After the DroidCam OBS plugin is installed, re-start OBS Studio.

Add a DroidCam source to your scene.

In the source properties, select 'Use WiFi' and enter the WiFi IP displayed in the phone app. Your phone and computer must be connected to the same network/router.

Hit [Activate], and the source will try to connect with the app on the phone.
If you dont see the Activate button, scroll down a bit in the source properties.
To stop or modify any options, [Deactivate] the source.

Click [Refresh Device List] to auto-discover devices. For WiFi discovery, make sure the phone app is open and multicast is allowed in your router settings.

• Do not enable audio, if you don't need it. This uses extra CPU.
• It is recommended to keep the phone at 100% battery and connected to power, to avoid any battery usage and extra heat.
• To use multiple phones, just add another DroidCam source to your scene.
• To use the same phone in multiple scenes, add the same DroidCam source to all of them.
• If you wish to apply different filters to the same DroidCam source, use the Source Clone plugin to make copies of it.
• Use the 'Deactivate when not showing' option if you need different DroidCam sources in OBS sharing the same phone.

DroidCam is free to use at standard definition. You can try HD video, but will need to purchase the pro upgrade to remove watermarks.

USB Setup

Android USB Setup

For USB connections, you need to: (a) enable USB Debugging on the phone, (b) install drivers for your phone on the computer (if necessary).

1. Unlock Developer Options and enable USB Debugging on your phone:

Open your phones main Settings and search for "Build Number" (usually under the About section).
Tap Build Number seven times to unlock Developer mode.

Once unlocked, go back to the main Settings and search for USB Debugging (found under Developer Options) and turn this On.

2. With USB Debugging turned on, connect the phone via USB to the computer. Your computer is ready to detect to the phone.

Windows PCs
Windows PCs will usually search for and install the appropriate drivers automatically at this time.

Macs
No extra drivers are required.

Linux PCs (click to expand)

No extra drivers are required, however adb must be installed.
Debian/Ubuntu: sudo apt install adb
ARCH Linux: sudo pacman -S android-tools
Fedora/SUSE: sudo yum install android-tools

3. In OBS Studio, open the DroidCam source Properties and click [Refresh Device List].
You'll likely get a dialog on the phone to Allow USB Debugging. Tap OK to allow the connection.



Check the Device drop-down and select the phone (instead of "Use WiFi"), then click Activate to connect the app.



My device is not found

1. On the phone, pull down the notification area and open "USB Options". If the mode is MTP (Media Transfer or File Transfer), change it to 'Charging' or PTP (Picture Transfer) instead. Try again to Refresh the Device List on the computer.

2. If you have a Windows PC – drivers for the phone may need to be installed manually:

For Google Pixel, Nexus, and OnePlus devices get the Google USB drivers here:
https://developer.android.com/studio/run/win-usb

Samsung USB drivers:
https://developer.samsung.com/mobile/android-usb-driver.html

LG Mobile Drivers:
https://www.lg.com/us/support/software-firmware-drivers
(scroll to Popular Software, and find the LG Mobile Drivers section)

For other brands, this page provides links to most manufacturers websites:
http://developer.android.com/tools/extras/oem-usb.html#Drivers

You can also do a web search, ADB Drivers for ____. Example: ADB Drivers for HTC.

For further help, contact [email protected]. Please include your system details and which steps you are having trouble with.

iOS USB Setup

1. Ensure that you have an authentic or Apple-approved data cable, and connect your iPhone to your computer.

Windows PCs
USB connections require the Apple USB drivers. Windows will automatically install drivers in most cases. To verify: hit the Windows key, search for Installed Apps.
Open and check for "Apple Mobile Device Support" in the list of apps. You can also look in the Control Panel, under Programs and Features.

If Apple Mobile Device Support is not listed, you can download and install AMDS manually from here: Apple Mobile Device Support (64-bit).

Linux PCs (click to expand)

Install and launch usbmuxd, droidcam will communicate with the usbmuxd service to detect and work with iPhones. No extra drivers are required.
If you have the Flatpak version of OBS, you can make usbmuxd available with the following flag:
flatpak run --filesystem=/run/usbmuxd:ro com.obsproject.Studio

Macs (click to expand)

DroidCam iOS will show a special USB 169.254.X.X address when connected to a Mac computer. No extra drivers are required.
Try turning off Sync in Finder if the USB IP is not being shown.

2. Make sure to Trust the computer on the phone, if prompted:



3. Open your DroidCam OBS source Properties and click [Refresh Device List]. Available iOS devices will be added to the "Device" drop-down.
Select your phone (instead of "Use WiFi") and click Activate to connect the app.



My device is not found

On your iDevice, check if the Personal Hotspot feature is enabled, and turn this Off. Go to Settings > Cellular > Personal Hotspot, or Settings > Personal Hotspot.

Windows PCs
a. Try installing the Apple Devices app from the Microsoft Store and let it connect to your phone.

b. Try getting iTunes for Windows: Install the desktop version of iTunes by following the Windows link under other versions here (do not use the Microsoft Store option).

c. Consult this help article by Apple on how to update the AMDS drivers.

Linux PCs
Try restarting the usbmuxd service: sudo usbmuxd, or reboot the PC.

Macs
Select 'Use WiFi' in the Device drop-down, and enter the USB address displayed in the app into the WiFi IP field. Click Activate to connect the app.

For further help, contact [email protected]. Please include your system details and which steps you are having trouble with.

Frequently Asked Questions

connection

The plugin does not activate / Video does not start

Check if the WiFi IP in your DroidCam OBS source is correct and matches the phone app.

Try restarting your WiFi router: unplug from power, wait for it to discharge (~30s), plug back in and let it start up.

Ensure the computer and the phone are on the same network. Both Wired (Ethernet) and Wireless (WiFi) connections are fine. If you have both 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz WiFi networks active, all devices should be on the same band.

If your computer has multiple network interfaces, make sure OBS Studio is using the correct one ("Bind IP" option under Advanced section in OBS Settings).

If your computer has VPN software installed, try connecting DroidCam before enabling VPN, or connect the app via USB to bypass the VPN.

If extra Firewalls are present on your computer / your phone / your router - these might block the connection. Firewalls are usually present on corporate or school networks, and connecting via USB (or a WiFi hotspot) is the recommended workaround.

For further help, please send in your OBS logs with the DroidCam connection not working. See Report a problem in the General Q&A.

Video Lags and Keeps Disconnecting

If the video connection starts but is not smooth, a more stable signal is required. DroidCam transmits data with very low latency expecting minimal interference.

If you are using WiFi,
1. Lower the video options:
* In the phone app, open the Settings and under the Video section: ensure (1) Quality is set to 'Normal', (2) "Advanced Options" are OFF (Android-only). (3) Under the Camera section set "Target FPS" to 30.
* In OBS studio, select 1280x720 (720p) for the DroidCam OBS source.

If this works, you can try gradually increasing the video quality setting and/or switching to 1080p.

2. Try restarting your WiFi router: unplug from power, wait 30s for it to discharge, plug back in and let it start up.
If you have both 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz WiFi networks active, all devices should be on the same network (including wired Ethernet connections) for best performance.

3. If possible, use DroidCam via USB. USB connections will be more stable in general due to lack of interference and packet loss.

* If you have an older phone, try changing the video format from 'AVC' to 'MJPEG' in your DroidCam OBS source properties.

Android only: If transmission stops after a while, your system may be restricting DroidCam as part of battery optimizations. Some Android manufacturers have introduced restrictions preventing apps from keeping wake locks and working in the background. You can disable these restrictions by connecting the phone to power, or disabling battery optimizations in the system settings. Consult dontkillmyapp.com which has listed various solutions for different Android brands.

Read Error: Timeout / Anti-Virus software blocking connection

Some Antivirus software block the connection from OBS to the phone. At this time it's unclear what the reason is.
Try adding obs64.exe (from the obs installation folder) as an exclusion / trusted / allowed program.

With Avast disable the Web Shields option.
With AVG disable the Web Protection option.
With Windows Defender, check the Real-Time Protection options.

Video Format: MJPG / AVC

AVC is the recommended format. MJPG requires more bandwidth, use it if you are getting too much delay with AVC.

image

Video pixelation / Low image quality

In the phone app, open the Settings and set Video Quality to 'High' or 'Very High' to reduce the pixelation.

Android-Only: If you have fast WiFi or a good USB connection, you can enable Advanced Options here and select a custom bitrate for more precise bandwidth control (recommended for advanced users only). Consult the table in the next answer below for 'Target Quality' to Bitrate mappings when Advanced Options are OFF.

What are the quality presets for video?

Rotation / Mirror / Flip / Portrait Mode

You can rotate and mirror any video source in OBS Studio. Right click and use the "Transform" menu to apply changes.
For Portrait (tall) video, add a 90° transform and rotate your phone physically.

Source Cloning

If you wish to apply different filters to the same DroidCam source in your scene collection, use the Source Clone plugin to make copies of it.

Ultrawide / Telephoto lenses

Android: open the DroidCam app settings and ensure "Camera2 API" is enabled.
(a) You can select available lenses using the Camera Swich option in the app .
(b) On some newer devices (Android 11+) extra lenses are accessible by zooming in/out while video is active.

Some Android phones limit camera features for local video recording only, in which case DroidCam will not be able to access all lenses. See "Android Device Support" below for details.

iOS : open DroidCam's settings and select your preferred lens before starting video.

60 FPS

1. In the phone app, open the Settings and change the Target FPS option (under the Camera section).

2. Ensure OBS Studio is set to at least 60FPS in the video settings (File > Settings).

The app will display the active "AE FPS" range when video starts.

Android: Some Android phones limit camera features for local video recording only, in which case DroidCam will not be able to deliver higher resolutions / fps. See "Android Device Support" below for details.

Android Device Support

Some Android phones limit camera features to their own apps or for local video recording only, in which case DroidCam will not be able to take full advantage of available hardware. For example, most Samsung devices only allow 30FPS capture for non-native apps. ^[-]

You can download a camera inspector to see which features your phone supports for non-native apps:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.airbeat.device.inspector

Google Pixel devices usually have the best support for all available hardware and are the recommended option for DroidCam.

4K Guide ↗︎

sound

Enable Audio transfer

You can enable audio transfer by ticking the 'Enable Audio' option in your DroidCam source.
Note: you must [Deactivate] the source to change this option.

* Some audio capture parameters can be changed in the Settings of the phone app.
* Sound quality and latency may vary. Using a regular microphone and keeping Droidcam for video-only is highly recommended.

Audio is not smooth / Audio choppy

DroidCam transmits data with very low latency expecting minimal interference. You may experience some audio breaks due to network interference.
To compensate, you will need to add a delay (buffering) to your DroidCam source (or connect via USB instead of wireless).

To add a delay, in OBS Studio:
1. In the Audio Mixer, open the 'Advanced Audio Properties' and add a Sync Offset to your DroidCam source (at least 100ms).


2. Right-click on your DroidCam source and open the 'Filters' menu. Here, add a 'Video Delay' filter with the same value (at least 100ms).

configuration

Battery Optimizations

Transferring video for long durations will put extra strain on your phone. DroidCam is optimized to save resources where possible.

* Do not enable audio, this uses extra CPU. If posible use a regular microphone instead.
* Keep the phone at 100% charge and connected to power to avoid any battery usage and extra heat.
* Dim the phone screen to reduce resource usage more (Auto-Dim can be found in the apps Settings).
* Place the phone in a way that will let it dissipate heat, away from other heat sources.
* Do not max out the video options. In the phone app, keep "Advanced Options" off and use the "High" or "Very High" video quality in the settings.
* Use 1280x720 (HD) video resolution and target FPS at 30. This will lower resource usage while maintaing HD video quality.

Remote Camera Controls

Remote controls are part of the Pro upgrade in the phone app, and allow you to control various aspects of the camera from the PC. With OBS Studio, use a Custom Browser Dock to add the remote. Read more below

Static IP Assignment

The Wifi IP address on your phone is assigned by your WiFi router. Occasinally this WiFi IP may change when your phone reconnects to the network, breaking existing DroidCam connections and/or the remote controls URL. You can create a static IP assignment to avoid changes.

Look for a sticker on your WiFi router with instructions on how to access the admin portal. Usuallly this will at http://192.168.0.1 or http://10.0.0.1 (only accessible within your local WiFi). Login, find the DHCP settings, add a static assignment (also known as a DHCP Reservation) for your phone.

Required Permissions

DroidCam requires Camera, Microphone, and Notifications permissions to function.

Camera: required for video capture, to use your phone as a webcam.

Microphone: required for audio capture. Only used if you tick 'Enable Audio' when adding a DroidCam source on the PC.

Notifications (Android): required to display a notification while the app is in use. This helps indicate that the app is important and makes it less likely that the system will freeze the app during longer sessions. This also allows DroidCam to stay connected while in the background and while the screen is off.

pro upgrade

Pro Upgrade: reset / restore / switch phones

Purchases are added to your account (Google or iCloud) and will carry over to new devices. Note that Apple and Google handle their appstores independently and the pro upgrades are separate on each platform.

Use the [Restore Purchase] option in the app to restore your Pro Upgrade.

If you have multiple accounts on your phone, DroidCam must be installed with the correct one (which owns the purchase). This is especially important with the Google Playstore where you can have multiple profiles.

If you are having trouble restoring the purchase, on the phone ensure dev47apps.com and the app store load correctly. You may need to switch off VPNs, if one is present.

iOS Only: Ensure in-app purchases are allowed in Screen-Time Settings.

Pro Upgrade: no GMS direct purchase

You can purchase DroidCam directly for use on Android phones without the Play Store and Google services (GMS), for example if you have a Huawei device or a more privacy focused system: Read More.

other

General Q&As

Remote Controls

• The app can be connected over USB, while the remote is used over WiFi.
• The remote can be added as a Custom Browser Dock directly in OBS Studio (Docks > Custom Browser Docks).
• The remote control does not show video, use it to control the camera (zoom, exposure, ..).