Dual Output in Streamlabs Desktop lets you prepare separate horizontal and vertical layouts and send them live at the same time where your account and destinations support the feature. The basic sequence is to connect an account, enable Dual Output, check both canvases, then choose the destination and orientations in Go Live.
The setting may not appear in the same place in every version of Streamlabs Desktop. The workflow below covers the documented route through Settings and the newer control above the Sources panel, but the final options still depend on the destination and account you are using.
What Dual Output Does
A normal stream usually starts with one canvas. You arrange your camera, gameplay, slides, text, or video for a wide frame, then send that same composition to the selected platform. That works well for a conventional YouTube or Twitch broadcast, but it can be awkward when viewers discover the stream through a vertical feed.
Dual Output is designed for two formats at once. You can maintain a horizontal layout for a wide player and a separate vertical layout for a portrait feed. The scenes and sources can be adjusted independently, so a source that is useful in one format does not have to be visible in the other.
For example, you might keep a speaker or gameplay area centred in the horizontal canvas, while placing the same camera higher in the vertical canvas so it is not covered by portrait interface elements. A devotional channel could use a wide background with a title band for YouTube, then use a narrower crop with larger text for a vertical destination. A study stream might keep the full desk view horizontally and show only the notebook and timer vertically.
That separation is the main reason to use the feature. It is not simply a switch that rotates your existing scene. You need to review both compositions, because a source placed correctly in a wide frame can be too small, cropped, or hidden in a portrait frame.
Streamlabs describes Dual Output as allowing separate horizontal and vertical layouts to be streamed simultaneously from Streamlabs Desktop. Its Dual Output feature page also describes separate scenes and sources for the two formats. The practical result is two pieces of layout work, followed by one output decision for each destination.
There are limits to keep in mind before you build around it. Streamlabs' support material describes the free Dual Output arrangement as one horizontal destination plus one vertical destination. Streamlabs says that three or more total destinations, or multiple destinations in the same orientation, require Streamlabs Ultra, as listed on Streamlabs' site in September 2026. Live Output Editing, which lets you add or remove destinations while already live, is also described as an Ultra feature, as listed on Streamlabs' site in September 2026.
Those are product terms, not a promise that every account will see the same choices. Check the current Streamlabs plan and feature pages before you publish a schedule based on a particular destination count.
Check Your Account and Feature Availability
Connect the account or accounts you intend to use before troubleshooting the layout. In Streamlabs Desktop, sign in or use the account connection flow for the relevant platform. If you are preparing a YouTube stream, the documented Streamlabs workflow begins by connecting YouTube during setup.
A local setting cannot bypass a platform's live-streaming requirements. YouTube may require account verification before live streaming is available, and Streamlabs notes that a verification process can involve a pending period of 24 hours. That is a platform requirement, not a delay caused by your canvas or encoder. You can review YouTube's current requirements in its official live-streaming help.
Other destinations have their own access rules. A TikTok account, for example, may not expose live-streaming access simply because it has been connected to Streamlabs. Check the current requirements shown by the destination itself, and do not assume that a successful account connection means the account can broadcast.
The feature can also depend on how Streamlabs presents it in your installed version. If you cannot find Dual Output in Settings, first confirm that you are using the desktop application rather than looking only at the web dashboard. Then look for the control above the Sources panel. Streamlabs' YouTube instructions document both locations because the interface has changed.
Before making a scene, write down the actual output you need. This small step avoids building a two-format setup when you only need one destination. Use a simple plan such as:
| Requirement | Horizontal output | Vertical output | What to check |
|---|---|---|---|
| One wide broadcast | YouTube or Twitch | Not needed | Standard single-output setup may be enough |
| One destination in each format | YouTube or Twitch | TikTok or another available vertical destination | Confirm both accounts can go live |
| Two destinations in the same format | Two horizontal or two vertical destinations | Same orientation repeated | Streamlabs says this exceeds the described free allowance, as listed in September 2026 |
| Three or more destinations | Any combination | Any combination | Streamlabs says this requires Ultra, as listed in September 2026 |
The table is a planning aid, not a guarantee of availability. The Go Live screen is where you should confirm what your account can actually select.
If your content is a pre-recorded loop rather than a live camera production, Dual Output does not remove the need to prepare a source that plays reliably. For example, you may first want to understand how to loop a fireplace video in OBS without a gap, then adapt the finished source to the two canvases.
Enable Dual Output
Open Streamlabs Desktop and find the application settings. In the documented YouTube workflow, select Settings, open Video, and turn on Enable Dual Output. Depending on the version, you may instead see a Dual Output control above the Sources panel in the main editor.
Use the control that is present in your application. Do not keep changing unrelated video settings simply because a guide shows a different panel layout. The important action is enabling the feature, not matching the exact position of a button in an older screenshot.
After enabling it, pause and look for signs that the editor now exposes both formats. You may see separate horizontal and vertical editing areas, previews, or canvas controls. The names and placement can vary, so read the labels rather than relying on the position of an icon.
If the option is missing, work through these checks in order:
- Confirm that Streamlabs Desktop is signed in to the account you intend to use.
- Check the main editor, including the area above Sources, as well as Settings and Video.
- Close and reopen the application if the setting was changed but the editor did not update.
- Confirm that the destination account has live access and that the platform is supported in the current workflow.
- Check Streamlabs' current support documentation before assuming that your account is eligible.
Do not treat a missing toggle as proof that your project is incorrectly configured. Feature placement and availability can vary by app version, account, destination, and plan. The Streamlabs support article for horizontal and vertical YouTube streaming is the best place to compare the current documented route with what you see.
Once Dual Output is enabled, save a simple test scene before importing a complicated production. Add only the sources you need for a first check: perhaps a media source, a camera, and a text label. This makes it easier to tell whether a problem belongs to the source itself or to the way it has been positioned on one canvas.
Review the Horizontal Canvas
Start with the horizontal version because it is often the existing layout. Look at the full preview and ask whether each important source is readable at the size viewers will see it. A wide canvas gives you room for side-by-side elements, but that space can make text and small logos appear less prominent than expected.
Check the following items:
- The main video or camera is inside the visible frame and is not hidden behind another source.
- Text remains away from the edges, where platform controls or cropping can make it difficult to read.
- Browser captures and media sources show the intended content rather than a blank or paused panel.
- Alerts, labels, and logos are not covering the subject of the stream.
- Audio sources are present only once if you have duplicated scenes or sources.
A source can be visible in one canvas and hidden in another. Use the source visibility controls deliberately. If your horizontal layout includes a lower-third title but the vertical version will use a different label, do not leave both versions active and hope the crop will hide one.
For a long-running channel, check the media behaviour as well as the picture. A file that ends, pauses, or displays a different aspect ratio can make the output look broken even when Dual Output is working correctly. If you are preparing a sound or ambience channel, the same principle applies to audio: confirm that the source is actually producing sound and that you have not added it twice while making the second layout.
Keep the horizontal design understandable without relying on the vertical version. The two outputs may be watched by different people at different times. A viewer should not need to know that another canvas exists to understand the title, subject, or current segment.
A practical test is to record a short local sample, then watch it at a smaller window size. Look for text that becomes unreadable, a cropped face, or a source that appears balanced in the editor but too close to an edge in playback. You are testing composition here, not the final platform connection.
Set Up the Vertical Canvas
Move to the portrait canvas and treat it as a separate composition. Do not simply shrink the horizontal scene until everything fits. A wide layout commonly contains several side-by-side sources, and reducing all of them can leave the important content too small for a phone screen.
Choose what the vertical viewer needs first. For a presenter, that may be the face and a short title. For a game, it may be the main action with a compact webcam area. For a devotional or ambience stream, it may be the central image, the name of the track, and a restrained background rather than every decorative element from the wide scene.
Reposition or resize sources independently. Streamlabs' Dual Output material says that scenes and sources can be customised for each format, and the source panel can show or hide elements on a specific canvas. Use that capability instead of accepting a crop that cuts through a face, altar, product, slide, or important caption.
Pay particular attention to text. A title that is comfortably readable across a wide frame may wrap badly or become too large when moved to portrait. Use shorter labels where needed. If a ticker or long URL is useful horizontally, it may be better replaced by a compact vertical label.
Check the top and bottom of the portrait composition. Mobile interfaces can occupy those areas, and the exact presentation may vary by destination. Keep essential information inside a clear central area rather than placing it against the extreme edges.
Review source order as well. A vertical crop can change which layer appears to dominate the picture. A background that was harmless in the horizontal layout may cover a small camera source after resizing. Toggle visibility one source at a time if the preview is difficult to understand.
If you run an always-on channel, inspect a full cycle of the content before committing to a long broadcast. Check the start of a new video, a scene transition, a title change, and any point where a source disappears. This matters more than a still screenshot because a layout can look correct at the beginning and fail when a media item changes state.
You can also compare this approach with a two-stream arrangement. Running separate broadcasts may give you more control over each programme, but it also means managing two outputs and two live sessions. Our guide to running two YouTube livestreams at once with different playlists covers a different operating model, so choose it only when separate streams are genuinely more useful than two orientations of one production.
Choose a Destination in Go Live
When both canvases are ready, select Go Live. The output flow is where you connect the layout work to a destination. Choose the platform or platforms you intend to use, then inspect the orientation choices shown for each one.
Do not assume that every connected destination will offer both orientations. The cited Streamlabs workflow supports choosing Both where that option is available, but the account and destination still determine what appears. A destination may accept only one format in the flow you are using, or it may require its own live access before the choice is shown.
If you are sending the horizontal version to YouTube and the vertical version to TikTok, assign each destination its intended orientation. If the flow presents one destination with separate orientation choices, select the appropriate format rather than selecting every available option without checking the result.
For a YouTube-only broadcast, select YouTube and review whether the output screen offers horizontal, vertical, or both. The choice should match the canvas you tested. If you prepared both layouts but select only horizontal, the vertical work will not be sent merely because Dual Output is enabled.
Check the title, privacy, category, and other destination details before confirming. These settings are separate from the canvas. A technically correct dual-format setup can still be published with the wrong privacy state or an incomplete title if you rush through the final screen.
Streamlabs describes its multistream workflow and destination selection in its multistreaming guide. Use the current application screen as the final authority, because a guide can describe a supported workflow without making every option available to every account.
For creators who need a computer to keep producing a stream overnight, the local application is also an operational consideration. Streamlabs Desktop must remain open and connected for this workflow. If your priority is an uploaded video that should continue while your computer is switched off, StreamNeo removes that specific overnight computer-running problem by taking an uploaded file, your YouTube stream key, and the resulting broadcast into a monitored cloud workflow. That is a different use case from designing two live layouts in Streamlabs Desktop, and it is for YouTube only.
Select Both Orientations and Test the Output
If the Go Live flow shows an orientation selector with Both, choose it when you want the horizontal and vertical versions sent to that destination. This is the key final step in the documented workflow, but it should be treated as a supported option in the current screen rather than a universal promise.
Before confirming the live broadcast, read the summary carefully. Check that the intended destination is selected, both orientations are shown if you need both, and the correct account is attached. If the summary lists only one orientation, stop and resolve that first rather than assuming the second canvas will be included automatically.
Run a controlled test when possible. Use a private or otherwise appropriate visibility setting if the destination permits it, and keep the test short enough to review without disrupting a scheduled programme. Watch the horizontal and vertical results separately. Confirm that the source placement, text, audio, and transitions behave as expected in both versions.
A useful test checklist is:
- Both previews show the intended scene rather than an empty canvas.
- The main subject remains visible after the portrait crop.
- Text is readable in both orientations.
- Audio is present once and remains synchronised with the content.
- Media sources move through their cycle without an unexpected blank frame.
- The selected destination and account are the ones you meant to use.
- The Go Live summary lists the orientations you expect.
If one output fails, avoid changing every setting at once. First identify whether the issue is account access, destination selection, source visibility, or composition. A missing vertical option points to availability or output selection. A vertical picture with misplaced elements points to the canvas. A silent output points to source or audio routing rather than the orientation selector.
When the test is sound, save the project and note the app version used. This helps when a future update moves the Dual Output control or changes the Go Live layout. Recheck the official documentation after an application update, especially before an overnight or scheduled broadcast.
If your content is meant to run continuously, the production method matters as much as the layout. Readers preparing nature or background audio streams may also find the workflow for a 24/7 birdsong ambience stream on YouTube in India useful when deciding how the source should behave over a long period. Dual Output can arrange the presentation, but it does not repair a source that stops or loses audio.
Before committing, compare the operating options on the pricing page. When the file and channel are ready, start free — 24-hour trial, no card.
FAQ
Does Dual Output create separate horizontal and vertical scenes?
Yes. The feature is designed for separate layouts, so you can position, resize, or hide sources independently in the two canvases. You still need to review each composition because the portrait version is not automatically a well-designed crop of the horizontal one.
Why cannot I find the Dual Output setting?
Streamlabs documents the toggle under Settings, then Video, and also describes a newer control above the Sources panel. The placement can vary by app version, and account or destination availability can affect what you see. Check both locations and the current Streamlabs support article before assuming the feature is unavailable.
Can I choose Both orientations for every destination?
No guarantee applies to every account or destination. The documented workflow supports choosing Both where that option is available, but platform access, account eligibility, plan terms, and destination support can change the choices shown in Go Live.
Is the free setup enough for two destinations?
Streamlabs describes the free Dual Output arrangement as one horizontal destination plus one vertical destination, as listed on Streamlabs' site in September 2026. Streamlabs says that three or more total destinations or multiple destinations in the same orientation require Ultra, also as listed in September 2026; check the current terms before relying on them.