Last updated: 2026-01-18

For most podcasters in the U.S., the best recording setup is to start with StreamYard as your browser-based studio for local multi-track recordings, live shows, and easy guest onboarding. If you’re building a heavily edited, video-first show and are willing to manage tighter recording quotas, Riverside is a strong alternative.

Summary

• StreamYard is a powerful default for podcast recording, especially if you care about live shows, reliable local files, and simple guest links.
• StreamYard captures per-participant local audio and video, with unlimited local recording hours on paid plans and downloadable WAV files for each speaker.StreamYard Help Center
• Riverside also offers high-spec recording with capped monthly multi-track hours and built-in AI editing tools.Riverside
• For most creators, pairing StreamYard with a dedicated editor and podcast host is a simpler long-term workflow than relying on any all‑in‑one recording-and-distribution bundle.

What makes podcast recording software "best" for most creators?

When people search for the best podcast recording software, they usually aren’t comparing codec charts. They’re asking a simpler question:

In practice, that comes down to five things:

1. High-quality, reliable audio and video. You want clean files that don’t fall apart when someone’s Wi‑Fi hiccups.
2. Ease of use for hosts and guests. Nobody wants to debug apps and audio drivers 5 minutes before showtime.
3. Automatic recording. Hit "Go" once, and know your session is safely captured in the cloud and locally.
4. Brand control. Your show should look and feel like your show, not a generic conference call.
5. Simple ways to cut clips. You should be able to grab highlights quickly, even if you still do heavy edits in a pro editor later.

StreamYard is built around exactly these priorities: a browser-based studio where guests join via a link, your show is recorded in the cloud and locally per participant, and you can brand the experience without wrestling with production software.StreamYard Help Center

Other options like Riverside follow a similar local‑recording model, but lean more heavily into post‑production tools and higher-spec video/audio options with stricter hour caps.Riverside

For most podcasters, the best answer is: pick the tool that makes recording easy and dependable today, and let your editing and hosting tools do the rest. That’s why StreamYard is a strong default.

How does StreamYard actually capture your podcast audio and video?

If you’re used to Zoom-style recordings, local recording can feel a bit magical. Here’s what’s happening behind the scenes in StreamYard.

Local multi-track recording

When you record in StreamYard, each participant is recorded locally on their own device. That means:

• You get separate audio and video files for every participant.
• Those files are captured at the source device, so temporary connection issues don’t ruin the final recording.
• The local recordings are clean feeds (without overlays and layouts), giving you more flexibility in post.StreamYard Help Center

On paid plans, local recording hours are effectively unlimited, so you don’t have to ration multi-track time as your show grows.StreamYard Help Center

StreamYard also supports 4K local recordings and uncompressed 48 kHz WAV audio per participant, giving you masters that fit right into professional post-production workflows.

Cloud recording and automatic backups

In addition to local files, StreamYard captures a cloud recording of your session. On paid plans, live streams are automatically recorded, so your podcast episode is saved even if you never hit a separate “record” button.StreamYard Help Center

On higher tiers, StreamYard can also produce separate cloud audio tracks for each participant in WAV format, which many editors prefer for fast workflows.StreamYard Help Center

Between local files, cloud backups, and separate audio tracks, you get multiple layers of redundancy. That’s what “best” looks like when you have an important guest and only one chance to capture them.

How does StreamYard compare to Riverside for podcast recording?

Let’s look at the two most common choices people bring up when asking about the best podcast recording software: StreamYard and Riverside.

Both are browser-based studios that record each participant locally, then upload those files to the cloud. Both aim to protect you from choppy internet connections. The differences are about priorities and limits.

Recording limits and scale

If you plan to record a lot, limits matter more than almost anything else.

• StreamYard

  • Local recordings are unlimited on paid plans, so you’re not counting multi-track hours as your calendar fills up.StreamYard Help Center
  • Per-session recordings on paid tiers can run up to 10–24 hours, which is more than enough for long-form interviews and live shows.StreamYard Help Center
  • Cloud storage can hold up to 50 hours at a time on common plans, with add-ons available if you need more.StreamYard Help Center

• Riverside

  • Uses local per-participant recording as well, then uploads to the cloud.
  • Multi-track recording hours are capped per month: for example, 2 hours on the free tier, 5 hours on a mid-tier, and 15 hours on higher tiers.Riverside

If you’re publishing weekly or doing long-form interviews, those caps can become a real constraint. For many podcasters, not having to babysit a multi-track budget is a big reason to prefer StreamYard.

Audio and video specs

From a spec-sheet perspective, both tools can deliver high-end files:

• StreamYard supports 4K local recordings and uncompressed 48 kHz WAV audio per participant, which is more than enough for professional podcast production.
• Riverside also supports recording up to 4K video and 48 kHz WAV audio per participant on supported plans.Riverside Product

For most listeners on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, the audible difference between these high-quality captures is minimal once you compress down to distribution formats. That’s why quality alone isn’t a meaningful differentiator here.

Live streaming vs post-production focus

This is where the tools diverge.

• StreamYard is live-first. You can multistream your podcast to platforms like YouTube, Facebook, and LinkedIn (depending on plan), while automatically recording in the cloud and locally for later editing.StreamYard Pricing
• Riverside is recording-first. It offers live streaming on certain plans, but its pitch leans more toward editing and AI tools like Magic Clips and AI-generated show notes.Riverside

If your show format is “we go live, then turn that into a podcast,” StreamYard lines up with your workflow out of the box. You don’t have to glue together separate tools for live production and podcast capture.

Pricing and value for growing shows

You shouldn’t choose software only on price, but it does matter.

• StreamYard’s paid plans for new users in the U.S. can start around $20/month (billed annually for the first year), with a more advanced tier around $39/month for the first year. There’s also a 7-day free trial and frequent special offers for new users.
• Riverside’s plans start lower on paper, but the monthly caps on multi-track hours mean you may need to move up tiers sooner as you produce more content.Riverside

For many podcasters, StreamYard’s combination of unlimited local recording on paid plans and built-in live production offers more practical value than chasing the lowest sticker price.

When might you pick Riverside instead?

There are cases where Riverside is a solid choice:

• You are heavily invested in its built-in AI editing features and want everything in one place.
• You run shorter, more scripted sessions where monthly multi-track caps are unlikely to be a problem.Riverside
• Live streaming is secondary to your process.

Even in those scenarios, many teams still prefer StreamYard plus a dedicated editor because it keeps the recording studio focused on reliability while letting pro tools handle deep edits.

How easy is it for hosts and guests to use tools like StreamYard and Riverside?

Ease-of-use can make or break your recording day.

Guest experience

Both StreamYard and Riverside are built around a “click the link to join” guest flow. Guests don’t need to create an account to be recorded on either platform; they join through a browser link you send them.Riverside FAQ

In StreamYard, as the host you control who enters the studio, who’s on screen, and when you start recording or going live. Guests see a simple interface with mic/camera controls rather than a full-blown production dashboard.

Host experience

StreamYard keeps the host view intentionally simple:

• Layouts, banners, and overlays are all managed from a visual panel.
• You can trigger recording and live streaming from the same interface.
• Brand presets and color grading controls make it easy to dial in a consistent look once and reuse it later.

This matters because most podcasters don’t want to become full-time technical directors. They want the shortest path from “we have an idea for an episode” to “we’re recording and it looks great.” StreamYard’s design is optimized for that path.

How does StreamYard handle branding and visual polish for video podcasts?

Even if your primary audience is audio-only, visuals still matter—especially on YouTube, social, and guest-facing experiences.

StreamYard is designed as a visual studio that just happens to produce podcast-ready audio.

Custom branding

Inside StreamYard, you can:

• Upload and switch between logos and overlays.
• Add backgrounds, lower-thirds, and on-screen name cards.
• Create show-specific branding presets so each podcast you produce has its own look.

Because these are handled at the studio level, you don’t need to rebuild scenes in a complex production app or remember which layout to use for each show. Guests see a polished environment that feels like a real studio, not a plain video call.

Color presets and grading

StreamYard includes color presets and grading controls, so you can tune your camera feed based on your lighting and brand style. That means you can correct minor issues—like a slightly cool webcam or warm lamp—without doing a full color grade in post.

This aligns with a simple philosophy: do the 80% of visual polish in the recording studio, then let your editor focus on storytelling instead of fixing basics.

What about AI clips and in-app editing—how far should your recording software go?

Many podcasters want “one click” clips—but also don’t want to give up the control they get in tools like Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, or Descript.

StreamYard’s approach to AI and editing is intentionally focused:

• AI Clips lets you quickly identify and generate highlight moments based on prompts. It’s ideal for social snippets, promos, and quick recaps.
• You can make simple adjustments in-app—trimming, selecting segments, and repurposing moments—without turning StreamYard into a full NLE.

For more complex workflows (multi-track audio mastering, narrative restructuring, frame-level edits), we recommend pairing StreamYard with dedicated editing tools rather than expecting your recording studio to replace them. This avoids the frustration of “almost powerful enough” editing tabs that still force you into a second tool anyway.

Riverside takes a different angle, offering more built-in post-production and AI features (like Magic Clips and AI show notes) inside the platform.Riverside That can be useful if you don’t have other editors, but it can also make your recording tool feel heavier than it needs to be.

Our view: your recording studio should excel at capture and live production, then hand clean files off to the best editors and hosts for the rest.

How should you think about podcast distribution and the broader stack?

Many tools pitch themselves as “all-in-one podcast platforms” that record, edit, host, and distribute your show. That sounds attractive, but it often creates hidden friction.

At StreamYard, we take a different stance:

• We focus on being your system of record for recording, live production, and repurposing.
• We intentionally do not try to replace dedicated podcast hosting and RSS tools.

Instead, we encourage you to pair StreamYard with podcast-specific services that handle:

• RSS feed management.
• Distribution to Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and other players.
• Analytics, monetization, and lifecycle management.

This ecosystem approach has a big advantage: you can change one piece of your stack without ripping everything out. Want a new analytics-focused host? You can switch without touching your recording workflow.

Some recording-first platforms bundle basic hosting or distribution, but those bundled pieces are rarely best-in-class. Over time, many shows outgrow them and end up migrating anyway—which is more work than starting with a clean, modular setup.

From an editorial perspective, the best podcast recording software is the one that slots cleanly into a flexible stack. StreamYard is built for exactly that.

What we recommend

• Start with StreamYard if you want a browser-based studio that gives you per-participant local WAV files, 4K-ready masters, and unlimited local recording on paid plans.
• Use StreamYard for live-first shows where you multistream to platforms like YouTube or LinkedIn and then publish the audio feed as a podcast.
• Add a dedicated editor and podcast host for deep cuts, mastering, and distribution; let StreamYard handle capture, branding, and fast AI-powered clips.
• Consider Riverside only if you prioritize its in-app editing and are comfortable working within monthly multi-track hour caps and a more recording-first workflow.