OBS Studio is free, open source, cross-platform and the right choice for live streaming, but it has no editor at all: no timeline, no trimming, no captions, no colour. Zella records with no time limit and then edits, captions and reframes in the same app, entirely on-device, free up to 2 minutes and 1080p per export and $89 once for Pro. Go live with OBS; record and publish with Zella.
OBS Studio describes itself on its own homepage as "Free and open source software for video recording and live streaming". It runs on Windows 10 and 11, macOS 12.0 or newer, and Linux, and it is maintained as an open source project. It is one of the genuinely great pieces of free software, and it is used by a very large share of everyone who has ever gone live.
Zella is an on-device screen recorder and AI video editor for Mac, iPhone and iPad. There is one enormous difference to get out of the way immediately, because it decides the comparison for a lot of people.
The one thing that settles it
Zella cannot stream. At all. No RTMP, no Twitch, no YouTube Live, no scene switching mid-broadcast. If any part of your work is live, OBS is not optional and Zella is not a substitute. Stop reading and go download OBS.
Everything below is for the other case: you record, then you publish.
OBS Studio or Zella: the quick verdict
- Choose OBS Studio if you stream live, you need scene switching, capture cards, a virtual camera, plugins, or you work on Windows or Linux.
- Choose Zella if you record and then edit, and you want the cutting, captioning, colour and vertical reframe in the same app instead of a second one.
What OBS is genuinely better at
Live streaming and scene switching. OBS's own page describes "an unlimited number of scenes" you can "switch between seamlessly" with customisable transitions. Zella has nothing comparable.
Source flexibility. OBS lists "multiple sources including window captures, images, text, browser windows, webcams, capture cards and more". You can build a genuine broadcast layout. Zella records screen, camera and audio, and that is the list.
Audio routing. An "Intuitive audio mixer with per-source filters such as noise gate, noise suppression, and gain", plus Studio Mode to "preview your scenes and sources before pushing them live". That is a live production desk.
Free, unlimited recording at any resolution. OBS records at whatever canvas and bitrate you configure, for as long as you like, for nothing. Zella records without a time limit too, but a free Zella export is capped at 2 minutes and 1080p. If you need a free 4K hour-long capture with no editing, OBS is the correct tool.
Cross-platform and extensible. Windows, macOS and Linux, plus plugins and scripting in Lua or Python. Zella is Apple-only with no plugin system.
What OBS does not do
OBS does not edit. There is no timeline, no trim, no ripple delete, no captions, no colour grading, no transitions between takes, no vertical reframe. Its documentation is about capturing and going live, and its two output actions are Start Recording and Start Streaming.
So every OBS user who publishes edited video opens a second application afterwards. That second application is what Zella competes with, not OBS itself.
Where Zella fits
Record and edit in one place. Zella captures the screen, the camera, system audio and the microphone with no time limit, then hands it straight to a full timeline in the same app - see recording modes. No export, no import, no second tool.
Captions transcribe themselves on device. 9 presets on iOS and 10 on Mac, and on iOS 18 and later, translation into 19 languages without sending audio anywhere.
Cleanup you do not do manually. On iPhone and iPad a verbatim WhisperKit pass finds filler words so they can be cut, and silences come out on their own.
Background removal with no green screen. OBS can do this with a community plugin. Zella's background removal is built in and in the free tier.
Vertical in one tap. Make Vertical reframes a wide recording to 9:16 with subject tracking - see reframe - and Clip Series turns one long recording into up to six captioned vertical shorts on Pro.
An assistant with 51 actions on iOS and 80 on Mac, in the free tier, with no credits. See the AI Assistant.
OBS Studio pricing vs Zella pricing
- OBS Studio is free and open source. There is no paid tier, no account and no upsell.
- Zella Free is $0 with no account and no watermark: the complete editor, all the AI, unlimited recording, exports up to 2 minutes at up to 1080p, and 1080p is free forever.
- Zella Pro is $89 one time, a Universal Purchase covering Mac, iPhone and iPad, adding unlimited export length, 4K and 8K on Mac, transparent-background export, 60 fps, custom bitrate, Clip Series, the multi-aspect export queue, saved templates and the depth toolset. Founder is $299. See pricing.
- Pro Week gives every new install the full Pro set free for seven days, no card, nothing to cancel.
The fair way to read that: OBS plus a free editor costs $0 and takes two apps and two exports. Zella costs $0 for short clips and $89 once for everything else, in one app. You are buying time, not capability you cannot otherwise get.
OBS Studio vs Zella, feature by feature
| OBS Studio | Zella | |
|---|---|---|
| Platforms | Windows, macOS, Linux | Mac, iPhone, iPad only |
| Where the work happens | On device | On device |
| Account required | No | No |
| Watermark on free exports | Never | Never |
| Free export resolution | Whatever you configure, no cap | 1080p, free forever |
| Free export length | No cap | Up to 2 minutes |
| Screen recording built in | Yes, it is the whole app | Yes, unlimited |
| Automatic captions | No | Yes, on device |
| Background removal, no green screen | Community plugin | Yes, built in |
| One-tap vertical reframe | No | Yes (Make Vertical) |
| Price model | Free and open source | Free, or one-time unlock |
| Paid price (checked 2026) | None | $89 once (Pro), $299 (Founder) |
Which one fits you?
The streamer. OBS. Nothing else in this comparison goes live.
The tutorial or demo maker. You record a walkthrough, cut the mistakes, put callouts over the interface, caption it and post a wide cut and a vertical cut. In OBS that is a capture followed by an editor. In Zella it is one session.
The person on Windows or Linux. OBS. Zella is not available to you, and that is a real limit rather than a footnote.
The person who already uses OBS and hates the second step. This is the honest crossover case. Keep OBS for anything live, and let Zella handle record-then-publish so you are not exporting a raw capture into another app every time.
Zella's honest limits
- No live streaming, no scene switching, no capture card input. This is a category difference, not a gap to be closed.
- Apple only. No Windows, no Linux, no plugin ecosystem.
- Free exports cap at 2 minutes and 1080p, where an OBS recording has no cap at all.
- It edits what you record, not scenes generated from a prompt. Auto b-roll makes generated cutaway cards with no API key required.
- The iPhone and iPad app is not on the App Store yet. It is built and native and the listing is on its way - see the iOS page. The Mac app ships today at download.
FAQ
Can Zella live stream like OBS? No. Zella does not stream at all. Use OBS for anything live.
Does OBS have a video editor? No. OBS captures, mixes and streams. Its outputs are Start Recording and Start Streaming, and editing happens in a separate application.
Is OBS free? Yes, and open source, on Windows, macOS and Linux. There is no paid tier.
Can I edit an OBS recording in Zella? Yes. Import the MP4 or MOV and you get the full timeline, on-device captions, colour, Beat Sync, callouts and vertical reframe.
Which records better quality? Both capture cleanly. OBS gives you more encoder control and no length or resolution ceiling on the file. Zella's free ceiling applies to the export, not the recording.
Do I still need OBS if I get Zella? If you stream, yes, always. If you only record and publish, Zella covers both halves.
The bottom line
OBS Studio is the best free live production tool available and Zella does not compete with it. What Zella competes with is the editor you open after OBS finishes. If you have been recording in one app and editing in another, doing both in one place is the whole pitch, and it costs nothing to test.
The Mac app is at download; the iPhone and iPad app is coming to the App Store.
Make your next video with Zella.
Record, edit and ship on Mac, iPhone and iPad - local, private, free to start.
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