v0.8.Private beta.Free
A StreamElements alternative with way more features.
Nine full products, one Twitch login. Overlays, widgets, chatbot, no-code Flows, OBS dock, desktop companion, tip page, moderation, and every message your chat has ever sent, all yours to mess with and extend however you want.
We didn't build our own broadcast app, so nothing here is locked to one. Overlays are just URLs, your automations can hit your own endpoints, and your data is yours to take with you.
No app to install, no tier to unlock.
This is where Streamlabs really starts to fall off. Their best stuff only works inside their own broadcast app, and the good features are locked behind Ultra. OverlayThing runs wherever you already stream, on every account.
Works with the software you already run
OBS Studio, Streamlabs Desktop, Twitch Studio, anything with a browser source. You don't have to switch broadcast software to get the full product.
Nothing behind a paid tier
Every overlay, widget, flow, and filter here is on every account. No premium theme gallery, no upgrade prompts popping up in the middle of your setup.
Your data is exportable
Chat history, stream data, loyalty numbers, all yours to export whenever you want. If you can't leave a tool, you probably shouldn't trust it.
The desktop app is optional
The companion app and OBS dock are just nice-to-haves, not the core product. Everything they do is in the browser too, so you can run your stream from a borrowed PC if you need to.
Switching from StreamElements? You don't have to rebuild everything. Paste your StreamElements token and we pull over your classic overlays with their alert settings and goals, your uploaded assets, your tip page settings including the banned word list, and your tip and donation history, which lands in your stream data and leaderboards. You can roll the whole import back if you don't like the result. It is best effort, not a one-to-one copy: their newer Elements overlays run on a separate API and do not come across, and neither does their bot, loyalty or giveaways.
OverlayThing vs StreamElements and Streamlabs.
All three do alerts and overlays just fine. The real differences are in what else you get, how far you can push it, and what you have to install or pay for.
| Feature | OverlayThing | StreamElements | Streamlabs |
|---|---|---|---|
| What is in the box | |||
| Browser-based overlay editorDrag, layer and preview in the browser, one URL into OBS | |||
| Alerts, goals, labels, chat box, countdowns, subathon timer | |||
| Cloud chatbot: commands, timers, counters, quotes | |||
| Giveaways, loyalty points, media requests | |||
| Filters that also cover tip notes and TTSThe same banned words and spam rules run on donation messages, not only chat | |||
| Permanent chat archive, not a rolling windowSearch by user, keyword or date, with timeouts and deletes inline | |||
| Public command list and public queue pagesChannel-branded, no login, updates itself | Public command list | ||
| How far you can extend it | |||
| Edit any widget as HTML, CSS and JavaScript | |||
| No-code visual automationTrigger, condition, action graphs: raid welcomes, hype train pushes, reward chains | |||
| Automations can call your own endpointsWebhooks and HTTP requests as first-class actions | URL fetch inside bot commands | URL fetch inside bot commands | |
| One variable system across bot, overlays, timers and flows | |||
| Describe a widget and have it built for youDescribe & Build, output is editable like any other widget | |||
| Portability and lock-in | |||
| Works with any software that supports browser sources | |||
| Full product without installing their broadcast app | Streamlabs Desktop is the centre of the product | ||
| OBS dockChat, activity, media queue and stream info inside OBS | SE.Live | Own broadcast app instead | |
| Desktop companion beside your broadcast softwareNot a replacement for it | Ground Control, but only activity, chat and stream settings | Full broadcast app | |
| Export your own data | |||
| Import an existing StreamElements setupClassic overlays, alert settings, goals, assets, tip settings with banned words, and tip history into your stream data. Reversible. Elements overlays are not supported | Not applicable | ||
| Cost | |||
| Tip page under your own brandingPayment processor fees still apply on all three | |||
| Everything available without a paid tier | Some features behind the paid Ultra tier |
How to read this table. A blank cell means we could not find the feature documented publicly by StreamElements or Streamlabs on the verified date, not that it is impossible to achieve with them. Competitor products change often; if something here is out of date, tell us and we will correct it. Pricing shown is the publicly listed rate at the time of verification.
Where the defaults end, you keep going.
Every layer is open. Widgets are real HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. Automations can hit your own services. The data behind the overlay is all addressable. You're not stuck with just the settings we thought of.
As basic as you are used to, as advanced as you want to get
One-line responses work just like everywhere else. If you want to get fancy, the same editor can hit your own API with auth, pull out a JSON path, and branch with conditionals based on the result.
Flows reach outside the platform
A flow action can POST to a webhook, so if you get raided by 50+ viewers, it can hit your own endpoint, your site, or even a service you haven't built yet. No third-party automation tool needed.
Variables everywhere
The same data picker fills command responses, overlay labels, timer messages, and flow conditions. Learn it once, use it everywhere.
Describe it, then take over
Ask for a subathon clock in your colors or a goal bar that reacts to bits. Describe & Build spits out a real widget, and you can tweak it by hand from there. It's a starting point, not a black box.
What streamers ask before they try it.
What does OverlayThing do that StreamElements does not?
Four things stand out: no-code Flows for automation you would otherwise script, a permanent searchable chat history with moderation actions attached, a desktop companion app that runs beside your broadcast software, and moderation filters that cover tip notes and TTS as well as chat. The comparison table above also lists the places where the two products are equivalent, because there are plenty.
Do I have to use your streaming software?
There is no OverlayThing streaming software. Overlays are browser sources, so they work in OBS Studio, Streamlabs Desktop, Twitch Studio or anything else that can load a URL. The OBS dock and the desktop companion are optional conveniences on top.
Can I write my own widgets?
Yes. Any widget can be opened and edited as HTML, CSS and JavaScript, with live stream data bound to whichever fields you want. Save the result and it becomes a reusable widget in your own library. If you would rather start from a description, Describe & Build writes the first version and you edit from there.
Can automations talk to my own services?
Yes. A flow action can post to any URL, so events on your stream can reach your site, your community server, or a script you run yourself. Conditions and variables come from the same data picker used everywhere else in the product.
Is OverlayThing free?
Yes, it is free and no payment details are required. There is no premium tier holding back overlays, widgets, flows or filters, and nothing on this page is an upsell.
Can I bring my StreamElements overlays across?
Classic overlays, yes. Paste your StreamElements token and we bring across those overlays with their built-in widgets mapped to ours, custom widgets as custom code, alert settings, goals, uploaded assets, tip page settings with your banned word list, and your tip and donation history, which becomes records in your stream data and leaderboards. You choose what to import, review it before it runs, and roll the whole thing back if it is not right. Two limits worth knowing up front: their newer Elements overlays are a separate product on a separate API and are not imported, and the whole thing is best effort rather than a one-to-one copy, since the two overlay systems are built on different foundations. Their bot, loyalty points, store, merch and giveaways stay where they are.
Can I try it without disrupting my current setup?
Yes. Build in OverlayThing while your existing overlays stay live, then swap the browser source over when the new ones look right. Nothing about your scene collection has to change to test it.
Everything, on one login, for nothing.
Sign in with Twitch and you get the whole platform: overlays, chatbot, flows, dock, companion, tip page, and your chat history. Keep streaming on your current setup until you're ready to switch over.