- If you're looking for the best live streaming app
for Android, for iPhone or iPad, you are in the right place.
We've tested all the leading options
for mobile live streaming and in this video
I'm gonna share my top recommendations
from free beginner friendly apps
to more professional alternatives.
Now, as you're probably already aware,
there's a lot of different app options out there
and they are definitely not created equal.
So I'm gonna ignore all the ones that aren't worth your time
and just share my short list for you.
So we're gonna start off first
with probably the most obvious option,
but we have to mention them, is the built in apps
or the stock apps for the different platforms
you're gonna be live streaming to.
So I'm talking the Facebook app
if you're gonna live stream to Facebook,
the YouTube app for YouTube,
you can go live just using their own apps.
And don't worry, we're gonna get
to the more professional stuff really, really soon.
But a lot of these apps are actually now starting to pack
in more and more features, making them more usable.
But the biggest benefit with these
is that they're fast, they're easy to use,
and you're likely already got them installed.
To go live is usually as easy as just adding
in a title, maybe a description,
and hitting go live and you're live.
You have the ability to interact with your audience,
add some simple effects.
Some of them will let you share a photo
or an image from your device, and most of them out there
now will let you bring in a guest.
And this is something that the YouTube app
was missing until very recently,
but now if you've gotta start a live stream
you have the option to choose go live together,
and this will let you send an invitation out
and bring someone onto your stream.
Also specifically for YouTube, if you are on an Android,
you also have the ability to share your device screen
in your stream as well.
That's a mouthful.
But for YouTube to use their app for mobile streaming,
you do need to make sure
that you are meeting the requirements for that,
which is 1000 subscribers for a totally unrestricted stream
or above 50 subscribers for a restricted stream.
And I'll have a link down in the description
to give you more information about YouTube's requirements,
but those requirements really only come
into play if you're using YouTube's apps.
All the other options I've got coming up for you here
will get you around those requirements.
So moving on from the stock or the platform apps
to the more professional stuff.
This is where I've gone through,
I've tried and tested all the top options
and I've narrowed my short list down to three.
Or I should say three with one honorable mention
and I'm gonna start with that one first.
So the Honorable mention goes to StreamLabs.
So the StreamLabs mobile app will work on iOS, on Android,
there is a desktop version of it as well.
And this is where some of you might already be familiar
with StreamLabs from the desktop where you've got all your
widgets and apps and things that you can connect
to your live streams to really take them up a notch in terms
of interaction with your audience,
bringing comments, and donations, and things on screen.
This is kind of the mobile version of that.
Now, while you have the ability to livestream using
your device camera, you also have the ability
to broadcast your device screen too,
making it an amazing option
if you're gonna be live streaming gaming.
So this is where I see their marketing, the widgets
and the integrations and stuff they've got in there.
It really seems to be more aligned with Twitch streaming
instead of say an entrepreneur, a content creator,
a business looking to livestream professionally.
So that's why it gets a quick honorable mention in here.
It's decent, but definitely stick around
for the next options too.
So shortlist option number one then is Prism Live Studio.
This one is free and it works on iOS, Android,
and there is a Windows version too.
Now this is one that's not just a live streaming tool,
it's also a decent video camera and stills camera as well.
Now it's got built-in multi streaming or Simulcast,
as with the rest of the options in here as well.
So you can go live to multiple places at once.
Now it's got a really easy to use simple,
intuitive interface, making it easy
for you to add stuff in like graphics,
and text, and photos, and videos all while
you're live and literally all just at a finger press.
So you have the ability to easily share
any media, any music, any text,
or even a webpage directly into your stream.
But you also have the ability in here
to share your device screen as well.
So if you are interested in live streaming your gaming
or live streaming at tutorial or something,
then this could be a good option for you.
Now a couple of the standout features for me,
I love how easy it is to add some of the different graphics
and animations and stuff that they've got built in
to help create a more engaging stream.
So some of the built-in stickers
and things are actually pretty cool
and really fast to access.
So if someone donated to your stream,
there's presets there that pop up and say thank you,
or if you see someone on the chat
you wanna welcome into the screen,
there's little preset animations
and graphics and stuff to help you
have a bit of fun while you're live.
I also love that you've easily got the ability
to draw on your screen as well.
So if we wanted to draw and highlight something
on the screen here now,
you can literally tap on your device and scribble that out.
It's gonna show up there live on your streams.
And just like StreamLabs, there is some built-in widgets
and things as well, not to the level of StreamLabs,
but you do have the ability to share a webpage
and even bring up the chat
from the live stream as well to feature it in the stream.
I also love that you can save your widgets
and your titles and things as presets
so that you can use them again on future live streams
without needing to create them again from scratch.
And you can literally just tap on them
and they're gonna appear in your stream.
So overall, I think Prism Live Studio is an amazing option,
especially given the price tag of free.
You've got a bunch of options in there
and it could be a good option for regular live streams,
or even for sharing your device screen
for gaming and things as well.
So shortlist option number two is StreamYard.
Now, StreamYard technically isn't an app,
it is a live streaming platform that you run
through your web browser, but hey,
it works really, really well on mobile as well.
So StreamYard, again is another one
that has a really intuitive,
really easy to use interface, but also
with a ton of features and functionality built in.
Now, one of the biggest standout features with StreamYard
is how easy they make it to bring
in guests into your live stream.
Now, if you're on one of their paid plans,
you can actually have up to 10 guests live
on your stream with you.
Now they make it really easy for you
to quickly change up your live stream
while you're live with different presets or templates.
So say you wanna bring someone up full screen,
or a 50/50 screen split,
or even a grid view of all of your guests.
You can literally do this with just the tap of a button.
They also make it really easy to add
in things like text, and graphics, and countdown timers,
and again, you can customize all this stuff
up before you're live
so that while you're live,
you're just tapping on these things
and they're appearing in your stream.
So StreamYard also supports really straightforward
multi-streaming or simulcasting
and personally I actually think the way that it
does it is better than a lot of the others.
Some platforms and tools and apps
will actually make you broadcast multiple streams.
So an individual stream to say, Facebook,
an individual stream to say YouTube,
but the beauty of StreamYard is
because it's already running in your web browser,
you're just pushing one feed
to them and then they'll handle the pushing it
out to multiple platforms for you,
meaning that your bandwidth requirements,
your processing requirements are much, much less.
So you're gonna have better success
if your internet isn't so great multi-streaming
and simulcasting through a platform like StreamYard,
where you only really need to upload
to them and they push it out for you.
But I also love that StreamYard make it really easy
for you to engage and interact with your livestream viewers
by being able to feature their comments on screen as well.
So if you see a comment or a question coming
through that you wanna feature,
you literally just tap on it
and it's gonna bring it into your stream.
And this works across the different platforms as well.
So if you are broadcasting live across different platforms,
it's gonna have an integrated comment feed for you.
So you can easily feature some from Facebook,
some from YouTube, or from the one area.
Now on StreamYard, you also have the ability
to create multi-camera live streams as well.
So if you've got multiple phones, multiple devices
to set up different angles that all you need
to do is to join your livestream from your different
devices as if it was a guest coming onto your stream,
and you'll be able to switch between the different cameras
or different devices while you're live.
Now, in terms of the downsides or the things to be aware of,
I guess the biggest one right now is if you are
looking to screen share your device into your livestream,
this is something that StreamYard doesn't support,
or at least in all my testing
I haven't been able to get it working.
So if you are looking to create streams like that,
then one of the other options
might be a better fit for you right now.
Now I'm definitely not gonna have time
to cover off on every feature in here.
We do have other videos, a full review,
and also a tutorial on using StreamYard,
which I will link down in the description box below.
But in terms of pricing
there is a free plan,
which is incredibly powerful,
but it does have a StreamYard watermark on it.
So to remove the watermark
and unlock all the extra features,
that's where you'll either wanna jump
on either their basic plan or their pro plan
starting at $25 a month.
Or it's cheaper if you go for the annual option.
But overall, I think StreamYard is an amazing option.
As I said, it's one of our top picks for desktop,
so it's amazing that it works this well on mobile as well.
So that brings us to option number three,
which is Switcher Studio.
Now unfortunately this one is iPad and iOS only.
Sorry, Android users.
But this is hands down
the most professional live streaming tool out there.
It really works the same way
as some of your top end professional live streaming tools.
So the overall interface and experience
while it is easy enough to use,
it's definitely not as simple and as straightforward
as Prism Live or StreamYard, but it also
has a lot more features and functionality packed in.
So just like the other options, you can easily add
in graphics and animations and playback videos.
You can also bring guests into the live stream here too.
The process works well, but it's not as seamless
and as easy as StreamYard for that.
But again, you've got a lot more control
around everything as well.
But probably the biggest standout feature
in here is the ability to connect
up to nine different cameras or video sources
and integrate them into your livestream.
So there could be spare iPhone and iPad cameras,
Mac webcams, remote guests phones or webcams,
pre-recorded videos, and Mac, PC and iOS screens.
So you do have a screen sharing built in here as well.
And again, once you've got all these
video sources in there,
it's really easy to tap and switch
between them while you're live.
So if you're looking to create
a professional, multi-camera live stream
as something that's gonna be super portable,
then this is where Switcher Studio really shines.
I've personally seen this work really well
at a live conference event where they just had
different phones set up on tripods around the room,
and someone was at the back with their iPad switching
between everything while they're live.
But there's no reason that you couldn't have roaming cameras
and people moving around to grab interviews and stuff.
I mean, it's just so awesome that you can easily
do this just using mobile devices instead
of needing to go and spend thousands
of dollars getting professional camera gear
and live streaming gear to be able to do this.
Now in terms of pricing,
you've got three paid options to choose from.
So there's no free version of this.
There is a 14 day trial,
but the studio plan starts at $49 a month.
If you want more than two remote guests
or two multi streaming destinations,
then that's where the business plan
could be the best fit at $99 a month.
And again, these are cheaper
if you go the annual option as well.
So I think Switcher Studio is a great option
for someone who is looking for
the more professional end of things,
someone looking for more features, more controls,
or someone that's interested in
running a really simple, easy to manage,
professional looking, multi-camera live stream.
So hats off to Switcher Studio.
I think what you've built is really amazing,
but is there an Android version on the roadmap?
Now, if I had to pick one overall winner,
the best all rounder,
my pick is gonna go to StreamYard.
Even though you've got an amazing offering for free
with Prism Live and you've got more advanced features
and controls and stuff with Switcher Studio,
my vote for Best all rounder goes to StreamYard.
I really like the guest feature,
how easy it is to get guests in,
but also that you can still create
a multi-camera live stream in there as well.
Yes, without probably the polish that you would have
in Switcher Studio, but you can still do it.
And having that account that's
also gonna work on desktop as well,
I really think it is the best bang for Buck.
So those are my top picks right now.
Let me know your thoughts down in the comments
and don't forget to check out the descriptions.
We get a bunch of resources and other videos
and things in there to help you
with your live streams and even tutorials
on some of the apps and tools that we've mentioned.
There's also a recommended video from YouTube on screen.
I have no idea what it is.
I hope it's a good one.
Hope it's one of ours,
and I'll see you in the next one.