4.6/5
G2 rating
136 verified reviews
Report
Should I Use Open Broadcaster Software | OBS?
OBS (Open Broadcaster Software) is free and open source software for video recording and live streaming. Stream to Twitch, YouTube and many other providers or record your own videos with high quality H264 / AAC encoding.
Worth it
Worth itBuy it if you stream to Twitch/YouTube or record screens and want the free industry standard — 4.6/5 on G2 across 136 reviews.
Free open-source streaming and recording standard. Ideal for streamers and creators; wrong if you need paid support or plug-and-play.
Confidence: High
$0
Starting price
Fully open source
Yes
Free tier
Entire product is free
Community-funded
Funding
Open Collective and Patreon
Value for money
5
Free, open source, no paid tiers ever
Ease of use
3
Powerful but beginners rely on setup guides
Feature depth
5
Called the gold standard for streaming
Support quality
2
Community forums and Discord only
Security posture
3
Open advisories exist; fake installers circulate
Pros
Cons
Gotchas
- highFake malicious OBS installers spread via paid ads — download only from⁸
- mediumPublic heap-overflow advisory (GHSA-mf24-5fxf-f4x5); keep the app updated⁷
- mediumNo paid support: help comes from community forums, Discord, and Reddit¹
- lowAttackers abused OBS's framework in BIOPASS RAT screen-sniffing campaigns; abuse, not product flaw⁹
Best for
- Twitch and YouTube streamers
- YouTubers and screen recorders
- Educators and online teachers
- Zero-budget creators
Not for
- Teams needing vendor support or SLAs
- Broadcast pros wanting turnkey production (Wirecast territory)
- Anyone unwilling to learn streaming setup
Companies that could
Pricing
OBS Studio
$0
- Video recording
- Live streaming to Twitch/YouTube
- H264/AAC encoding
Security
No active breach; generally safe from the official site, but a heap-overflow advisory and fake ad-delivered installers exist.
- Heap overflow advisoryGoogle security research published advisory GHSA-mf24-5fxf-f4x5 for OBS.⁷
- Malicious fake OBS installersSecOps teams reported malicious OBS Studio being delivered through paid ads.⁸
- BIOPASS RAT abused OBS frameworkMalware abused the OBS framework to sniff victim screens — attacker abuse, not an OBS vulnerability.⁹
What users say
Users rate OBS 4.6/5 on G2 and treat it as the de facto free standard for streaming and recording.
“OBS Studio (Open Broadcaster Software) is the undisputed gold standard...”
“Yes—Open Broadcaster Software (OBS) is generally considered safe when you download it from the official site. It's free, open-source, and widely used by ...”
“Ultimate beginners guide to streaming with OBS (Open Broadcaster Software) with either Twitch.Tv or Own3d.Tv.”
Alternatives
Compare Open Broadcaster Software | OBS with each alternative.
Wirecast
Paid, turnkey production used by Fox Sports and broadcasters
Open Broadcaster Software | OBS vs WirecastXSplit Broadcaster
Polished paid Windows streaming alternative
Open Broadcaster Software | OBS vs XSplit BroadcasterPRISM Live Studio
Another live-streaming option for creators
Open Broadcaster Software | OBS vs PRISM Live StudioFull analysis
Based on 20+ public sources including G2 reviews, the official site, Wikipedia, and a Google security advisory.
Sources
- OBS — official siteobsproject.comofficial
review
- OBS Studio — Wikipediaen.wikipedia.orgnews
- What is OBS? Complete Guide — Wowzawowza.comreview
- OBS 6: Limitations & Alternatives — MacSaleseshop.macsales.comreview
- OBS alternatives — Softonicopen-broadcaster-software.en.softonic.comreview
security
security
- BIOPASS RAT abuses OBS — Picus Securitypicussecurity.comsecurity
review
- OBS Project funding — Open Collectiveopencollective.comofficial
- Is OBS safe? — Facebook answersfacebook.comreview
- PRISM Live Studio comparison — CheckThatcheckthat.aireview
- OBS Studio — VA OIToit.va.govofficial
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