Head-to-head
Streamloop
UpstreamStreamloop vs Upstream
Updated October 16, 2026
An honest head-to-head: features, pricing, and which tool actually fits your 24/7 stream.
| At a glance | Streamloop | Upstream |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | From $4 per 30 days at 720p and 24 fps, billed by the minute | $30/mo or $288/year ($24/mo equivalent); free plan includes 24 streaming hours/month |
| Best for | 24/7 looping without a PC | Designed streams + multistream |
| Free tier / trial | $1 trial week by card, which becomes a monthly plan unless you cancel | Free plan, 24h/month |
| Primary focus | Pre-recorded 24/7 streaming | 24/7 streaming + Stream Designer |
Starting price
- Streamloop
- From $4 per 30 days at 720p and 24 fps, billed by the minute
- Upstream
- $30/mo or $288/year ($24/mo equivalent); free plan includes 24 streaming hours/month
Best for
- Streamloop
- 24/7 looping without a PC
- Upstream
- Designed streams + multistream
Free tier / trial
- Streamloop
- $1 trial week by card, which becomes a monthly plan unless you cancel
- Upstream
- Free plan, 24h/month
Primary focus
- Streamloop
- Pre-recorded 24/7 streaming
- Upstream
- 24/7 streaming + Stream Designer
Real cost
What a 24/7 stream actually costs, by quality
Streamloop bills by the minute. Pick a resolution and frame rate, and pay only while you are live. Optional monthly credit plans are also available. Below is the cost of a stream running nonstop for a full 30 days.
| Quality | 30 fps / mo | 60 fps / mo |
|---|---|---|
| 720p | $5 | $7.50 |
| 1080pMost popular | $10 | $15 |
| 1440p (2K) | $20 | $30 |
| 4K (2160p) | $30 | $45 |
720p
- 30 fps
- $5
- 60 fps
- $7.50
1080p
Most popular
- 30 fps
- $10
- 60 fps
- $15
1440p (2K)
- 30 fps
- $20
- 60 fps
- $30
4K (2160p)
- 30 fps
- $30
- 60 fps
- $45
Metered by the minute, so a week of streaming costs about a quarter of these figures, and a day about a thirtieth. Files that need encoding add a one-time ~$0.005 per minute of encode time; files that are ready to stream skip it. Uploads and idle loops are free, and so is the first 30 GiB of large-playlist storage.
A 1080p stream running 24/7 on Streamloop is about $10/month, and you only pay while it is live. For comparison, Upstream lists: From $24/mo yearly / $30/mo monthly.
Full feature comparison
Streamloop vs Upstream, side by side
Every feature that matters, with standout differences flagged by a star.
| Feature | Streamloop | Upstream |
|---|---|---|
| 1Pricing & access | ||
| Pay-as-you-go, no subscription | Top up by card or crypto and pay as you go; a monthly plan is optional | ✕ |
| Trial | $1 trial week by card, which becomes a monthly plan unless you cancel | Free, 24h/mo |
| Starting price | 720p24: $4 per 30 live days; billed by the minute, monthly plan optional | From $24/mo yr / $30 mo |
| 720p 30-day price | $4 at 24fps; $5 at 30fps | 30fps: $24/mo yearly, $30 monthly. 60fps: $36/mo yearly, $40 monthly |
| 1080p 30-day price | $10 at 30fps | 30fps: $24/mo yearly, $30 monthly. 60fps: $36/mo yearly, $40 monthly |
| 1440p / 2K 30-day price | $20 at 30fps | No 1440p option; 4K at 30fps is $63/mo yearly, $70 monthly |
| 2160p / 4K 30-day price | $30 at 30fps; $45 at 60fps | 30fps: $63/mo yearly, $70 monthly. 60fps: $108/mo yearly, $120 monthly |
| 2Streaming quality | ||
| 720p / 30fps | ✓ | ✓ |
| 1080p / Full HD | ✓ | ✓ |
| 60fps | 24, 30 or 60 fps | ✓ |
| Up to 4K @ 60fps | Up to 2160p/4K | ✓ |
| Vertical / portrait streaming | Portrait and landscape output | ✓ |
| HDR streaming publicly documented | HDR to YouTube only | ✕ |
| 3Production & design | ||
| Stream designer / layout builder | Yes, in Live Scenes, Streamloop's mode for live inputs and graphics: a layered scene editor with an AI assistant. | ✓ |
| Image, video & logo overlays | Yes, in Live Scenes, Streamloop's mode for live inputs and graphics: image, logo, text, clock, countdown and video layers. | ✓ |
| Embed live websites & graphs | Yes, in Live Scenes, Streamloop's mode for live inputs and graphics: any web page can be a layer. | ✓ |
| Interactive alerts & widgets | No native alerts or polls. Live Scenes, Streamloop's mode for live inputs and graphics, can show a third-party chat or alert page. | ✓ |
| Custom fonts in overlays | Partly. Live Scenes, Streamloop's mode for live inputs and graphics, uses the Google Fonts catalog; no font upload. | ✓ |
| Browser Live Studio (camera) | No browser studio, webcam or guests. Live Scenes, Streamloop's mode for live inputs, takes OBS, vMix or IP camera feeds up to 1080p60. | ✓ |
| 4Sources & inputs | ||
| MP4 / MKV / AVI / MOV upload | MP4, MOV, MKV, WebM, AVI, MPEG and MXF | ✓ |
| Separate audio track (music / voiceover) | Separate audio and audio playlists: MP3, WAV, FLAC, AAC, Opus | ✓ |
| Import from Google Drive / Dropbox | Google Drive, Yandex Disk, YouTube, other video sites and direct file links. | ✕ |
| Playlists with custom ordering | Drag to reorder; play in order, shuffle without repeats, or describe a custom order in plain words | ✓ |
| Custom loop logic (shuffle, loop counts) | In order, shuffle without repeats, or a custom order in plain words; no loop counts | ✓ |
| Edit the stream live (swap / skip / reorder) | Publish playlist edits while live; they start at the next item. No skip button. | ✓ |
| 5Destinations | ||
| YouTube (one-click OAuth) | ✓ | ✓ |
| Custom RTMP (any platform) | Any compatible RTMP destination | ✓ |
| Twitch / Facebook / Kick / TikTok | Twitch, Facebook, Kick, TikTok, and others through compatible RTMP endpoints | ✓ |
| Multistream to several destinations | Up to 5 destinations per stream. Each one after the first adds $6 per 30 days at 1080p while live. | ✓ |
| One-click YouTube (no stream key) | Official Google OAuth connection; manual stream-key option also available | ✓ |
| SRT ingest | Yes, in Live Scenes, Streamloop's mode for live inputs: SRT, RTMP, RTSP and HLS. Plain loops take uploaded files only. | ✕ |
| 6Lifecycle & automation | ||
| True 24/7 continuous loop | Continuous cloud loop while active and funded | ✓ |
| YouTube broadcast lifecycle automation | Can create and synchronize broadcast metadata, privacy, thumbnail, latency, DVR, recording, and schedule | ✓ |
| Scheduling | Immediate/future start; duration, end time, or open-ended | ✓ |
| MCP / agent integration | OAuth-protected hosted MCP for streams, playlists, uploads, destinations, usage, and billing | MCP server on every plan |
| YouTube ad cue points | ✕ | ✓ |
| Edit title / description / thumbnail live | ✓ | ✕ |
| Public API | Public OpenAPI REST interface plus documented GraphQL | Live Streaming API on every plan |
| Unlimited loop without manual rescheduling | Can run indefinitely until stopped, credit is exhausted, or destination action is required | ✓ |
| 7Limits & inclusions | ||
| Storage included | Uploads are free. The first 30 GiB of large-playlist storage is free, then $0.35 per GiB-month while live. | 100GB on the free plan |
| Concurrent streams / slots | Multiple separate streams are supported; no public account hard cap is documented | 1 on the free plan; paid plans priced per concurrent stream |
| Max multistream destinations | 5 per stream, with at most one connected YouTube channel | 10 |
| Videos per playlist | 1000 items per playlist | No published limit |
| Max upload size / length | 15 GiB per file | ✕ |
| Team / multi-user access | Shared workspaces with email invites and owner, admin and member roles | ✓ |
| No watermark | No watermark on any plan | ✓ |
| 8Reliability & support | ||
| Automatic monitoring & recovery | Automatic monitoring, restart and reconnection | ✓ |
| Backup streams | No. You do not set up a backup stream. A failed stream restarts automatically. | ✓ |
| Chat / email support | Email only, with replies typically within 24 hours | ✓ |
| Uptime guarantee / compensation | No contractual uptime compensation or recovery-time SLA published | ✓ |
| In-app viewer analytics | YouTube concurrent viewers only | ✕ |
| 9Trust & account | ||
| Trustpilot rating | Only one review so far, so no useful rating yet | 4.5 (243) |
| YouTube-Verified encoder | ✕ | ✓ |
| Two-factor authentication | No. You sign in with Google, an email link or a passkey, with no extra second step. | ✓ |
Pricing & access
Pay-as-you-go, no subscription
- Streamloop
- Top up by card or crypto and pay as you go; a monthly plan is optional
- Upstream
- ✕
Trial
- Streamloop
- $1 trial week by card, which becomes a monthly plan unless you cancel
- Upstream
- Free, 24h/mo
Starting price
- Streamloop
- 720p24: $4 per 30 live days; billed by the minute, monthly plan optional
- Upstream
- From $24/mo yr / $30 mo
720p 30-day price
- Streamloop
- $4 at 24fps; $5 at 30fps
- Upstream
- 30fps: $24/mo yearly, $30 monthly. 60fps: $36/mo yearly, $40 monthly
1080p 30-day price
- Streamloop
- $10 at 30fps
- Upstream
- 30fps: $24/mo yearly, $30 monthly. 60fps: $36/mo yearly, $40 monthly
1440p / 2K 30-day price
- Streamloop
- $20 at 30fps
- Upstream
- No 1440p option; 4K at 30fps is $63/mo yearly, $70 monthly
2160p / 4K 30-day price
- Streamloop
- $30 at 30fps; $45 at 60fps
- Upstream
- 30fps: $63/mo yearly, $70 monthly. 60fps: $108/mo yearly, $120 monthly
Streaming quality
720p / 30fps
- Streamloop
- ✓
- Upstream
- ✓
1080p / Full HD
- Streamloop
- ✓
- Upstream
- ✓
60fps
- Streamloop
- 24, 30 or 60 fps
- Upstream
- ✓
Up to 4K @ 60fps
- Streamloop
- Up to 2160p/4K
- Upstream
- ✓
Vertical / portrait streaming
- Streamloop
- Portrait and landscape output
- Upstream
- ✓
HDR streaming publicly documented
- Streamloop
- HDR to YouTube only
- Upstream
- ✕
Production & design
Stream designer / layout builder
- Streamloop
- Yes, in Live Scenes, Streamloop's mode for live inputs and graphics: a layered scene editor with an AI assistant.
- Upstream
- ✓
Image, video & logo overlays
- Streamloop
- Yes, in Live Scenes, Streamloop's mode for live inputs and graphics: image, logo, text, clock, countdown and video layers.
- Upstream
- ✓
Embed live websites & graphs
- Streamloop
- Yes, in Live Scenes, Streamloop's mode for live inputs and graphics: any web page can be a layer.
- Upstream
- ✓
Interactive alerts & widgets
- Streamloop
- No native alerts or polls. Live Scenes, Streamloop's mode for live inputs and graphics, can show a third-party chat or alert page.
- Upstream
- ✓
Custom fonts in overlays
- Streamloop
- Partly. Live Scenes, Streamloop's mode for live inputs and graphics, uses the Google Fonts catalog; no font upload.
- Upstream
- ✓
Browser Live Studio (camera)
- Streamloop
- No browser studio, webcam or guests. Live Scenes, Streamloop's mode for live inputs, takes OBS, vMix or IP camera feeds up to 1080p60.
- Upstream
- ✓
Sources & inputs
MP4 / MKV / AVI / MOV upload
- Streamloop
- MP4, MOV, MKV, WebM, AVI, MPEG and MXF
- Upstream
- ✓
Separate audio track (music / voiceover)
- Streamloop
- Separate audio and audio playlists: MP3, WAV, FLAC, AAC, Opus
- Upstream
- ✓
Import from Google Drive / Dropbox
- Streamloop
- Google Drive, Yandex Disk, YouTube, other video sites and direct file links.
- Upstream
- ✕
Playlists with custom ordering
- Streamloop
- Drag to reorder; play in order, shuffle without repeats, or describe a custom order in plain words
- Upstream
- ✓
Custom loop logic (shuffle, loop counts)
- Streamloop
- In order, shuffle without repeats, or a custom order in plain words; no loop counts
- Upstream
- ✓
Edit the stream live (swap / skip / reorder)
- Streamloop
- Publish playlist edits while live; they start at the next item. No skip button.
- Upstream
- ✓
Destinations
YouTube (one-click OAuth)
- Streamloop
- ✓
- Upstream
- ✓
Custom RTMP (any platform)
- Streamloop
- Any compatible RTMP destination
- Upstream
- ✓
Twitch / Facebook / Kick / TikTok
- Streamloop
- Twitch, Facebook, Kick, TikTok, and others through compatible RTMP endpoints
- Upstream
- ✓
Multistream to several destinations
- Streamloop
- Up to 5 destinations per stream. Each one after the first adds $6 per 30 days at 1080p while live.
- Upstream
- ✓
One-click YouTube (no stream key)
- Streamloop
- Official Google OAuth connection; manual stream-key option also available
- Upstream
- ✓
SRT ingest
- Streamloop
- Yes, in Live Scenes, Streamloop's mode for live inputs: SRT, RTMP, RTSP and HLS. Plain loops take uploaded files only.
- Upstream
- ✕
Lifecycle & automation
True 24/7 continuous loop
- Streamloop
- Continuous cloud loop while active and funded
- Upstream
- ✓
YouTube broadcast lifecycle automation
- Streamloop
- Can create and synchronize broadcast metadata, privacy, thumbnail, latency, DVR, recording, and schedule
- Upstream
- ✓
Scheduling
- Streamloop
- Immediate/future start; duration, end time, or open-ended
- Upstream
- ✓
MCP / agent integration
- Streamloop
- OAuth-protected hosted MCP for streams, playlists, uploads, destinations, usage, and billing
- Upstream
- MCP server on every plan
YouTube ad cue points
- Streamloop
- ✕
- Upstream
- ✓
Edit title / description / thumbnail live
- Streamloop
- ✓
- Upstream
- ✕
Public API
- Streamloop
- Public OpenAPI REST interface plus documented GraphQL
- Upstream
- Live Streaming API on every plan
Unlimited loop without manual rescheduling
- Streamloop
- Can run indefinitely until stopped, credit is exhausted, or destination action is required
- Upstream
- ✓
Limits & inclusions
Storage included
- Streamloop
- Uploads are free. The first 30 GiB of large-playlist storage is free, then $0.35 per GiB-month while live.
- Upstream
- 100GB on the free plan
Concurrent streams / slots
- Streamloop
- Multiple separate streams are supported; no public account hard cap is documented
- Upstream
- 1 on the free plan; paid plans priced per concurrent stream
Max multistream destinations
- Streamloop
- 5 per stream, with at most one connected YouTube channel
- Upstream
- 10
Videos per playlist
- Streamloop
- 1000 items per playlist
- Upstream
- No published limit
Max upload size / length
- Streamloop
- 15 GiB per file
- Upstream
- ✕
Team / multi-user access
- Streamloop
- Shared workspaces with email invites and owner, admin and member roles
- Upstream
- ✓
No watermark
- Streamloop
- No watermark on any plan
- Upstream
- ✓
Reliability & support
Automatic monitoring & recovery
- Streamloop
- Automatic monitoring, restart and reconnection
- Upstream
- ✓
Backup streams
- Streamloop
- No. You do not set up a backup stream. A failed stream restarts automatically.
- Upstream
- ✓
Chat / email support
- Streamloop
- Email only, with replies typically within 24 hours
- Upstream
- ✓
Uptime guarantee / compensation
- Streamloop
- No contractual uptime compensation or recovery-time SLA published
- Upstream
- ✓
In-app viewer analytics
- Streamloop
- YouTube concurrent viewers only
- Upstream
- ✕
Trust & account
Trustpilot rating
- Streamloop
- Only one review so far, so no useful rating yet
- Upstream
- 4.5 (243)
YouTube-Verified encoder
- Streamloop
- ✕
- Upstream
- ✓
Two-factor authentication
- Streamloop
- No. You sign in with Google, an email link or a passkey, with no extra second step.
- Upstream
- ✓
★ Key differentiator✓ Feature included✕ Not included- Not publicly documented
Which should you pick?
When each tool is the right call
There is no objective winner, only which tool fits your actual job.
Pick Streamloop if…
Always-on 24/7 channels without OBS or a PC
- Pay as you go or choose an optional monthly credit plan
- Up to 4K 60fps with automatic recovery if a stream drops
- Upload once and loop a video or playlist around the clock
- YouTube one-click plus custom RTMP to any platform
Streaming is billed by the minute, only while live: one 24/7 stream at 1080p is about $10 per 30 days. Start with a $1 trial week, which becomes a monthly plan unless you cancel, or top up and pay as you go.
Start with StreamloopPick Upstream if…
Designed streams with heavy overlays and multistream reach
- Canva-like Stream Designer with overlays, websites and widgets
- Multistream to up to 10 destinations today
- YouTube Verified encoder with 100GB storage on the free plan
- Well-reviewed chat support
$30/mo or $288/year ($24/mo equivalent); free plan includes 24 streaming hours/month.
(We leave you to find them. We do not pass link equity to competitors.)
FAQ
Streamloop vs Upstream: FAQ
The questions people actually ask before picking one
What is the main difference between Streamloop and Upstream?
Streamloop is built around looping prerecorded video to 24/7 streams, billed by the minute, with an optional monthly plan. Upstream is a subscription tool with a free plan, a fuller Stream Designer, a browser Live Studio and multistreaming.
Is Streamloop cheaper than Upstream?
For one always-on channel, yes. One 1080p stream at 30 fps costs about $10 per 30 days on Streamloop. Upstream charges $30 a month per 1080p stream, or $24 a month billed yearly. Upstream's free plan costs nothing, but it stops after 24 streaming hours a month.
Does Upstream do anything better than Streamloop?
Yes. Upstream has a fuller overlay designer, a browser Live Studio with guests, and sends one stream to up to 10 platforms at once. If those matter most, Upstream may fit better.
Can I try Streamloop for free?
No. Streamloop has no free plan. Start with a $1 trial week by card, which becomes a monthly plan unless you cancel, or top up and pay as you go.
Why should I trust this comparison if you built Streamloop?
We describe Upstream from its public materials, flag where it is stronger, and let you decide. If Upstream fits your job better, pick it.
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