If you want widgets from different Streamlabs themes to share one settings profile, copy each widget into a destination theme. If you only want them visible together while keeping their original settings, add each widget link as its own browser source instead.
These routes solve different problems: merging copies selected widget settings into one theme, while separate browser sources display theme-specific widgets independently. Decide first whether you want to manage one profile or preserve several; that choice determines the rest of the setup.
Choose whether to merge or keep themes separate
A Streamlabs Widget Theme is a profile for widget settings. Alerts, Tip Jar, and other supported widgets can be configured in a theme, and the active theme is used by Streamlabs Desktop’s built-in widget source. Streamlabs documents both moving an individual widget into another theme and displaying widgets from different themes as individual browser sources. See Streamlabs’ overview of widget themes for the relationship between themes and settings.
Choose the merge route when you want a single settings profile to own the widgets you plan to use. For example, if your alerts live in one theme and your Tip Jar in another, you can copy the Tip Jar’s settings into the theme you intend to use. This is a widget-by-widget operation, not a command that blends two complete themes or every setting from each.
Choose separate browser sources when the original theme settings should remain intact, or when a widget belongs to a theme that is not active. Each source uses the URL for its particular widget. This can be useful if you maintain one look for a devotional stream and another for a study session, but want to show one widget from each at the same time. The separate sources do not merge their settings.
| Your aim | Route | What to keep in mind |
|---|---|---|
| Use selected widgets under one settings profile | Copy each widget into a destination theme | You choose a destination for each widget; review its settings there afterwards |
| Show widgets from different themes without changing their profiles | Add each widget URL as a separate browser source | Manage each source separately in your streaming software |
| Use an inactive theme’s widget in Streamlabs Desktop | Add its URL manually as a browser source | The built-in widget source follows the active theme |
If you are still arranging scenes for a continuous broadcast, keep widget configuration separate from the stream’s core playback plan. Our guide to making a 24/7 Hindustani classical radio stream on YouTube covers the broader channel setup; here, the decision is specifically about how Streamlabs themes and sources should be organised.
Before changing anything, note which theme currently holds each widget you want, and which one should be the destination if you merge. This simple inventory prevents you from copying the wrong version of an alert or Tip Jar. If you rely on multiple scenes or formats, also note where each widget is supposed to appear.
Copy a widget link from its theme
Open Streamlabs’ Widget Themes management page and find the theme containing the widget you want. You can use an existing theme as the destination later, or create a new one first if you want a clean profile for this layout. The important distinction is to start with the source theme that currently holds the widget you want to reuse.
Open the actions for that theme and select the link or share-link panel. It exposes links for individual widgets. Copy the link for the specific widget, not just a general theme link. Streamlabs’ guide to merging multiple widgets into one theme uses a Tip Jar as an example of an individual widget link.
For a source inventory, it can help to label each copied URL with the theme and widget name in a private note while you work. A bare URL is easy to confuse with another one when several look alike. Treat the link as configuration information for that widget; do not paste it into a public message or a scene description where viewers might see it.
If you are building a scene for a channel that runs for long periods, check the appearance of the widget against the rest of the scene before you go live. A useful overlay in a short stream can be distracting in a quiet overnight loop. The right source arrangement is the one that fits the programme and remains understandable when you return to it later.
Merge a widget into the destination theme
With the copied widget link, open a new browser tab and load it. Streamlabs presents available themes as destinations. Choose the theme that should receive the widget by clicking Use beside it. Take a moment to confirm the destination name before choosing; the operation is intended to put that widget’s settings into the selected theme.
This is not the same as importing a whole theme. If the source theme contains an alert box, Tip Jar and custom widget, but you need only the Tip Jar, copy and use that widget’s link. The other widgets remain where they were unless you separately copy them. This selective approach lets you build a theme around the widgets you actually need rather than replacing an entire configuration.
After using the link, return to the themes page and check the destination. Confirm that the widget is present and that its visible settings are the expected ones. If it looks wrong, first check whether you selected the intended destination, then revisit the source theme and repeat with the correct widget link if necessary. Avoid deleting the source theme until you have checked the destination and tested the result in your scene.
A practical example is a small business channel with a branded alert theme and a separate theme used for a product demonstration. If the final layout should use the alert’s settings alongside the demonstration’s Tip Jar settings under one profile, copy the Tip Jar into the destination profile. If the two looks need to remain distinct for different broadcasts, leave them separate and use the browser-source route instead.
The same discipline helps on a long-running channel: change one widget at a time, verify it, and keep a record of the source theme until the new arrangement is confirmed. The guide to streaming a 24/7 Gurbani broadcast on YouTube discusses a different part of channel preparation, but the underlying habit applies here too: test the whole arrangement rather than assuming a setting change will appear exactly as expected.
Repeat for other widgets
Repeat the copy-and-use process for each additional widget you want in the destination theme. Return to the source theme, open its link panel, copy the next widget’s link, open it in a tab, and select the same destination with Use. If the next widget comes from a different theme, start with that theme instead. The destination can receive selected widgets from more than one source theme, but the process remains individual rather than a bulk merge.
Work from a short checklist: widget name, source theme, destination theme, and whether you have checked it in the scene. This is especially useful if you have several versions of a widget, such as alerts customised for different shows. It gives you a simple way to spot a missing item without relying on memory.
After each copy, check the destination theme rather than waiting until the end. If you discover that a source widget carries a setting you do not want, you can decide whether to adjust the destination configuration or keep that widget separate. The method is about copying chosen widget settings; it does not make the source and destination themes stay synchronised. Later changes in one should not be assumed to update the other.
Streamlabs Desktop users should also be aware of Scene Collection associations. Streamlabs says a Scene Collection can be associated with a widget theme, and changing collections can switch the associated theme. If the built-in widget source shows a different configuration than expected, check which Scene Collection is selected and which theme is associated with it. The Streamlabs widget-theme overview explains that the built-in source uses the active theme.
If your work involves several programmes, write down which Scene Collection should use which theme. For example, a quiet study stream may have a restrained alert setup, while a live local news discussion uses different alerts. Keeping the association explicit helps when returning to a scene after a break, and reduces the chance of attributing a mismatch to the copied widget when the active collection is actually responsible.
Add separate widget links as browser sources
Use this route if you want to show widgets from distinct themes together but preserve each theme’s own settings. Copy the share link for each desired widget using the link panel described earlier. In your streaming software, add a browser source for the first widget and paste its URL; then repeat with a new browser source for each other widget. Streamlabs documents this method for widgets from inactive themes as well as active ones.
Do not expect the separate sources to merge settings. An alert browser source continues to use the settings represented by its own widget URL, and a Tip Jar source remains its own source. You gain the ability to compose widgets from different themes in one scene without moving them into a shared profile; the trade-off is that you have separate sources to name, position, size and maintain.
In Streamlabs Desktop and the Streamlabs OBS Plugin, the built-in widget-source route uses the active theme. For a widget from an inactive theme, the documented route is to add its widget URL manually as a browser source. That distinction matters if you change themes later: a built-in source can follow the newly active profile, while a manually added browser source is the individual URL you placed in the scene. Do not assume those mechanisms behave interchangeably.
Custom widgets require particular care. Streamlabs’ custom widgets getting-started guidance says each theme holds one of each widget type, including one custom widget. If you need multiple custom widgets, the documented approach is to create additional themes and add their widget URLs as browser sources. Follow the dimensions and setup directions in that guide for the software you use.
This workflow is useful when you want to preserve separate configurations, but it puts more of the organisation in your scene. Give sources clear names such as “Study alerts” and “Shop Tip Jar”, then keep them in the relevant scene or collection. If you remove or replace a source, confirm which URL it used before deleting anything from the themes page. The source list becomes part of your setup, not merely a temporary way of previewing widgets.
For a channel running an uninterrupted video loop, it is worth keeping overlay changes separate from playback changes. A browser source is one scene element; it does not itself solve video looping or stream continuity. If you are planning that part of the setup, see how to loop product demo videos on YouTube Live with OBS for the distinct playback workflow.
Check the result in your streaming software
Open the scene where the widgets should appear and preview it before broadcasting. Check each widget for position, size, clipping, overlap and readability against the underlying video or background. For browser sources, adjust the source’s width and height to suit the widget and layout. A widget that loaded correctly in a tab can still be cropped or placed behind another source in the scene.
For the merge route, confirm the built-in widget source is using the destination theme you intended. If the configuration seems to come from an older or different profile, check the active theme and the Scene Collection association before copying widgets again. For separate browser sources, inspect the source properties and make sure each URL is the intended widget link. These checks distinguish a theme-selection issue from a scene-layout issue.
Test the scene in the context in which you will use it: switch to the relevant collection, inspect more than one scene if needed, and check that alerts or other elements do not cover important text. If you have a long-running channel, review the layout at the start and after any meaningful theme or source change. The guide to handling interruptions on a YouTube stream hosted in India covers stream interruptions rather than widgets, but it is a reminder that an overnight setup benefits from deliberate checks before you leave it running.
Streamlabs’ documented theme and browser-source steps address how widgets are selected and displayed; they do not guarantee how every other streaming application handles a source. Use the instructions for your software and verify the result there before relying on it. If you use a platform or software not covered by the cited guidance, do not assume the workflow will behave identically.
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FAQ
Does combining widgets put all settings from two themes into one?
No. The documented merge process copies a chosen widget into a destination theme, and you repeat it for each widget you want there. It does not merge every setting from two complete themes.
Can I show a widget from an inactive theme?
Yes, Streamlabs documents adding that widget’s link as a separate browser source. The built-in widget source in Streamlabs Desktop uses the active theme, so use the individual URL when you need a widget from an inactive one.
Will separate browser sources combine their settings?
No. Each source displays the widget associated with its own URL and keeps that widget’s theme-specific configuration. You can arrange the sources together in a scene, but their settings remain separate.
Why did my built-in widget source change after I switched scenes?
Streamlabs Desktop can associate Widget Themes with Scene Collections, so changing collections can also change the active theme. Check the selected collection and its theme association, then verify the source in the scene before going live.