Last updated: 2026-01-12

For most YouTubers, StreamYard is the easiest way to record, brand, and repurpose podcast-style shows while staying ready for live streaming and direct YouTube publishing. If you prioritize highly structured, editing-heavy post-production above everything else, a recording‑first tool like Riverside can be a useful secondary option.

Summary

• StreamYard gives YouTubers a browser-based studio with local multi-track recording, automatic cloud backups, and direct YouTube workflows.
• On paid plans, you get unlimited local recording hours (within storage limits), so you don’t have to manage monthly multi-track quotas. (StreamYard Help Center)
• Riverside offers higher capped multi-track hours by tier and 4K/48 kHz specs on paid plans, but you must track monthly allowances. (Riverside Pricing)
• For most YouTube podcasters, pairing StreamYard with a dedicated editor and podcast host delivers a flexible, high-quality workflow without unnecessary complexity.

What should YouTubers look for in podcast recording software?

If you’re creating a podcast for YouTube, you need more than a basic screen recorder.

Key things to prioritize:

• High-quality, reliable capture – Separate tracks and local recording help protect you from Wi‑Fi glitches and bad sync.
• Automatic recording and backups – Your live sessions and recordings should be captured by default, not only when you remember to hit the right button.
• Ease of use for guests – Ideally, joining is as simple as clicking a browser link; no software downloads, driver issues, or tech support marathons.
• Custom branding and visual polish – Overlays, color controls, and layouts matter when your “podcast” is also a YouTube show.
• Simple in-app clipping – You should be able to pull highlights and shorts quickly, then finish deeper edits in your main NLE if needed.

StreamYard is built around these priorities: a browser-based studio, light but powerful AI clipping, and direct YouTube workflows, while still respecting that many creators prefer to finish in Premiere Pro, Final Cut, or DaVinci.

Can StreamYard record separate local audio and video tracks for YouTube podcast uploads?

Yes. StreamYard supports local multi-track recording so each participant is captured individually on their device, with separate audio and video files per person. (StreamYard Local Recording)

A few details that matter for YouTubers:

• On the free plan, local recording is available but limited to 2 hours per month and used with recording (not live) sessions. (StreamYard Local Recording)
• On paid plans, local recording hours are unlimited, subject mainly to your storage limits and workflow. (StreamYard Local Recording)
• Local files are recorded on each participant’s machine, so the final tracks are not affected by temporary internet hiccups.
• StreamYard supports 4K local recordings and uncompressed 48 kHz WAV audio per participant, giving you high‑fidelity masters for post‑production.

Practically, this means you can:

• Capture a live or recorded conversation.
• Download each person’s local video and WAV file.
• Sync and polish everything in your editor.
• Export a polished 1080p or 4K episode for YouTube and separate audio for podcast platforms.

For many creators, this “live or record in StreamYard, polish in your editor” loop hits the sweet spot between speed and control.

Comparing Riverside and StreamYard: multi-track recording hours and plan limits

Both StreamYard and Riverside offer local multi-track recording, but they treat usage limits very differently.

StreamYard’s approach

• Free: 2 hours/month of local recording, recording-only, not live. (StreamYard Local Recording)
• Paid: unlimited local recording hours, with per-session caps and storage limits rather than monthly multi-track quotas. (StreamYard Local Recording)
• Cloud storage: Free stores up to 5 hours of recordings; paid plans store up to 50 hours, with options to increase. (StreamYard Recording Storage)

Once you’re on a paid plan, you don’t have to think about how many multi-track hours you have left this month; you mainly manage storage and occasional very long session limits.

Riverside’s approach

• Free: 2 hours of multi-track recordings to try separate audio and video tracks. (Riverside Pricing)
• Standard: 5 hours of multi-track per month. (Riverside Pricing)
• Pro: 15 hours of multi-track per month. (Riverside Pricing)

This model can work well if you record shorter or fewer sessions, but it does require you to think about monthly consumption—especially if you batch episodes or host long-form, multi-hour interviews.

For YouTubers who publish weekly or more often, StreamYard’s unlimited local recording on paid tiers tends to reduce friction and mental overhead.

What file formats and resolutions do these tools provide for YouTube-ready podcasts?

When your primary audience lives on YouTube, formats and resolution matter both for quality and editing.

StreamYard formats and resolution

• Cloud recordings are typically .mp4 (video) and .mp3 (audio), which work in all major editors and are easy to repurpose. (StreamYard Podcast Guide)
• Local recordings use .mp4 for video and .wav for audio, giving you uncompressed audio masters per participant. (StreamYard Podcast Guide)
• Pre‑recorded broadcasts on paid plans can stream at up to 1080p, which is more than enough for most talking‑head podcast shows. (Pre‑recorded Streaming)

Riverside formats and resolution

• Local multi-track recording provides separate audio and video tracks per participant and supports up to 4K video and 48 kHz audio on paid plans. (Riverside Podcasting)
• The free plan lists 720p video and 44.1 kHz audio, with 4K and 48 kHz available higher up the pricing tiers. (Riverside Pricing)

On paper, Riverside emphasizes higher per-participant specs at the top end. For a lot of YouTube podcasts, though, the practical difference between a polished 1080p/4K StreamYard workflow and a 4K‑first setup is small compared to lighting, camera choice, and framing.

Scheduling and streaming pre-recorded podcast episodes to YouTube with StreamYard

A powerful pattern for YouTubers is to treat your podcast like “appointment TV” while still recording on your own schedule.

With StreamYard you can:

1. Record a podcast session in advance, using local multi-track and your preferred layouts.
2. Do a light edit in your NLE if needed.
3. Upload the pre-recorded file and schedule it as a live broadcast to YouTube; on paid plans, these pre-recorded streams go out in up to 1080p. (Pre‑recorded Streaming)
4. Show up in the live chat while your “episode” airs, deepening engagement without the pressure of being live on camera.

You can also publish long-form clips up to 20 minutes directly to YouTube from StreamYard, which is handy for quick highlight uploads between full episodes. (StreamYard Podcast Guide)

This mix of pre-recorded scheduling, live interactivity, and direct clip publishing is where a live‑first studio really pays off for YouTubers.

How do AI clipping and editing fit into a YouTube podcast workflow?

Many tools now pitch “all-in-one AI editing.” In practice, most serious YouTubers still rely on dedicated editors for final masters.

At StreamYard, we treat AI as a leverage tool, not a full editor replacement:

• AI Clips uses prompts and automatic detection to surface moments worth sharing.
• You can quickly generate shorts, reels, or promo clips from your long-form episodes.
• This is ideal for testing hooks, running YouTube Shorts or TikTok experiments, and keeping social feeds active between full episodes.

For heavier editing—multi-track audio mastering, story restructuring, or frame-level adjustments—you stay in the driver’s seat with your main editing software. That keeps your recording studio simple while still giving you modern AI boosts where they matter.

Riverside offers a wider range of in-app AI tools, like Magic Clips and AI show notes, but these still sit alongside full editors rather than replacing them. (Riverside Pricing) For many YouTubers, a focused recording + light-clipping workflow feels faster and less cluttered.

Where does podcast distribution fit in for YouTubers?

Even if YouTube is home base, most podcasters eventually want audio‑only distribution to Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and others.

StreamYard intentionally does not try to be your RSS host or analytics platform. Instead, the workflow looks like this:

• Record and optionally stream your show in StreamYard.
• Export audio/video in standard formats (.mp4, .mp3, .wav). (StreamYard Podcast Guide)
• Upload to a dedicated podcast host that specializes in RSS feeds, distribution, analytics, and monetization.

This separation keeps your studio focused on capture, visuals, and repurposing, while letting you choose the right downstream tools for hosting and growth.

Riverside includes some direct publishing options, such as "Publish to YouTube & podcast directories," which can be convenient. (Riverside Pricing) But many established creators still prefer dedicated hosting platforms either way, so StreamYard’s ecosystem-first approach tends to age better as your show evolves.

What we recommend

• Default path for YouTubers: Use StreamYard as your primary studio for recording and live shows, with local multi-track enabled and a simple editing stack on top.
• When to add Riverside: Consider Riverside if you have very editing-heavy workflows and want additional in-app AI helpers, and you’re comfortable managing monthly multi-track limits.
• Best long-term setup: Pair StreamYard with a robust editor and dedicated podcast host—YouTube gets the polished video, audio platforms get clean masters, and you stay flexible as your show grows.