The popular open-source screen recording and live streaming software OBS Studio has released version 33.0, upgrading Chromium Embedded Framework from version 127 to 150, effectively moving the underlying browser technology from July 2024 to September 2026.
Another important change is a complete overhaul of how OBS loads plugins. Built-in plugins are now stored in a dedicated core directory, while third-party plugins use a revised installation location and folder structure.
Existing third-party plugins installed in legacy locations will continue to work for now, but compatibility with those locations ends with OBS Studio 34.0. Users relying on third-party extensions should keep this in mind when upgrading.
The release also improves source snapping in the preview window. Sources can now snap into alignment along an entire axis instead of only when their edges directly touch. New visual indicators make alignment easier to follow, and hidden sources no longer interfere with snapping.
Numerical input fields have also received attention. OBS now handles typing more reliably, prevents values from being cut off, and applies changes only after pressing Enter. Users can hold Shift while pressing the Up or Down arrow keys to adjust values in larger increments.
On the hardware side, OBS Studio 33.0 enables NVIDIA’s NVENC encoder on Arm64 systems and adds compatibility with newer NVIDIA Broadcast SDK versions for audio and video effects. New hotkeys also allow users to control audio monitoring for individual sources without navigating settings.
Linux users get two notable fixes. The first addresses a potential crash when disconnecting a USB microphone, while the second resolves an issue where PipeWire screencast sources could appear duplicated in Studio Mode.
Speaking of Studio Mode, the update also fixes problems involving grouped sources. Previously, moving sources within a group could cause visual glitches or unexpectedly affect the live Program output.
Recording and streaming reliability has been improved as well. The developers have corrected issues with splitting Hybrid MP4/MOV recordings, addressed a potential deadlock during audio and video processing, and fixed an AMD AMF encoder problem involving B-frame offset calculations that could cause streaming disconnections.
Other fixes cover crashes related to invalid shader cache files, renaming sources, switching profiles, and missing source types. Safe Mode has also been adjusted so that it no longer starts the WebSocket server.
Finally, there are some important compatibility changes. OBS Studio 33.0 drops official support for Ubuntu 24.04 LTS. Additionally, developers and package maintainers can no longer use FFmpeg 6.x and 7.x or Qt 6.4 through 6.9.
For more information, see the changelog. The new version is available for Linux, Windows, and macOS.
