Skip to content
Enhanced IRL Docs

Your overlay on top of the camera

On OBS Basic you can put your own overlay on top of your camera: your alerts, your chat, your goal bar or your map. You paste it in the dashboard and it goes out live, no remote desktop needed.

Where it shows

Section titled “Where it shows”

On the Scenes tab of your server’s detail there’s a section, Over your camera, with one card: Your overlay. Whatever you put there shows on top of your picture in the two scenes with your camera, <key> and <key> Low. It doesn’t show in Starting, Privacy, Ending or <key> Offline: those scenes have their own overlays.

Any overlay URL made for OBS works: the one StreamElements, Streamlabs or RealtimeIRL gives you, or a page of your own.

Setting it up

Section titled “Setting it up”
  1. Copy your overlay’s URL from your alerts service.
  2. On the Your overlay card, paste it into the Overlay URL field. It has to start with http:// or with https://. The On switch turns on by itself.
  3. Hit Save overlays.

It’s applied straight away, mid-stream too, without cutting your broadcast. If the server can’t take it at that moment, the dashboard tells you: “Saved. It will be applied the next time the server starts.” There’s nothing else you need to do.

Turning it off or removing it

Section titled “Turning it off or removing it”
  • To switch it off for a while, use the On switch and save. The URL stays saved for next time.
  • To take it away for good, hit Remove the overlay and save.

Without a URL the switch won’t turn on: the card reminds you “Paste a URL to turn it on.”

Worth knowing

Section titled “Worth knowing”
  • Sound: your alerts play, but only while the overlay is on air. While you’re on Starting, Privacy or <key> Offline, they can’t be heard.
  • Portrait canvas: if you stream in portrait, use an overlay designed in portrait (9:16). A landscape one shrinks to fit and ends up small.
  • It stays when you restart, when you regenerate and if you move up to OBS Standard or OBS Pro: you keep changing it from here.

On OBS Standard and OBS Pro

Section titled “On OBS Standard and OBS Pro”

This section doesn’t show: with the remote desktop you put your overlays wherever you like, on top of the camera or in any other scene. The one exception is if you come from OBS Basic with your overlay already set: you keep it and keep changing it from Scenes.

Not showing?

Section titled “Not showing?”
What you see What it means What you do
“The address has to start with http:// or https://.” What you pasted isn’t a web address Copy the full URL again from your alerts service
“That address isn’t valid. Check it and paste it again.” The URL is cut off or badly pasted Paste it again, whole
The preview comes out empty Your overlay is transparent and only draws when something happens, or its scene isn’t on air In OBS control, hit the <key> scene and fire a test alert from your service
It shows in a normal tab but not on stream The switch is off Turn On on and hit Save overlays

Next step

Section titled “Next step”