoid heavy installs and can record from many typical work or school laptops, as long as the browser can access your mic, camera, and screen. (StreamYard)

StreamYard vs OBS: which is better for creator editing workflows?

If you do a lot of editing, both StreamYard and OBS can work—but they optimize for very different styles.

Where StreamYard fits editing-first creators

Imagine you host a weekly tutorial show with guests. Your priorities:

• Capture a clean conversation with multiple people.
• Record the main show plus backups.
• Get separate audio tracks for each voice.
• Spend as little time as possible configuring your setup.

With StreamYard:

• You run everything in a browser studio, invite guests by link, and capture both screen and camera without extra routing.
• On all plans, local recordings can capture each participant separately, and paid plans remove monthly caps on local recording. (StreamYard)
• You leave the session with files that drop directly into your editor, plus a branded “live cut” if you recorded with overlays.

Where OBS fits editing-first creators

OBS is a strong choice when you:

• Need fine control of encoders, bitrates, and formats.
• Record on powerful machines and want everything fully local.
• Are comfortable tuning scenes, sources, and hardware.

OBS is a free, open source desktop app for video recording and live streaming; it supports multiple sources and scenes and exposes detailed encoding controls. (OBS) It does not impose vendor time caps, but stability and quality depend entirely on your CPU, GPU, and storage. (OBS)

The trade-off: OBS expects you to manage all the complexity yourself. Many creators decide that saving hours of setup and troubleshooting with StreamYard is worth far more than the subscription cost.

Recording length limits: free vs paid (StreamYard, OBS, Loom)

Creators often ask, “Which tool actually lets me record as long as I want?” The answer depends on whether you care more about vendor limits or practical workflow.

StreamYard

• On the free plan, monthly streaming/recording time and local recording are limited, including 2 hours per month of local recordings and 5 hours of cloud storage. (StreamYard)
• On paid plans, you get unlimited local recording (subject to your own device and disk) and automatic cloud recordings with per‑stream caps (10 hours on most plans, 24 hours on Business) plus storage‑hour limits. (StreamYard)

In practice, this covers nearly all typical creator use cases—multi‑hour webinars, long interviews, launch events, and course modules.

OBS Studio

• OBS does not impose its own time or watermark limits; you “get access to all features at no cost,” and recordings are constrained mainly by your hardware and file system. (OBS)

That freedom is powerful, but it also means large files and more pressure on your computer during long sessions.

Loom

• Loom’s free Starter plan caps regular screen recordings at 5 minutes per video and 25 videos per person, which makes long tutorials or frequent uploads difficult without upgrading. (Loom)
• Paid Loom plans list “unlimited recording time & storage,” but they’re billed per user, so costs scale with team size. (Loom)

For creators who regularly record long-form content, StreamYard and OBS are more natural fits than a free Loom workspace.

How does pricing compare for solo creators and teams?

Pricing only matters in context of what you actually get and how many people are using the tool.

StreamYard

• There is a free plan for getting started.
• Paid plans are priced per workspace, not per user, which can be significantly more cost‑effective for small teams than per‑seat tools.
• New US users often see first‑year discounts (for example, Core around $20/month and Advanced around $39/month when billed annually) and a 7‑day free trial to test workflows.

Because pricing is per workspace, you can bring co‑hosts and producers into the same studio without multiplying license fees.

Loom

• Loom’s Starter tier is free but limited to 25 videos and 5‑minute recordings. (Loom)
• Business and Business + AI tiers start around $15–20 per user per month (annual billing) with unlimited videos and recording length. (Loom)

For teams where multiple creators need screen recording every week, StreamYard’s workspace pricing can be more economical than stacking individual Loom seats.

OBS

• OBS is free and open source with no subscription cost, which is attractive if you’re comfortable investing time and hardware instead of cash. (OBS)

The realistic trade-off: OBS saves money but costs you setup time; Loom’s per‑user pricing grows with your team; StreamYard aims to keep total team cost predictable while reducing the hours you spend wrestling with tools.

When is Loom or OBS a better fit than StreamYard?

We’re confident StreamYard is the best default choice for most creators, but there are clear cases where other tools make sense:

• Choose OBS when you want maximum control over codecs, bitrates, and scene composition, and you’re comfortable managing everything locally on a powerful PC.
• Choose Loom when your primary need is quick async communication—short updates, reviews, and walkthroughs that are watched via links inside tools like Slack and Jira. (Loom)

Even in those scenarios, many creators still keep StreamYard in their toolkit for guest interviews, live launches, and higher‑stakes recordings where reliability and multi-track capture matter.

What we recommend

• Start with StreamYard as your main screen recording studio for tutorials, interviews, webinars, and repurposed content.
• Add OBS if you later need highly customized, hardware‑tuned local captures or niche encoding workflows.
• Use Loom as a complementary async tool for quick internal updates, not as your primary long‑form recording stack.
• Prioritize workflows that let you record once in StreamYard and then reuse that content everywhere, instead of juggling many different tools for the same job.