Dual Output in Streamlabs Desktop lets you prepare separate horizontal and vertical layouts in the same session. Enable it in Settings → Video or with the toggle at the top of the Editor’s Sources panel, then inspect both canvases and choose which orientation to send to each destination in the Go Live flow.
The controls you see depend on the platform combination and your subscription tier. Treat the two layouts as separate compositions, not as one scene that automatically fits two screens; check the current Streamlabs guidance and plan terms before you build a show around a particular destination arrangement.
Find Dual Output in Settings → Video
Open Streamlabs Desktop and go to Settings → Video. Look for the Dual Output control and enable it. The application provides separate horizontal and vertical output settings, so enabling the feature is the start of the setup rather than the final layout step. Streamlabs documents the settings route in its YouTube vertical and horizontal setup guide.
If you have used one canvas until now, pause before going live. Once Dual Output is active, verify that both output orientations are present in the Video settings and that you can switch between their previews. The exact interface can change between Streamlabs Desktop versions, so if a label has moved, consult the current support article rather than assuming that an older screenshot matches your installation.
A useful way to think about the feature is that it gives you two framing decisions in one session. Horizontal usually suits a conventional desktop or television viewing frame; vertical gives you a taller frame for destinations that accept portrait video. Neither orientation is automatically the “main” one for every viewer. Your programme may need different positioning, text size, or source visibility in each.
Before changing settings, save or note your current scene arrangement if it is already in use. That gives you a reference if a source moves or becomes hidden while you test the second canvas. For a channel where the live scene needs to remain stable overnight, make layout changes in a test session or at a quiet time, rather than discovering a framing problem during a scheduled broadcast.
Enable it from the Sources panel if preferred
There is a second entry point: in the Streamlabs Desktop Editor, use the Dual Output toggle at the top of the Sources panel. This can be quicker when you are already arranging sources and notice that the vertical version is not active. The Settings route is easier to find when you are following a setup checklist; the Sources-panel toggle is convenient while editing.
After toggling, do not assume that the displayed canvas is the only one affected. Switch between the horizontal and vertical previews and confirm which one you are editing before moving, resizing, or hiding a source. A change that makes sense in one orientation can leave the other layout with a cropped title, an empty corner, or an important element behind another source.
A simple editing habit prevents many mistakes: make one deliberate change, inspect both orientations, and then continue. If you alter a logo position on the vertical canvas, check that it has not also shifted in the horizontal composition. If the selected canvas has its own source visibility control, check its state explicitly rather than relying on memory.
Dual Output is separate from a decision about how many destinations to reach. The availability of destination combinations and orientations can vary with the platform and subscription tier. Streamlabs’ free multistreaming guide describes its current distinction between a basic one-horizontal/one-vertical arrangement and broader multistreaming needs. Because plan inclusions are commercial terms that can change, check that page and your account’s current plan details before relying on a particular combination.
Configure the horizontal canvas
In Settings → Video, set up the horizontal output for the shape and quality you intend to send to the relevant destination. Resolution and frame rate should suit the content, your connection and the destination’s current guidance. There is no single setting that is right for every channel: a static devotional loop, a presenter with slides and a fast-moving game have different visual and motion demands.
Review the horizontal preview at the size viewers are likely to see it. Small text can be legible on your editing monitor but unreadable on a phone or television at normal viewing distance. Check titles, lower thirds, lyrics, clocks and any on-screen notices. Keep important information inside the visible frame and leave breathing room around edges where player controls or device cropping may distract from it.
If you are sending a prerecorded loop or a scene with a fixed background, compare the canvas proportions with the source material. Scaling a portrait clip to fill a landscape frame may crop content; fitting it within the frame may leave unused space. Decide which compromise best preserves the information that matters, and preview the result instead of judging from the source file alone.
Encoding choices also affect the practical quality of a stream. If the picture becomes soft or unstable, review the output resolution, bitrate and connection together rather than changing several settings at random. The troubleshooting steps in this guide to YouTube Live bitrate drops are relevant when the horizontal output struggles on the way to YouTube, although Dual Output itself does not remove network or encoding constraints.
Do not treat the horizontal layout as a master that is guaranteed to look right everywhere. A wide title banner may be appropriate there, but it can occupy too much of the vertical canvas once that layout is viewed on a phone. Decide which elements define the programme and which are optional decoration before adapting the second composition.
Configure the vertical canvas
Return to the Video settings and configure the vertical output independently. Check the portrait preview and choose a resolution and frame rate appropriate to the destination. For TikTok-oriented vertical settings, Streamlabs suggests 1080 × 1920 at 30 FPS in its TikTok Dual Output guide. This is Streamlabs’ suggestion for that use case, not a universal requirement for every platform or every vertical stream.
Portrait framing changes what fits. A wide scene that shows a person, a title and a background across the screen may become a close crop when adapted to vertical. Decide whether to centre the main subject, stack supporting information above or below it, or use a different arrangement of sources. If the source is a static image or lyric video, check that text remains readable without forcing viewers to scan across an oversized, shrunken composition.
For a 24/7 music or ambience channel, avoid placing essential visual context only at the far left or right of a landscape composition. In portrait, that content may fall outside the frame. For a local news loop, test headlines and ticker placement at the actual vertical preview size; long lines may need shorter wording or a separate text box. The goal is not to make both outputs identical, but to make each intentional.
Choose frame rate with the material in mind. A mostly still image does not need the same motion treatment as a camera scene or gameplay, and higher settings can increase the work your computer must do. If you are also encoding or sending multiple outputs locally, test the whole session under realistic conditions. A preview that looks fine while idle does not prove the system will remain responsive once both outputs are active.
Before sending a vertical output, check the platform’s current acceptance and presentation behaviour. Streamlabs cautions in its YouTube guide that a vertical stream sent through third-party software may not always be detected for the Shorts feed, even when mobile viewers can watch the vertical stream. Do not promise viewers a particular feed placement based only on selecting a portrait orientation in the encoder.
Review source placement and visibility in both layouts
The most important review is a pass through both canvases. A source may be positioned, scaled or visible in one orientation but not appropriate in the other. Streamlabs says source visibility can be toggled for a specific canvas, so inspect the visibility state as well as position and size. This matters for alerts, logos, chat boxes, background media, captions and any scene element that should appear only in one format.
Use a small review checklist for each output:
| Check | Horizontal canvas | Vertical canvas |
|---|---|---|
| Main content | Is the subject or visual centre clear? | Does the crop preserve the subject? |
| Text | Can titles and captions be read at normal viewing size? | Are lines short enough for the narrow frame? |
| Sources | Are required sources visible and in the right layer order? | Are sources intentionally shown or hidden here? |
| Edges | Is key content away from the frame edges? | Does portrait cropping cut off anything important? |
| Test | Does the preview match the intended destination? | Does the destination accept and display this format as expected? |
Check layer order as well as coordinates. A vertical text source can sit behind a background source if the scene structure has changed, and an alert that is unobtrusive in landscape may cover the main content in portrait. Preview the scene while representative content is on screen; a blank or paused source can hide a problem that only appears once the loop, camera or alert is active.
If you are using lyrics or spoken commentary, make sure the relevant information remains visible and understandable in each composition. For a Hindi music stream, for example, a lyric line that fits across a wide canvas may wrap awkwardly in portrait. If the stream’s audio is part of the viewer experience, verify it separately rather than assuming a picture-layout change will preserve every audio track; this Hindi commentary audio guide explains why audio routing and retention deserve their own check.
For a long-running channel, a test stream is more useful than a quick look at the editor preview alone. Watch the output on a second device if you can, and check the first minutes after a scene change or alert. If you cannot test publicly, use the platform’s available private or unlisted testing options and confirm their current behaviour. Do not put a new two-format layout straight into a high-stakes scheduled broadcast without checking it end to end.
Choose destination orientations in the Go Live flow
When both layouts are ready, click Go Live and inspect the destination choices before starting. Select the platform, then choose the orientation or orientations you intend to send where those controls are offered. Streamlabs’ YouTube instructions describe selecting Both to send horizontal and vertical output to YouTube. This label and the available choices are specific to that flow; the destinations shown to you can differ by platform combination and plan.
Review every destination separately. Do not infer that choosing a vertical output for one platform automatically applies the same output to another, or that adding a second destination preserves the same options. The practical comparison is: which platform is receiving the output, which orientation it supports in this setup, what your current tier allows, and whether platform-specific technical or archive rules apply. Check current official documentation and the selection screen before you commit.
Some destinations have distinct modes that should not be conflated with the general Dual Output controls. Streamlabs describes Twitch Dual Format as a separate feature requiring Enhanced Broadcasting, and its guide notes that the requirements are still being tested. The guide lists particular system, bandwidth and video-track requirements for that Twitch feature; those are not universal requirements for enabling Dual Output elsewhere. If Twitch is part of your workflow, review the current Twitch Dual Format setup guidance, check Twitch’s current status and run a test while monitoring performance.
There can also be differences in what you can manage after starting. Streamlabs’ YouTube guide says multistream chat appears in one place, shareable links generated within Streamlabs Desktop are for horizontal streams, and mid-stream title or category edits are limited to horizontal output. Confirm the current guide if those controls matter to your workflow, and decide in advance which destination’s tools you will use to moderate or update the broadcast.
If you intend to run an always-on channel rather than a short session, consider whether a desktop-based setup fits the way you operate. Streamlabs Desktop runs on your computer, so the computer and its connection are part of the broadcast path. The trade-off is direct control over a familiar scene editor versus having to keep that machine available and recover a stream if it stops. A separate comparison of cloud streaming and FFmpeg for a 24/7 YouTube channel can help you think through that operating choice without changing the Dual Output steps themselves.
Do one final pass through the Go Live screen: confirm the destination names, orientation selections, title and any platform-specific settings. If you need both orientations in that session, ensure Dual Output is enabled before starting. Streamlabs notes that Live Output Editing is optional and must be enabled before going live; beginning without Dual Output can limit that session to horizontal output. Its Live Output Editing guide explains the interaction. Once started, watch the actual output long enough to confirm both compositions are being received as intended.
If a failed connection or a dropped stream is a concern, plan recovery separately from layout. Dual Output controls framing and destination orientation; they do not make a desktop broadcast immune to a computer restart, network interruption or platform disconnect. For a channel that needs to resume after a drop, this guide on recovering a 24/7 Indian music stream after YouTube disconnects covers the separate recovery problem.
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FAQ
Where is the Dual Output toggle in Streamlabs Desktop?
You can enable it in Settings → Video or from the toggle at the top of the Editor’s Sources panel. After turning it on, check that you can view and configure both orientations before going live.
Do the horizontal and vertical canvases share the same layout?
They are separate output layouts and each needs its own review. A source’s placement, size or visibility that works in one orientation may be cropped, too small or unnecessary in the other.
Can I send both orientations to every platform?
No. The available orientations and destination combinations depend on the platform and your subscription tier. Check Streamlabs’ current plan terms and the destination choices in the Go Live flow rather than assuming one combination applies everywhere.
Does choosing vertical output guarantee YouTube Shorts placement?
No. Streamlabs notes that a vertical stream sent through third-party software may not always be detected for the Shorts feed, although mobile viewers can still watch it. Check current YouTube and Streamlabs guidance and test the destination behaviour before making promises to viewers.