Best OBS Settings For Recording | The Ultimate Guide | 2023 Edition

Open Broadcaster Software is a simple yet complex piece of software and is capable of amazing things when used properly. Let's take a deep dive into OBS and figure out what settings you should be using for recording gameplay or RL footage to achieve the highest quality possible. High end and low end PCs can both record, and in this guide I tell you the best settings to use for whatever your PC setup may be.
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[@D00melf]

There's something important I feel the need to point out. Should be upscaling your recordings to 1440p (2560×1440) or higher if you want good quality on uploaded video. Resolutions of 1080p or lower get assigned the AVC1 codec, which prioritizes speed over quality and causes poor quality with pixelation. Resolutions above 1080p get assigned the VP9 codec, which prioritizes quality over speed and doesn't have those issues.
Doesn't matter if recording at 1440p or decide to upscale the resolution after you stop recording. Can record in 1080p and set output resolution to 1440p. The video you plan to upload must be of that or higher quality to get assigned the VP9 codec and not suffer quality loss. Channels with a lot of viewers, subscribers or popular content get the benefit of using VP9, even if the video resolution is lower than 1440p. Can upload a 1080p recording and will get assigned the VP9 codec.

[@hello_2221]

Also TH-cam delivers content in 1440p in a much higher bitrate than 1080p in general. Doing a test with yt-dlp's -F function on one of my videos, the 1440p format has about 3x the bitrate over the 1080p format despite only having about 1.8x the pixels. This is also why you should watch videos in 1440p or better if applicable, even if you don't have a 1440p screen

[@_draxin_0514]

What's the best method of upscaling my 1080p recordings to 1440p?

[@hello_2221]

@@_draxin_0514 Look into the software Handbrake

[@D00melf]

@@_draxin_0514 Can do it in the Video tab of OBS. I have 1920x1080 in Base (Canvas) Resolution and 2560x1440 in Output (Scaled) Resolution. Since 2560x1440 wasn't an option in dropdown menu, I set it manually.

[@2313weadw]

@@D00melf thanks!

[@hyposane]

OH MY GOD DUDE. YOU SAVED MY LIFEE HERE.

[@SimpleUsername04sub]

this really helped, I used to have very bad quality choppy videos when I knew my pc could handle way better and this video helped releasing the best qualirty out of my videos! Thanks a lot

[@lethalmital]

Thank you for making this video. I was having issues with my settings and didn't know where to start. After making the changes you stated, my recordings are a lot smoother. Cheers Hammer Dance.

[@aly-pw2wd]

9 MONTHS LATER AND THESE SETTINGS ARE STILL BEST U SAVED ME I LOVE YOU

[@fedefox288]

I don't know what did it, but I was dropping frames after I updated to 29.1.3. I followed your video step by step and No more frame drops!!! good job!!!

[@kat_eternity2.0]

Hey your obs settings tutorial really helped me out because I wanted to record for youtube! I love making content but didnt know the best settings for obs! Now I know! Thanks!

[@eoo-j9n]

5:50 I put 16 CQ lvls at first it runs very smoothly but the file size is over 5gb for 5~6mins video
So I changed back to 20s cuz my games are mostly Nintendo Switch games. Now the file size is around 2.30gb for same length of the video.
It doesn't very different for low graphic games in my opinion. Hopefully it helps as an example for ppl who thinks about this setting

[@HuyHuynh-rf4ic]

So do you think if using CQP, is it better to set the preset to P6 or P5?

[@drowz9825]

You don’t even record Nintendo games 😂

[@EternallyEve]

@@drowz9825 Just because he doesn't have uploads on his channel doesn't mean he doesn't record anything. What a stupid comment.

[@DNH17]

One of the best explaination video out there: one of the specific part you could have maybe included is adding the description of how to separate audio which u decided to leave out but would have taken 10 seconds more, and good thing u have explained by mentioning it quickly still that if one records from a different source has to set that in a specific place and there is nothing to think about more. Thanks a lot.

[@EzTommy]

I love the way you explain everything that OBS doesn't care to explain it to Us. much love and thank you to help me find out the best setting way for myself.

[@NightTrainIndustries]

Thanks man CQP 16 was the key! such a straight and to the point video!

[@gloomyrogue6570]

Thanks man you've saved me bigtime

[@GraviTeaVR]

fragmented mp4 is now available for a file option. itll save the file up until the recording ended. so if you lose power or obs crashes, itll save what was already "recorded" so you wont lose all of the data.

[@N4feYT]

cqp at 21 for games recording around 20-30 min can go from 20-60gb depending on how much info your pc has to record (1080p*)

[@DrewkungfooToo]

I use a 2-PC Setup. A dedicated streaming and gaming PCs.
I’m using a RodeCaster DUO USB-C cables from it to each PC for audio.

[@ian_gast]

Dude, I thought I just needed a better pc for good recordings, you’re the goat!!!

[@JasonTaylor-po5xc]

I did some testing on my own. For NVIDIA H.264 NVENC recordings CQ level 15 was the most efficient - there was a noticeable file size difference at 14, 15, and 16. I had to get up to 20 for the file size to be similar. In other words, CQ of 15 and 20 have similar file sizes. It is entirely possible it was something about my setup. I didn't see a similar effect using HVEC or AV1 - those has the expected file size increases with lower CQ levels. BTW, NVIDIA recommends CQ 15 on their OBS guide.

[@hawkttvv7738]

the BEST video on obs setting !

[@PreachToThePublic]

THANK YOU!!!!!!!! I have been trying to fix the lag in my OBS for ages and you finally gave me the right solution after looking and using other tips from other TH-cam creators and you gave the right solution!!! Thank you. your the best!! STAY AWESOME!

[@SpyiStyVR-1418]

THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! This Helped me a lot with recording i was having some problems and you fixed them , i and going to thankfully share this with my friends thank you.

[@BuddaSlim]

thank u bro

[@hammerdance]

No problem

[@MShadow47]

Thank you finally I'd record quality video

[@hammerdance]

You're welcome!

[@PearOnPearOff]

Nice. Good video, concise and too the point. No unnecessary fluff. Good choice of background music too!

[@thilankaweerawardana9571]

Thank you so much, now my recordings are super quality. 😊

[@DJCroBar]

Thanks man, using a lower powered laptop to start adding video to my DJ sets, so squeezing out all the juice I can is a must via settings, real useful vid

[@thecomicpunch2888]

Oh man.... you're the best! I had too many problems of resolution but with this video I have now everything clear.
Thank youuuu

[@marissamendez92]

thankyou my BOSS, this is awesome, amazing setting recording, thankyou , thankyou, thankyouuu

[@Semperf11]

Yo video was the first to pop up when I searched for this . Thanks for the video 🤙🏾

[@hammerdance]

Glad I could help!

[@getlikeme21]

This helped me a lot you deserve a sub

[@MalacosaMinecrack]

Thanks Hammer, perfectly explained, huge help to us newbie streamers/recorders

[@UnKaito]

THANKS. This guide helped me fix my bad quality videos. I watched so many other tutorials and this one worked for me.

[@veximo_]

This helps a lot...thank you! Now is time for RECORDING🔥🔥🔥🔥

[@NurOnVr]

Thank you so much! i used to have such bad quality before i saw this video. but now all the recordings i do are super smooth and i can read texts clearly:)

[@IamVengeance18]

tq so much brother 🙂

[@maximus_911]

Bro you just helped me a lot😭
I've been trying to stop the lag on obs the whole day, and finally finally i managed to do so because of this video

[@JaviHeals]

Bro thankyou so much!!!!! This has just completely changed my recording quality

[@DeaconLive]

Thank you for the video... i had to go back and reset my settings ...

[@MagnusTsunamiGaming]

I really appreciate you doing these videos, I always come to youtube to find the best recording settings! :D and you always deliver! Keep it up.

[@russ_goat]

Thanks so much. I subscribed for this video alone.

[@Wijnfles]

This info is so different than so much other vids i’ve seen tnx man!

[@effigeni]

You fixed my issues i was trying to fix for multiple days. You are glorius.
Thank you very much, HD ♥

[@pooswah10]

Very thorough with everything in regards to recording A+ Video

[@MatthewJeans]

Thank you so so much for this! Improved my recordings tremendously!!

[@GrislyGrizz]

*EDIT:* I figured out why, my capture card was set to "default" I had to change it to "custom" and then set it to 1080. Looks correct now.
I followed all these settings but the recording quality is still bad. I tried what one of the comments said, to upscale to 1440, no change. I set everything to the lowest quality to see if it's just too much for my computer... No change, it's a little blurry/pixlated no matter what. I dont know what to do about that, every post I've read has suggestions that I follow and nothing solves the problem.

[@dirt_diver]

Been battling with video output quality for some time. This video helped tremendously and my video quality is 100% better. Thanks a mil. Greetings from Johannesburg South Africa. - PS. Now i will be watching your streaming settings video for sure.

[@Arkix_23]

Let's go dude! My game looks so smooth in the clips... you just gained a sub!!

[@wrothgar]

Good, clean tutorial. Liked the video, thank you Hammer.

[@dennisbeck7892]

So glad I found your channel. Your instructional was easy to follow and enough to make me understand why I am setting something as you suggest. Well done!

[@AceJD]

Appreciate it brother, I'll be pumping out videos now

[@TheScareArchives]

Thx, you really helped me out with all these Settings!

[@speedisslow9377]

really helped

[@KevinMawira]

Thank you for this, my recordings are looking way better now

[@secfeed6987]

Great guide, works well even at 4k, only issue I have now is the file size gets fairly large at higher resolutions. I have down scaled it to 1440p, getting roughly 19Gb for 24mins. I plan on recording for up to 2hrs. Looks like I'll be getting another large SSD

[@footballtalk4857]

You can also do CBR instead of CQP it will save file size

[@FahimPlayz]

@@footballtalk4857 what would the best numbers for cbr then

[@secfeed6987]

@@footballtalk4857 Yeah but the quality is so much better with CQP. I always get ghosting and dithering on the other.

[@spookyrookie]

Crazy how i was using geforce experience's shadowplay and the file sizes were huge compared to this my 3 minute videos were around 1.7g and in obs even after cranking up the settings it doesnt get to 1g

[@ericgeibelmusic]

Very well explained. Thank you for walking through the settings.

[@queueuof]

much appreciated, was wondering why my cod vids were coming out looking like actual ps2 graphics

[@tombergeronca]

Thank you, nice video, all information there, straight to the point !

[@_Ajar]

thanx dear love from india 💖

[@Wall_banger]

Thanks again Hammer, I put new memory in pc so had to come watch this again to setup obs. haha I upgraded to a Samsung 990Pro 2TB

[@dontrez8412]

Yeah, I think I'm going to have to make some settings changes.

[@3d_designing_with_SHADAN]

You are great man

[@white-mocha]

Thanks for the video, helped me set up OBS!

[@ShyShimote20]

Thank you so much. This info will help me a lot with my game recordings😁😁

[@Armorj.]

u the goat for this

[@staycheifenn]

thank you so much, this was extremely helpful!!

[@Lynx_Simba]

thanks, it is really helped out

[@banzainator]

This was extremely helpful, thank you so much!

[@jaredjonesontv]

Super helpful! Thanks so much!!

[@Jensaoplays]

This video was very helpful, thank you!

[@HexieDose]

thanks :)

[@COWBOY_TECH]

Thanks for a concise and informative video

[@koartist8598]

As someone who just records video that was super helpful and definitely improved my recordings quality thank you for the tips

[@SnakeAndTurtleQigong]

Hey, thanks!

[@agmguitars]

Thank you. Awesome video. Really helped.

[@TAR-ZY]

THNX A LOOOT ... that was so helpful

[@ReizilecTrader]

Thank you!

[@waqarafghannaseer]

Bro your video was helpful so like and subscribed. Thanks

[@nartouthere]

ty

[@ominousowl]

Very helpful! Thanks!

[@nwashers8500]

thanks for your video! really helps a lot

[@ValeryKamov]

thank you man,this helped my ass out,underrated channel

[@rezbahri]

Love u brother ❤

[@fuzzycrunch9852]

Thank you!!!

[@wolfy1752]

which amd do I choose theres 3 of them
amd hw av1
amd hw h.264(avc)
amd hw h.265(hevc)

[@Iamnotmohammad]

thanks that helped alot

[@TheGrimWave]

Great video THANK YOU!

[@imadexter]

Thank you bro

[@sebastian0812]

Just tried, it hope it works!

[@Joseph-oq5fz]

very helpful, Thanks!

[@BlackEyedBandit]

Thanks, this worked for me

[@thecatooners1478]

I've been subscribed since nearly 2 years and so far, you make the best tutorials for OBS settings (Recording & Streaming) 🔥🔥🔥

[@hammerdance]

Thank you!

[@Nurr0]

Thanks!

[@TryStrike_Panda]

This dude is the GOAT!!!!

[@thunder_6792]

THX!

[@AlThePal78]

Thanks for the reminder. I had reinstalled the obs and forgot to change the quality of the video and was like it looks poorish LOL :)

[@geeljirefrost7318]

You're a real one.

[@LegooLuigi]

Nice and informative.

[@FippeM123]

I record my videos in "CQ Level 15" and they are 1-2h and 30-50 GB big 😄
Probably gonna change that to a "CQ Level 17" and see how big the files get.

[@dailydoseofluv]

Helped a lot!

[@itsnotkayla1]

Tysm! So useful and I also liked the way you described it. Smooth, crunchy recording! 🤣🤗

[@CristianRojas-qs9wj]

thanks a lot !