Cross Clip creates a gaming montage by combining clips that you have already made in the editor. Prepare at least two clips, open My Clips, select the clips you want, and choose Create Montage.
The important limitation is that the montage step is separate from importing and editing footage. The Streamlabs guide documents up to three clips for Free and up to six for Pro, so plan the sequence before you start compiling.
What a Cross Clip montage combines
A montage is a single finished video made from several individual Cross Clip clips. Each clip can be trimmed and framed before it becomes part of the final sequence, which means you should treat the montage as the last assembly step rather than the place where you fix every edit.
The source material can be a Twitch or Kick clip URL, or a video file uploaded from your device. Cross Clip's product information also describes editing the content and camera regions, changing the output format, and arranging layers. The result is intended for sharing as a short, edited gaming video rather than as a continuous live broadcast.
A useful way to think about the workflow is:
- Bring in the source footage.
- Create and edit each individual clip.
- Save at least two completed clips.
- Select those clips in My Clips.
- Compile them as one montage.
This order matters. If you look for a montage command while you are still editing one imported video, you may not see the control you need. The documented montage path begins once there are two or more Cross Clip clips available.
Cross Clip is useful when your raw footage already contains separate moments, such as a difficult round, a close finish, or a reaction from your face camera. It is not a substitute for deciding which moments belong together. A montage with unrelated clips can feel like a folder of highlights, while a sequence built around one game, match, character, or style is easier to follow.
Prepare at least two clips
Start by collecting the footage you are allowed to edit and publish. You can paste a supported Twitch or Kick clip URL, or upload a video file from your device. If you are working with recordings from a capture setup, check the file on your device first so you know that the gameplay, audio, and face camera are present before you upload it.
Create each clip as its own piece. In the editor, use the timeline control to set the segment duration. Then move and resize the gameplay and camera regions so the important information remains visible in the chosen canvas. For example, if a game places its map or score in a corner, do not let a large face-camera region cover that area in the vertical version.
The editor can also use background blur when the regions do not fill the output canvas. You may need this when converting a wide gameplay recording to a portrait layout. Preview the result with the editor borders hidden, because guides and editing boundaries can make a layout appear more crowded than the exported clip will be.
Before making the montage, check each clip individually:
- Does the selected segment begin early enough to explain the play?
- Does it end after the result or reaction, rather than cutting away immediately?
- Is the gameplay readable in the selected canvas?
- Can viewers hear the relevant game or commentary audio?
- Does the face camera cover a scoreboard, subtitle, or important interface element?
- Are the layers arranged in the order you expect?
A practical naming system can also help. Names such as ranked-final-round, clutch-save, and team-reaction are easier to recognise in My Clips than several files with similar default names. This becomes more useful when you have created clips across more than one session.
If your source is a long recording rather than an existing clip, do not assume that the montage tool will find the best moments for you. Select and edit those moments first. The montage function combines the clips you choose; it does not replace the editorial decision about where one highlight starts and another ends.
Frame and edit each clip before assembly
Cross Clip's individual editing stage is where you establish a consistent look. Choose the output format for the platform you are targeting, then keep the gameplay and camera treatment reasonably similar across the clips. A sequence in which one clip is tightly cropped and the next leaves large empty areas can feel like a technical error even when both files are valid.
Move and resize the content and camera boxes rather than assuming the imported layout will suit every destination. A horizontal stream recording may need a different arrangement from a portrait social video. Look at the action that viewers need to see, not just at whether the entire original frame is present.
Use layers deliberately. A face camera can sit above gameplay, while a background or blurred area sits behind both. If a particular clip does not need the camera, removing or reducing that region may make the gameplay easier to read. The aim is not to add every available element, but to keep the moment understandable at the final size.
Preview each edited clip before moving on. Watch for a cropped weapon, score, map, or subtitle, and listen for audio that disappears when the clip changes. If the clips have very different pacing, trimming the quiet beginning or repeated loading screen from one of them can make the final montage more coherent.
For advice about video settings in a different production workflow, see this guide to setting bitrate in OBS for YouTube Live streaming. The Cross Clip montage process is not the same as an OBS broadcast, but the distinction between source quality and final output still matters: a higher setting cannot restore detail that was absent from the source recording.
Open My Clips and select the clips
Once you have created at least two clips, go to My Clips. This is the collection where Cross Clip stores the clips that are available for further use. The montage command is tied to selecting saved clips there, not to simply uploading several files in one step.
Select the clips you want in the montage. Review the selection before continuing, especially if you have several versions of the same moment. A trimmed version and an untrimmed version of one play may both appear as separate clips, and selecting both can make the finished video repeat the same action.
The order of the clips affects the way the montage reads. Put a clip that establishes the situation near the beginning, then follow it with moments that develop in intensity or variety. You do not need to arrange clips according to the date they were created. A strong opening can be a short, immediately understandable play, followed by longer or more context-heavy moments.
If the selection control does not behave as expected, return to the individual clip view and confirm that the clips have finished processing and are saved. A browser refresh or app change will not fix a clip that was never completed. It is better to check one clip at a time than to start a montage with missing framing or a blank preview.
When the selection is ready, choose Create Montage. That command begins the separate compilation workflow.
Choose Create Montage and set the output
After you choose Create Montage, Cross Clip presents the montage settings described in its guide. Select the frame rate and output quality that suit the intended use, then start the compilation when the clip order and settings look correct.
The product listings describe 720 and 1080 resolution options, while the Streamlabs guide and plans information describe 1080p at 60 frames per second as a Pro feature. Product entitlements can change, so check the current options shown in your Cross Clip account before you rely on a particular export setting.
A higher frame rate may be useful for fast gameplay, but it is not automatically the best choice for every source. If the original recording does not contain the detail or frame rate you want, selecting a higher output setting does not recreate it. Match the output to the footage and to the destination where you intend to share it.
Compilation is a processing step, not an instant rearrangement of files on your device. Streamlabs says that users receive a download link by email after compilation, and that completed clips can appear in its mobile app for download and sharing. Check the email account associated with the product and allow time for the completed file to become available rather than repeatedly starting new compilations.
When the montage is ready, watch the complete file from the beginning. Check the first transition, the last few seconds, audio continuity, and the final resolution. If you publish it to a channel, use a title and thumbnail that describe the actual game and event rather than implying that the video contains something it does not.
If your wider channel uses prerecorded material, the mechanics are different from assembling a short montage. For example, this guide explains how to repeat a video in OBS without restarting a YouTube stream. Cross Clip makes a finished montage; OBS and similar tools handle the ongoing broadcast around that file.
Free and Pro clip limits
The most important planning difference is the number of clips allowed in one montage. Streamlabs' Cross Clip guide, updated in October 2025, lists a maximum of three combined clips on Free and six on Pro. These are documented limits, not a recommendation to use the maximum every time.
The product information also describes differences in export and editing features. The table below summarises the distinctions relevant to planning a montage. Verify the current entitlement in Cross Clip before paying for or relying on a feature, because product plans can change.
| Feature | Free | Pro |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum clips in one montage | Up to three, as listed in Streamlabs' guide updated in October 2025 | Up to six, as listed in Streamlabs' guide updated in October 2025 |
| Upload size | Up to 100 MB, as listed on Streamlabs' Cross Clip plans page accessed in October 2026 | Up to 1 GB, as listed on Streamlabs' Cross Clip plans page accessed in October 2026 |
| 1080p at 60 frames per second | Check the current Cross Clip entitlement | Described by Streamlabs as a Pro feature |
| Watermark and outro | Check the current Cross Clip entitlement | Described by Streamlabs as removed with Pro |
| Compilation queue | Standard access, subject to the current product rules | Described by Streamlabs as priority access |
| Editor layers | Check the current Cross Clip entitlement | Described by Streamlabs as allowing up to six layers |
The clip cap affects the structure of your edit. If you have five good moments and use Free, you cannot treat them as one six-clip montage under the documented limit. You could choose the three moments that make the clearest sequence, or create separate montages with their own titles and purpose. Do not assume that splitting a project into several montages produces the same viewing experience as one continuous file.
The upload limit can matter before montage assembly begins. A large recording may need to be trimmed or prepared through a supported workflow before it can be uploaded. Do not confuse the upload allowance with the maximum number of clips in the finished montage: they control different parts of the process.
If you are deciding whether Pro is useful, base that decision on the feature you actually need. Six clips, a larger upload allowance, the described export options, watermark and outro controls, more layers, or queue priority may matter for your work. If your montage needs only two or three short clips, the Free limit may be sufficient. Confirm current purchase terms and feature access inside the product before subscribing.
Use supported source footage
Use a Twitch or Kick clip URL, or upload a video file from your device, as the documented starting point. The source should be footage you are entitled to edit and publish. That includes your own gameplay, footage supplied by a collaborator with permission, or material covered by the terms and permissions that apply to your project.
If you are working with another creator's clip, keep a record of the permission or licence rather than relying on a credit alone. A credit can identify the creator, but it does not necessarily grant permission to download, edit, or republish the footage. For music, overlays, tournament broadcasts, and third-party graphics, check the relevant rights separately.
This is also a good point to decide whether the final montage belongs on a gaming channel, a highlights account, or a broader live channel. A finished montage can be uploaded as an ordinary video, used as part of a scheduled content plan, or placed into a longer prerecorded programme where the platform and rights allow it. If you run a continuous nature or ambient channel, the operational concerns are different; this explanation of running a 24/7 nature stream from a spare computer without OBS covers a different type of always-on workflow.
For a channel that needs a completed montage to keep playing while your own computer is switched off, StreamNeo turns an uploaded video into a YouTube live stream after you paste in your YouTube stream key, with automatic monitoring and restart if the broadcast drops. It does not change the rights attached to the footage or the editing limits in Cross Clip, so finish and review the montage first.
Why direct YouTube downloads are not part of this workflow
Do not look for a Cross Clip feature that downloads YouTube videos directly. The iOS app version history records that direct YouTube downloading was removed in version 2.6.0 on 17 September 2024 because of YouTube API changes. That is why a guide describing supported clip URLs should not be read as permission to fetch any YouTube video into Cross Clip.
The current workflow is to use an allowed source file or another currently supported import route. If the original footage is yours, keep the original recording and upload that file where Cross Clip accepts it. If somebody else owns it, ask them for a suitable file or use a source method they have authorised.
This distinction also protects you from building instructions around an old app version. Features shown in an older tutorial, an old screen recording, or a search result may no longer exist. Check the current Cross Clip interface and its official product information before changing your process. The Cross Clip getting-started guide explains the documented import, editing, montage, and compilation path.
You should also check YouTube's current rules for downloading, reusing, and publishing material. The YouTube Terms of Service are the primary place to review the platform terms, while the Cross Clip app listing provides the relevant version-history record for the removed iOS ability.
A supported source route is less convenient than pressing a download button, but it gives you a clearer chain of custody for the footage. It also prevents a montage from failing because it depends on a removed feature. Keep the original file, create the edited clips, and use My Clips for the final selection.
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FAQ
How do I combine clips in Cross Clip?
Create at least two clips first. Then open My Clips, select the clips you want to combine, choose Create Montage, set the available output options, and start the compilation.
How many clips can a Cross Clip montage contain?
Streamlabs' guide lists up to three clips for Free and up to six clips for Pro. Confirm the current limit in Cross Clip before planning a larger montage, because plan features can change.
Can Cross Clip download a YouTube video directly?
Do not rely on direct YouTube downloading in Cross Clip. The iOS app history says that ability was removed in version 2.6.0 on 17 September 2024, so use an allowed source file or a currently supported import route instead.
What should I check before publishing the montage?
Watch the completed file from beginning to end and check framing, transitions, audio, resolution, and the final clip order. Also confirm that you have permission to edit and publish every piece of footage, music, graphic, or camera content included in the montage.