To make videos in an OBS playlist display consistently, set the scene’s canvas dimensions and apply Transform → Fit to Screen to the VLC Video Source. This fits each item to the canvas while preserving its proportions; it does not change the files’ encoded resolution, and different aspect ratios can leave bars or unused space.
If you need every file itself to have identical pixel dimensions, use a video editor or transcoder to normalise the files before adding them. OBS controls how the source is placed in the scene, not the underlying media files.
Set the canvas and output dimensions
Open Settings → Video in OBS. Set Base (Canvas) Resolution to the dimensions you intend to compose the scene in. This is the workspace where sources are positioned and sized. OBS describes the canvas as the space available for fitting sources in its Studio Overview guide.
Set Output (Scaled) Resolution separately to the dimensions you want the stream or recording to deliver. The two settings answer different questions: the canvas is the scene’s working area; the output setting is the size OBS produces. A change to the output resolution is not a per-video resize operation and does not make files in a playlist share source dimensions.
For example, you might compose a landscape scene on a 1920 × 1080 canvas and choose an output resolution suited to the stream. Those figures describe a possible scene, not a requirement. Use the dimensions appropriate to your channel and existing workflow, and verify the result in OBS rather than assuming the setting changed each media file.
If you already have overlays, text or a background in the scene, set the canvas before arranging them where possible. Changing the canvas later can alter how the whole composition fits. It is usually easier to settle the scene dimensions first, then place the playlist source and other elements against that workspace.
The output size also affects what viewers receive, so check it alongside your streaming settings. For further context on choosing a stable stream configuration, see this guide to bitrate for a 24/7 nature video stream. That is a separate decision from fitting a source to a canvas: resolution and bitrate work together in the delivered stream, but neither rewrites the playlist files.
Add the files as a VLC Video playlist
In the Sources dock, select + and add VLC Video Source. Give the source a clear name, then add the videos to its playlist in the order you want OBS to play them. OBS says this source can handle multiple video and other media files, in a way similar to an image slideshow; its Media Sources documentation also notes that VLC must be installed for the VLC source to appear in OBS.
If VLC Video Source is missing, check that VLC is installed and then reopen or refresh OBS as appropriate for your system. The exact installation and detection behaviour can depend on your operating system and software versions, so consult the official documentation for the current details. Do not assume that creating a standard Media Source and creating a VLC playlist are the same workflow: for a playlist of multiple files, choose the VLC source.
Add the files you intend to use and inspect the playlist order. A devotional channel, for instance, might group a set of bhajan videos into one playlist source; a study channel might use a sequence of recorded lessons. The playlist determines which media item is active, while the source transform determines how the active item is displayed in the scene.
This distinction helps with troubleshooting. If the wrong item appears, look at the playlist order or playback controls. If an item appears too small, too large, off-centre or surrounded by space, inspect the source’s transform and the item’s proportions. Changing the playlist is not a substitute for correcting the scene layout.
Apply Transform → Fit to Screen
Select the VLC Video Source in the Sources dock or click it in the preview. Right-click and choose Transform → Fit to Screen. The OBS Sources Guide describes source transforms including Fit to Screen, Stretch to Screen and Center to Screen. OBS lists Fit to Screen as a keyboard shortcut as well: Ctrl+F on Windows and Cmd+F on macOS.
The command applies to the selected source as it is placed in the scene. Since the playlist items play through that source, the transform is the practical way to establish a consistent fit for the playlist in the scene. It does not mean that each item has been converted into a file with the same width and height.
After applying the command, look at the preview and confirm that the source is where you expect it. If the transform appears to have no effect, first check that the correct source is selected and that the preview is showing the scene you are editing. Also confirm that the files are being played through the VLC Video Source you transformed, rather than through separate sources elsewhere in the scene.
OBS may show handles around the selected source, so deselect it or switch to a clean preview view to judge the composition. For a scene with a background, a visible gap around a video can be intentional: the background may occupy that area. The important point is to decide whether you want to preserve the full image, crop it, or distort it, then use the appropriate transform and layout.
A related workflow uses prerecorded material for an always-on channel. If your larger goal is a continuing YouTube broadcast rather than a scene for a local recording, this guide to streaming prerecorded videos from a computer covers the broader broadcast setup. The sizing steps here remain about the OBS scene, not the delivery method.
Scaling is not source resolution
There are three different things that are easy to conflate: a file’s encoded dimensions, the canvas dimensions, and the output dimensions. A video file might be encoded at one size, the OBS scene may use another canvas size, and the resulting stream or recording may be scaled to an output size. OBS can scale a source for display without modifying the original media file.
That is why the phrase “same resolution” can mean two things. If you mean that each playlist item should occupy a predictable place in the scene, use a source transform and check the items in preview. If you mean that all files should report identical pixel dimensions when opened in an editor or file information panel, OBS’s Fit to Screen command will not achieve that. Normalise the media outside OBS before import if another process requires matching dimensions.
Scaling also does not create detail that is absent from a smaller source. Enlarging a small video to occupy more of the canvas can make it appear softer than a larger source. Conversely, scaling a larger source down can make it fit within the scene, but the output has only the detail represented at its delivered resolution. Judge the image at a useful preview size and, where possible, inspect a representative recording or stream output.
The canvas-to-output relationship matters when arranging more than one source. A title, logo or ticker is positioned in the scene workspace, and the final stream is then produced at the output dimensions. Changing output resolution alone is not a reliable fix for a video that is incorrectly fitted relative to other scene elements. Set the workspace, transform the source and review the final composition as separate steps.
For a 24/7 channel, this distinction can save time during a long test. If an item changes from landscape to portrait, OBS may keep the source’s transform but the source’s shape still differs. The new item can therefore occupy a different amount of the scene even though you applied the same transform to the playlist source. That is expected from the difference in aspect ratio, not evidence that OBS changed the file’s resolution.
Fit different aspect ratios without distortion
Aspect ratio is the relationship between a video’s width and height. A landscape clip, portrait recording and square graphic do not have the same shape. Fit to Screen scales each source to fit within the canvas while preserving its proportions. When a source and canvas have different shapes, fitting the whole image means that some canvas area can remain unused; bars or background space may be visible.
Consider a 16:9 scene containing a portrait video. To show the whole portrait image without changing its shape, it must be narrower than the full canvas. The remaining space at the sides can show the scene background or bars. A square video in the same landscape scene produces a different pattern of unused space. Fit to Screen does not promise edge-to-edge coverage for every aspect ratio while keeping the image undistorted.
This is often the sensible choice when seeing the complete image matters more than filling the frame. A bhajan video with subtitles or a lesson recording with information near the edges may be better shown whole than enlarged and cropped or distorted. You can use the extra canvas area for a plain background, a restrained title panel or other scene design, provided those additions do not obstruct the important content.
If bars appear, decide whether they are actually a problem for your viewers. Black bars are not automatically a sign that the source failed to fit; they may simply make the difference in shape visible. You can choose a background colour or use a duplicate, blurred or enlarged background layer in a more elaborate scene, but that is a design choice and should be previewed carefully. Keep any background treatment separate from the playlist source so it does not hide or alter the main image unexpectedly.
A playlist with varied footage benefits from testing more than its first item. Check the widest landscape item, the narrowest portrait item and any square or older 4:3 footage. Pay attention to captions, logos and objects near the edges. A layout that looks balanced for one widescreen video may leave a large field of unused space around a portrait clip, and that may require a background or a different composition rather than a different output resolution.
Stretch only when distortion is acceptable
Stretch to Screen fills the canvas dimensions by changing the source’s proportions when the source and canvas shapes differ. A portrait video stretched across a landscape canvas can look unusually wide; a landscape image stretched into a square frame can look compressed. The frame may be full, but objects and people can look wrong.
Use Stretch only when edge-to-edge coverage matters more than accurate geometry, and when the footage can tolerate the distortion. Abstract patterns, gradients or some background loops may be less sensitive to a change in shape than a person speaking, a musical instrument or a building. Even then, inspect the result. A visual choice that seems minor on a small preview can be obvious on a full-size display.
The alternative is not always a choice between bars and distortion. You could crop a source so it fills the canvas while preserving the proportions of what remains, but cropping removes part of the image and may require a different scene arrangement or editing step. OBS transforms and cropping can be adjusted in the scene; if you need a consistent crop for every item, test all the different shapes before relying on it.
| Choice | What it does | Trade-off |
|---|---|---|
| Fit to Screen | Scales the source to fit within the canvas while preserving its proportions. | Shows the whole image, but different shapes may leave bars or unused canvas space. |
| Stretch to Screen | Fills the canvas dimensions by changing the source proportions where needed. | Covers the frame, but can make people and objects look wider or narrower. |
| Center to Screen | Centres the source without making every item fill the canvas. | Keeps placement straightforward, but item sizes and surrounding space can vary. |
Center to Screen can be useful when you want a source centred and are prepared for its apparent size to vary. It is not another name for Fit to Screen. Choose based on what the scene needs, then check the actual playlist items rather than assuming one transform will suit every mix of footage.
Check the scene across playlist items
Test the scene with representative items before leaving it to run. Play a landscape clip, then a portrait, square or 4:3 item if those shapes are in the playlist. Confirm that the right source is selected, that each item stays within the intended scene area and that any space around it is acceptable. You are checking how the playlist source renders in this scene, not validating or rewriting the files.
Look for details that can make an apparently good fit unsuitable: subtitles close to the bottom edge, logos near a corner, faces near the side, or text that becomes too small after scaling. If you use overlays, confirm they remain legible and do not cover information in one item even if they work with another. A ticker that is clear over a wide landscape video might overlap a portrait clip’s central subject.
Test transitions between items as well as the steady image. The source may change from one aspect ratio to another, and the unused area or apparent image size can change at that moment. If the playlist will run unattended, leave it playing long enough to see more than one change, then check again after any edits to the order or files. This is a practical preview, not a guarantee that every OBS or VLC version will handle every media file identically.
If the scene is part of a long-running YouTube channel, separate the image-layout question from the question of keeping the broadcast running. For a cloud-run, file-based broadcast, StreamNeo removes the need to leave this playlist-playing computer switched on; you still need to prepare and check the file and channel before starting. StreamNeo is YouTube-only, so it is not a fit if you need to broadcast this setup to a different platform.
For an OBS setup that runs from your own computer, check the whole chain: the active scene, the playlist source, the output dimensions and the stream configuration. A preview can show a good composition while a separate output setting is not what you intended. For a channel that streams for long periods, this guide on using a YouTube playlist as a source for a 24/7 lesson stream provides related planning context, though its playlist approach is separate from an OBS VLC Video Source.
When you need files with uniform dimensions for an editor, an archive or another downstream process, export normalised copies from a video editor or transcoder. Preserve the originals if you may need them, and inspect the exported files before rebuilding the OBS playlist. Choose the dimensions and aspect ratio that suit the intended output; making every file identical in size still does not ensure that every composition is framed well.
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FAQ
Does Fit to Screen make every file the same resolution?
No. It changes how the selected source is scaled and placed in the OBS scene, not the encoded dimensions of the original files. If another workflow requires identical pixel dimensions, normalise the files in an editor or transcoder before importing them.
Why do bars or empty areas appear after fitting?
The source and canvas have different aspect ratios. Fit to Screen preserves the source’s proportions and fits the whole image inside the canvas, so some area can remain unused. You can keep that space, design a background for it, or choose a different framing approach after checking what content cropping would remove.
Should I use Stretch to Screen to fill the preview?
Only if filling the canvas matters more than preserving the image shape. Stretch can make people and objects appear wider or narrower when the source and canvas proportions differ. Check several playlist items before deciding that the result is acceptable.
Do Base (Canvas) and Output (Scaled) Resolution do the same thing?
No. Base (Canvas) Resolution sets the scene workspace for arranging sources; Output (Scaled) Resolution sets the dimensions used for the stream or recording. Neither setting re-encodes the individual playlist files or applies the same source transform to each file.