Frequently Asked Questions

We accept almost all major credit and debit cards. If you are purchasing bulk licenses or want to prepay for 2+ years, we can issue a purchase order (PO). Email support@switcherstudio.com to request a PO.

You can upgrade or downgrade your subscription at any time. Check out our Account & Billing page for step-by-step instructions about how to change your Switcher subscription. Currently, we do not offer a way to pause subscriptions.

If you upgrade or downgrade your plan in the middle of your billing cycle, your features will be updated immediately based on your new plan. You will be charged a prorated amount (or potentially receive a credit if you’re downgrading), and your renewal date will change. Our Account & Billing page includes more details and examples of how billing works when you make a change to your Switcher subscription.

You can cancel your subscription at any time using the Switcher Studio Dashboard, but the cancellation will become effective at the end of your current billing period. If you’re on an annual plan, your cancellation will be effective at the end of the 12-month period. You will continue to have access to your Switcher Studio account until the cancellation date. Our Account & Billing page has easy-to-follow instructions about how to cancel your Switcher subscription.

Switcher Studio runs on iOS devices and uses the cameras from iOS devices — iPhones, iPads, and iPod Touches. You cannot bring in third-party cameras like Androids, DSLRs, or Mevos. (You can, however, bring in Mac webcams using Switcher Cast.)

You can use Switcher Studio on iPhones, iPads, and iPod Touches on iOS 13 or newer. View the complete list of compatible devices in our Help Center.

Switcher does not have a built-in green screen feature. You can, however, use a third-party green screen app that works with iOS devices. For more info, view our Help Center article on using green screens and chroma keying with Switcher Studio.

To stream with Switcher, you’ll need a consistent upload speed of at least 3 Mbps. We recommend checking your speed at a site like speedof.me/. Make sure to test your speed in an environment similar to the one in which you’ll be running your production. (For instance, if you plan to stream in a busy public location, make sure to test the speed when the location is busy.) Speeds can vary, so ensure you’re consistently getting at least 3 Mbps before you stream.

All you need to start using Switcher is an iOS device with the Switcher Studio app installed, a Switcher Studio account, and a data or Wi-Fi connection. However, if you want to have a more robust production, we recommend connecting additional iOS devices to capture more angles.

Switcher Studio is an iOS application, so it cannot be used on a computer. You can, however, bring your computer’s webcam (Mac) or screen (Mac or PC) into the videos that you stream or record with Switcher. This is done with a complementary app called Switcher Cast.

No, Switcher Studio will only run on iOS devices, so it is not compatible with Android devices. For more info, check out our Help Center article on our experiments with Android. (Though you can’t use an Android as one of your local cameras, you can invite remote guests to join from any device — including Androids and computer webcams — using Switcher’s Video Chat feature.)

The Switcher Studio Dashboard is your online (browser-based) account hub where you can manage your Switcher account and access some of Switcher’s more advanced features, like Video Chat and Switcher Cloud storage. Once you have a Switcher account, you can access the Dashboard at dashboard.switcherstudio.com.

Yes, you can bring in slides from PowerPoint, ProPresenter, or any presentation software that runs on Macs, PCs, or iOS devices. To do this, you must use Switcher Cast to screenshare your computer or iOS device screen into your Switcher production. 

The Comments tab in the Switcher Studio app shows real-time comments from your streams on Facebook. This allows you to engage with commenters during your stream. The Standard and Plus plans also allow you to display these comments inside your videos for others to see. Only comments on Facebook streams show up within the Comments tab.

Yes, you can invite remote guests to join your stream via Video Chat. They can join from anywhere in the world and any device (computer or smartphone) with a browser and a camera.

This varies by plan. On the Essentials plan, you can have one remote guest at a time. On the Standard plan, you can have two remote guests at a time. On the Plus plan, you can have four remote guests at a time.

Just a smartphone or a computer! Guests can join from any device with a browser and a camera — you simply send them a URL, which they open to join your Video Chat. Guests don’t need a Switcher Studio account, and they don’t need to download the Switcher app.

Yes, totally, lots of people use Switcher this way! Even if you don’t want to livestream, Switcher lets you record multiple angles without having to edit footage together in post-production. Switcher even has a feature called Director Mode that lets you simultaneously record each angle in HD.

Switcher Studio does not have a built-in simulcasting feature for streaming to multiple platforms (for example, Facebook and YouTube) simultaneously. You can, however, connect Switcher with numerous third-party simulcasting tools, including Castr and Switchboard. Connecting one of these tools to Switcher lets you combine Switcher’s editing features with their simulcasting features.

Switcher has direct integrations with Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitch, and Microsoft Stream. Switcher also lets you stream to nearly every other destination, including Twitter/Periscope, using Custom RTMP. A notable exception is Instagram — unfortunately it’s against Instagram’s policies for third-party apps to stream to their platform.

Unfortunately, it is not possible for third-party apps to stream to Instagram in a way that’s compliant with their policies, so the only way to stream to Instagram is to use the native Instagram app. As soon as Instagram opens an API that will enable us to build an integration, we’ll get on it!

Switcher can stream at 270p, 360p, 540p, 720p, and 1080p (beta). If you’re streaming to Facebook or using Custom RTMP, you can even use Switcher’s speed test feature to help you choose the streaming quality that’s right for your network.

Yes, you’ll simply need to embed the video player for your livestream into your website. For instance, you can schedule a private livestream on YouTube and then embed the video player on your website ahead of time so that the stream is accessible only on your website. Check out our Help Center articles on embedding YouTube videos and embedding Facebook videos. 

Yes, Switcher lets you create private streams on Facebook, YouTube, and LinkedIn. (This option is not available for Twitch.) Many platforms that use Custom RTMP also enable private streaming. You must simply set your stream to private on the platform itself before going live to that platform via RTMP from Switcher.

Yes, scheduling is available for Facebook and YouTube. You can schedule a broadcast up to 7 days in advance on these platforms. Check out our Help Center article on scheduling Facebook Live streams. (You must have a subscription to Switcher’s Standard or Plus plan to schedule streams. Scheduling is not included in the Essentials plan.)

Yes, after a stream, your video is stored in the Switcher app on your main device. If you’d like to store it somewhere else, check out our Help Center article on moving or copying your Switcher Studio recordings.

Yes, on Switcher Studio’s Plus plan, which includes licenses for multiple team members, you can upload and store shared assets so that everyone on your team always has access to on-brand creative assets.

The best way to contact the Support team is through the messaging tool inside the Switcher Studio app or on the Dashboard. To access the messaging tool from the app, tap the question mark icon in the bottom right of the launch screen. To access it from the Dashboard, click the word bubble icon in the bottom right of any page. If you’re unable to use the messaging tool, you can email support@switcherstudio.com with your questions.

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