OBS vs. ShadowPlay: Full comparison

Streamers who broadcast and capture gameplay have many great options for streaming software. If you want to stream video games, you probably know that the two most popular options are OBS and ShadowPlay. It can be hard to choose between them, though. 

That’s why we’re looking at OBS vs. ShadowPlay by comparing each programs’ features, pros, and cons. That way, you can decide which program best fits your streaming needs. 

What is OBS?

Open Broadcaster Software, or OBS, is a widely-used live streaming and video recording program. It’s free, open-source, and a go-to choice for broadcasting software among streamers and gamers. With its scene system and powerful interface, OBS is highly customizable and gives you complete control over your stream or recording; you can also use OBS to record and edit videos. OBS is also available anywhere and is compatible with Windows, macOS, and Linux. Although OBS tends to have a learning curve for new streamers, it’s still a versatile live streaming program for any content creator. 

Main features of OBS

• Live video broadcasting: Stream videos to a wide variety of platforms, including Facebook, Twitch, YouTube, Twitter, and more. You can also share and broadcast your screen in HD.
• Unlimited recording: There’s no time limit on your OBS video and audio recordings — just make sure you have enough space on your device to store them!
• Editing tools: Use features such as chroma key, automatic color correction, image masking, and more.
• Audio mixing: OBS has a built-in audio mixer for controlling the quality of your stream audio in real time.
• Managing multiple sources: Connect all your input sources (i.e. cameras, microphones, and capture cards) to OBS to duplicate or toggle between them easily.

Pros of OBS

• Free
• Open-source with community support
• Many plugins available for ultimate customization
• Easy to configure and connect to streaming platforms
• Simultaneous streaming and recording capabilities
• Switching between scenes with one click
• Create unlimited scenes and transitions 

Cons of OBS

• Can be complicated to use for new streamers
• User interface can sometimes feel clunky
• Software updates frequently 

What is ShadowPlay?

ShadowPlay is live streaming and recording software from NVIDIA, the company that makes PC graphics cards. Its main feature is recording gameplay in 4k resolution and 60 fps, as well as taking high-quality screenshots. It also has live broadcasting capabilities for Twitch, Facebook, and YouTube. When installed, ShadowPlay starts running automatically as soon as you launch a game on your computer. It uses a small amount of CPU resources, so it only impacts game performance by about 5%. However, ShadowPlay only works with NVIDIA graphic cards. 

Main features of ShadowPlay

• 4k recording: ShadowPlay lets you record live streams in 4k resolution.
• Continuous recording: As it’s running, ShadowPlay records up to the last twenty minutes of gameplay so you can save your clips at any time.
• Highlights: For compatible games, ShadowPlay automatically saves your best moments to your hard drive so you can access them later.
• GIFs: Create and share GIFs on Google, Facebook, and Imgur using ShadowPlay without leaving your game. 

Pros of ShadowPlay

• Free to use
• Share gameplay instantly on Facebook, Twitch, and YouTube
• High-quality audio and video
• Smooth game performance
• Use with custom graphic overlays 

Cons of ShadowPlay

• Only works for NVIDIA graphic cards
• Only stream to Facebook, Twitch, YouTube
• No video editing available
• Works with GeForce Experience, which is only available on Windows 

Comparison: OBS vs. ShadowPlay

Let’s compare these two streaming tools in the following categories:

• CPU performance
• Live streaming
• Compression
• Editing
• Recording
• File size
• Customization
• Community 

1. CPU performance

OBS is known for consuming a lot of CPU resources while it’s running. As a result, it reduces the frame rate while you’re streaming. To lessen CPU usage, you can lower the resolution, frame rate, and make other tweaks within the OBS settings.

ShadowPlay doesn't affect your CPU as much as OBS, but NVIDIA says to expect a performance decrease of at least 5% on regular PCs. 

2. Live streaming

In terms of stream quality, customization, and user-friendliness, OBS has ShadowPlay beat. You can create unlimited custom scenes with OBS to make your stream stand out. ShadowPlay has some nice stream overlays, but it’s very limited in terms of design options. 

It’s also important to consider integration support. You can only stream to Twitch, YouTube, and Facebook with ShadowPlay. With OBS, you can stream to many more platforms, or even a custom streaming destination. You can also use Restream with OBS to multistream to Twitch, YouTube, Facebook, and many other platforms simultaneously.

ShadowPlay also doesn’t let you screen record while broadcasting to Twitch. If you want to save your live session to post later, you’ll need another screen recording app to do so.

3. Compression

To save your streams and upload them later to YouTube, you typically need to compress the file so it’s compact enough. OBS lets you compress videos as you encode them, so they’re ready for uploading right after your stream. ShadowPlay limits compression, so the large stream file sizes will need recompressing before they’re uploaded to YouTube. 

4. Editing

OBS is the better choice for more sophisticated editing options. It has a built-in video editor that lets you customize transitions, apply chroma key, and more. You can also preview and adjust your scenes before you start broadcasting. 

ShadowPlay has some editing features, but they’re limited in comparison to OBS. You can also add an overlay to your gameplay, but you’ll need another program if you want to make edits beyond that.

5. Recording

Both OBS and ShadowPlay have high-quality video recording features, if you tweak some settings in OBS. However, OBS doesn’t have ShadowPlay’s instant replay feature that allows you to save specific highlights from your stream. Both have good recording options, but OBS is better for longer recordings due to compression limitations.

6. File size

Recordings on ShadowPlay take up more disk space than they do on OBS. OBS compresses recordings as you stream, which makes the file sizes smaller. However,  you can recompress ShadowPlay recordings after the stream is over. Even so, this takes more time and adds a step when you’re uploading stream recordings to YouTube or other platforms. 

7. Customization

With OBS, you can not only create limitless custom scenes, but also stream any content you want. ShadowPlay is compatible with most games, but it doesn’t work with every single one. You can find the list of compatible games on NVIDIA’s website. ShadowPlay is also primarily aimed at gaming streamers, so it may not be the best option for non-gaming content. 

8. Community

As a popular broadcasting software, OBS is open-source, meaning that anyone can develop plugins for it. OBS has an active community, and you can easily find forums, articles, and videos concerning technical issues with OBS if you need help. It’s very responsive to user needs, too: You can even request new features and improvements to existing ones through the OBS program.

ShadowPlay isn’t as widely known and doesn’t have the community that OBS does. There are guides and videos made by independent gamers or blogs, but they may not be the most up-to-date. As ShadowPlay is part of another NVIDIA program called GeForce Experience, even NVIDIA has limited support articles for ShadowPlay. 

Stream from your web browser with Restream Studio

If you don’t want to download any software but still want plenty of stream customization options, try using Restream Studio. Our live interface offers a premium, powerful streaming experience; all you need is a web browser, camera, and microphone to get started. You can also live stream to multiple channels simultaneously. 

Customize your stream by adding your own logo, background graphics, copyright-free music, and overlays. You can also manage all destination platforms’ live chats in one place and get detailed stream performance stats.

OBS vs. ShadowPlay: Who’s the winner?

The software you use should best fit your needs, but OBS is the superior tool in most respects. Both OBS and ShadowPlay are free, but ShadowPlay requires an NVIDIA graphics card, while OBS doesn’t. OBS also has more customization options that let you take full control of your stream. 

ShadowPlay is a good option for recording content if you’re new to streaming or you only want to use Twitch, Facebook, or YouTube. When you want to make your stream look more professional, upgrading to OBS Studio might be in order.