YouTube’s Go Live Together Feature vs Third-Party Options

Wondering which way to prefer? We have listed the pros and cons of YouTube’s Go Live Together feature and third-party app called StreamYard. YouTube’s Go Live Together Pros:

Works natively in the YouTube Mobile app Can Invite anyone with a YouTube account Low latency and good quality Complete free to use

YouTube’s Go Live Together Cons:

Only allows two people to stream together Works only on the mobile app Only the vertical layout is possible so not suitable for desktop viewers Fewer features compared with third-party options

This is where third-party services come in. Upon testing multiple apps like StreamYard, Melon, Restream, Streamlabs, etc., we found Streamyard offers more options even in the free version. Paid plans have reasonable pricing too. It works on both mobile and desktop, and it is also easy to use. StreamYard Pros:

Multistream allows you to stream to multiple platforms at once Works on both mobile and desktop Have options to customize such as editing layout Upto 6 on-screen participants in free plan, more in the paid plan

StreamYard Cons:

Streaming time is limited to 20 hours per month in the free version Watermark on the bottom right corner of the screen Resolution is capped at 720p in the free version.

How to Go Live Together on YouTube Mobile App

YouTube’s Go Live is probably the best option for a completely free and good resolution Live stream. But only if cons like 2 participants, vertical layout, and mobile-only aren’t an issue for you.

  1. Open the YouTube app on the mobile and tap on the plus icon in the bottom bar.
  2. In the menu that opened, tap on the Go Live option.
  3. It opens the camera. Here enter the title, change visibility, description, etc.
  4. Finally, to go live with someone together remotely, enable the toggle beside the Go live together option and tap on Next.
  5. On the next page, tap on the Copy invite link option to copy the invitation link or you can also tap on Send invite link option and send the link via email.
  6. Once done, tap on Next. On the next page, wait until the person joins the stream. Remember that the other person can only join your live stream using YouTube’s mobile app.

How to Go Live Together on YouTube with StreamYard

In order to go live together with StreamYard, first you need to create an account on it.

  1. Open the StreamYard website and enter your email id and tap on Get started.
  2. StreamYard will send a verification code to your email address, enter the code on the website and tap on Log in button.
  3. Once logged in, you will be on StreamYard’s Dashboard. Here tap on the Create button at the bottom.
  4. On the next page, select the Live stream option.
  5. Now under the select destinations option, tap on the Add a destination button and select the YouTube channel option.
  6. Then log in with your Google account and select the channel that you want to stream on. Then tap on Allow to grant permission for StreamYard to Live Stream.
  7. From later on, you don’t have to add the YouTube channel every time. It will be saved and you can just select the YouTube channel from StreamYard.
  8. Enter details such as Live name, description, and privacy settings. Once done, tap on Create Broadcast button to get started.
  9. Before entering Studio, check the microphone and camera. To make any changes or to select another microphone or camera, tap on the Settings icon.
  10. Once everything is set, tap on Enter studio option.
  11. Before going live, now you can add other people that you want to Stream with. Just tap on the Guests option in the bottom bar and then select the Invite Guests option in the pop-up.
  12. Now copy the link provided and send it to anyone who wants to join. They can just enter the link and join the live. There is no need to even create an account. Unlike YouTube’s native option, they can enter from mobile or even from the desktop as they wish.
  13. Once they are added, just tap on the Go live button at the bottom right corner and then tap on the Go live button in the pop-up again to strean live with anyone remotely on YouTube.

Going Live Together on YouTube

Unfortunately, you either have to rely on the native option or the web apps to go live on YouTube. As of now, there is no popular app that can help you live stream together. Also, most third-party streaming services lock the stream together feature under the paid plan, and may only have a desktop app like StreamLabs, etc limiting our option to stream together from the mobile phone.