Best webcam to buy in 2022
The best webcams to buy in 2022 will help you stream to Twitch, YouTube, or your favorite streaming host with great visual fidelity. After all, professional-looking streams will help you attract and retain an audience, and it’s just more fun to watch high-quality streams. Additionally, a webcam can improve the quality of your production by allowing PIP (picture in picture) of your face in addition to your gameplay. However, there are plenty of webcams on the market, and while virtually all webcams will work for your live stream, some stand out above the rest. We’ve tested all of the following webcams you see below, so you know they’re worth your money and time. Here are our picks for the best webcams.
The best webcams
In addition to the webcam itself, there are a number of accessories that can help improve your stream and broadcast. These include key lights to ensure your webcam is well lit, green screens to remove your background from your stream, and Elgato’s Cam Link to allow you to use a DSLR camera as a webcam for get the best visual quality possible. The prices listed below indicate the current price of a product and do not reflect any current discounts or fluctuations. Amazon offers product discounts all the time, so you might be able to get one of these webcams for a lot less than usual.
While you’re thinking about your streaming setup, be sure to check out our guides to the best gaming headsets, the best budget gaming chairs, and the best gaming desks that excel in quality and comfort. We also have guides to the best capture cards, the best gaming mouse, the best VPNs for streaming, and more.
Editor’s Note: Article updated June 24, 2022
Best webcam to buy in 2022
Logitech StreamCam
The Logitech StreamCam is an excellent webcam capable of 1080p and 60 FPS. It also has excellent autofocus that adjusts quickly to bring its subject into focus. I was particularly impressed when I showed my audience a close-up of a figure or a drink. The StreamCam also has auto exposure, although you still need a good lighting setup to get the best image.
A particularly nice feature is the ability to switch this webcam from a 16:9 aspect ratio to a 9:16 aspect ratio. This works best if you want to stream on Facebook or Instagram or if you want to use this format for your PIP on Twitch and/or YouTube. It connects to your PC via USB-C, which provides a stronger, faster connection – of course you’ll need to make sure your PC has a USB-C port, or you’ll need one USB-C to USB Adapter.
Logitech 4K Pro Webcam
The Logitech 4K Pro webcam is a surprisingly great device. During use, I didn’t even need a light. In a dimly lit room at 11 p.m., it delivered a clear, bright image that beat all the webcams on this list. Colors seemed much more accurate and bright as opposed to the darker, higher contrast image of the Logitech StreamCam, when comparing the two webcams without lights. There’s no doubt that a light improved the look of the 4K Pro’s stream, but it’s certainly not necessary for a great visual of your face.
The 4K Pro webcam is capable of recording at up to 4K and 30 FPS and streaming at up to 1080p and 60 FPS. The only issue I encountered was that Logitech’s Capture software would not allow me to record or even view the webcam feed in 4K. There was also a lot of visual noise in the background of the image. Luckily, that wasn’t the case in Streamlabs OBS, which gave me a crisp, smooth image.
Razer Kiyo
The Razer Kiyo is a 720p, 60 FPS webcam perfect for streaming. One thing about its lower resolution that you need to remember is that your face PIP will be much smaller than the rest of your feed. That means it will still look great even if you’re streaming at 1080p and beyond. Where the Razer Kiyo takes up this slack, however, is having a built-in light ring, which illuminates your face and ensures a great image.
Razer has also supported its Kiyo webcam with software and firmware updates, bringing new features and customization. Razer’s Synapse 3 software lets you adjust focus, brightness, contrast, and more, as well as save profiles for your preferred settings. Razer even has built-in presets if you don’t know what to tinker with. Its latest firmware update has improved autofocus, auto low-light compensation, and auto white balance, among other improvements.
Logitech C922 webcam
Logitech’s C900 series are the best webcams of all time, and the C922 is a great choice for streaming. It can capture 1080p and 30 FPS or 720p and 60 FPS and offers excellent autofocus and lighting correction. This means that this webcam performs well in dark conditions, although you’ll still want to get some extra light to make your webcam stream the best it can be.
Logitech Capture software helps you customize your stream, including exposure, frame rate, and scene effects, including negative colors and a fish-eye effect that provides goofy distorted faces. This is great software that makes it easy to adjust different settings with your webcam. The Logitech C922 webcam also comes with three free months of XSplit Premium, which gives you everything you need to set up a stream and broadcast on Twitch and YouTube.
Elgato Cam Link 4K

There are great webcams out there, but if you want the best image quality of your streaming face, you’ll want to upgrade to a DSLR camera. The Elgato Cam Link 4K lets you connect your DSLR to a PC, giving you an extremely professional, high-quality look for your stream.
Other Key Webcam Accessories
key lights

Key lights are a must if you want to get the best picture. These will help eliminate shadows, especially around your eyes, allowing your viewers to see you better and providing a more professional overall look.
Green screens

If you want to eliminate your background and take up as little screen space as possible, a green screen is the way to go. However, if you choose a poor quality one, it will only make your stream worse. You’ll also need to make sure the green screen is wrinkle-free and in one color. You can achieve this by nailing down your lighting setup, eliminating any shadows that darken parts of your green screen.
The products discussed here were independently chosen by our editors. GameSpot may get a share of the revenue if you purchase something featured on our site.
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