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Spotlight: AI chat, games like Retro, location changer, Roblox unblocked
Both OBS Studio and ScreenFlow are popular video recorders, but which one is better? What are the main differences between them? If you are confused about this, you have come to the right place. In this article, OBS Studio vs ScreenFlow, we will honestly compare their recording capability, editing features, compatibility, ease of use, pricing, and more. Let’s get started!
Table of contents
Overall Ratings
| OBS Studio | ScreenFlow | |
| Overall Ratings | ||
| Platform | Free | Starting at $169 |
| Ease of use | ||
| Recording Quality | ||
| Value for Money | ||
| Software Stability | ||
| Community Support | ||
| Video Recording | ||
| Live Streaming | ||
| Collaboration Tools | ||
| Editing Tools | Plugins | Plugins |
OBS Studio, a free and open-source software, is renowned for live streaming and game recording capabilities. It allows you to switch between different scenes while recording or streaming. In addition, OBS provides extensive customization options and supports numerous plug-ins that enable it to extend more features and functions. It is also one of the top choices for clip recordings.
ScreenFlow focuses on video recording and editing. It supports high-quality recording and allows simultaneous recording of different sources. With a simple and intuitive interface, ScreenFlow provides a multitude of professional editing tools, such as filters, effects, animations, a preset-style title library, a stock media library, and much more.
Considering factors like cost, versatility, and suitability, OBS Studio comes out on top. It’s free for all users, whether you’re on Windows, macOS, or Linux. Now, let’s explore more of what this software can bring to us.
◆ High-performance real-time video & audio capturing and mixing.
◆ Unlimited scenes of multiple sources.
◆ Multiview of different scenes.
◆ Seamless transition during recording.
◆ Intuitive audio mixer with per-source filters.
◆ Customizable configuration options.
◆ Multiple streaming platforms.
◆ Powerful API.
OBS Studio has excellent video recording capabilities that let you capture any content with high-quality H264 / AAC encoding. It offers the Studio Mode that enables you to cue or switch to different scenes while recording. You can customize each scene by adding various audio sources, your screen, specific windows, cameras, images, text, and more options. Furthermore, OBS Studio supports recording from multiple audio sources simultaneously and offers six distinct tracks to which you can assign each audio source.
ScreenFlow is a powerful recording tool that can capture any content on or attached to your Mac. Its latest version, ScreenFlow 10, supports simultaneous recording of screens, cameras, and audio. This is a rare feature among other recording tools. Moreover, it supports the highest recording and recording of separate audio from various apps, which are essential for creating videos like tutorials or gameplays. With ScreenFlow, you can seamlessly customize every aspect of your recording and create a professional masterpiece.
OBS Studio does not come with editing tools by default. However, you can add some editing plugins to OBS Studio to improve your video recording. For example, you can use Tuna to add text, images, shapes, and animations to your OBS scenes or use StreamFX to add transitions and filters to your OBS scenes. Even so, this method is still not convenient because finding the right plugin for your needs can take time, and it will also use more computer space.
Tested from our previous review of ScreenFlow, it is undoubtedly one of the best video editing and recording tools despite its expensive price.
ScreenFlow provides a fast and smooth editing experience. It offers a wide range of advanced features that let you edit any element of your recordings, like title, video, audio, caption, etc. You can access numerous customizable titles, media clips, transitions, effects, annotations, animations, and much more. All of these ensure that you can easily create professional and attractive videos. Therefore, ScreenFlow is the ideal tool for you if you want a one-stop solution for recording and editing.
You can save your video recording in FLV, MP4, and MKV formats with OBS Studio. While MP4 is a more universally compatible format, it’s recommended to use MKV. This is because it can protect the recording data from unexpected interruptions. Furthermore, OBS Studio provides the option to convert your MKV recordings to MP4 or FLV without any loss in quality.
ScreenFlow provides a wider range of export formats, including MP4, MOV, M4V, GIF, and ProRes. These formats cater to various needs and offer greater flexibility. The MP4 format ensures widespread compatibility for your videos on various platforms. The use of the animated GIF format can make your creations more engaging with this excellent GIF recorder. Moreover, the MOV, M4V, and ProRes formats are more suitable if you need to upload your file to an Apple software or device.
The interface of OBS Studio has many overlays, and it seems quite complex and challenging for beginners. They have to spend some time exploring its features and functions. However, they can find support from its official website and many tutorials on YouTube or other platforms. OBS Studio is more suitable for advanced users who need more flexibility and customization in their video production.
ScreenFlow has a simple and intuitive interface that is easy to use for users of different skill levels. You can rapidly create a recording with a few clicks. The video editing interface is also intuitive, so you can make professional videos easily. Even if you are a beginner, you can quickly master and use ScreenFlow with ease. You can also find comprehensive tutorials on its official website that can help you solve various problems.
OBS Studio is a free and open-source software that can run on various operating systems. It works on Windows 10 and Windows 11, macOS 11.0 or higher, as well as Linux operating systems that have an OpenGL 3.3-compatible GPU and either X window system or Wayland. ScreenFlow, on the other hand, is designed only for macOS. ScreenFlow 10 is compatible with macOS Catalina (10.15) and Big Sur (11) and requires an Intel or Apple Silicon processor.
Aiseesoft Screen Recorder is a remarkable all-in-one alternative to OBS Studio and ScreenFlow. This amazing recorder works on both Windows and Mac systems and provides advanced built-in editing tools. It offers various recording options, including capturing video, audio, gameplay, webcam, mobile phone, and more. You can annotate your recordings in real time with various tools and schedules for automatic recordings. With its built-in editing tools, you can quickly add professional touches to your videos, and instantly share them to any platform. Moreover, Aiseesoft Screen Recorder supports various output formats so that you can easily create recordings in your desired formats.
How much CPU does OBS Studio use?
OBS Studio is a CPU-intensive software that can affect your streaming quality. On average, it hovers between 20-50% CPU usage. You can try to lower the CPU usage by adjusting the resolution and frame rate in OBS settings or by making some other changes.
Does OBS Studio support recording MP3 audio?
No, OBS Studio, unfortunately, does not inherently support the direct recording of MP3 audio. It's primarily designed to record and stream video along with audio.
Does ScreenFlow support real-time annotations?
No, ScreenFlow does not support real-time annotations, but it does come with various impressive annotation tools within its editing suite.
Conclusion
In summary, OBS Studio is free and compatible with more operating systems. It offers remarkable recording and live-streaming capabilities and supports extensive plugins. However, if you are looking for a recorder with more advanced recording options and professional editing tools, ScreenFlow might be a better choice for you. Thank you for reading this review of OBS Studio vs ScreenFlow. Hopefully, it has helped you make the final decision.
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