The Tool Desk
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Find an overlay that fits your stream
Open the Streamlabs overlay library and browse featured designs, collections, or search results. Search by keyword, then narrow the results with filters such as color, type, widget type, and style. Collections group designs by categories such as game, holiday, language, streaming category, and visual style. See Streamlabs’ overlay library guide.
Compare the parts that affect your setup
- Look and color: Check that the design suits your channel and remains legible over your video.
- Included components: Confirm which elements you actually need, such as an alert box, chat box, or labels; a bundle may include more than you plan to use.
- Streaming software: Choose a route supported by your software: Streamlabs Desktop, OBS with the Streamlabs plugin, OBS with imported scenes, or browser sources in another app.
- Output orientation: If you need both horizontal and vertical layouts, Streamlabs identifies its Dual Output collection as supporting both orientations.
- Access: Streamlabs says many designs are free and that the full theme library is available with Ultra. Check the selected item and your account’s current access before relying on a particular design; availability can vary.
Install the overlay in Streamlabs Desktop
- Choose a library design. Open its page and select the option to select and install it. Streamlabs’ support instructions say: “When you find an overlay you like, Select it then click Select and Install.”
- Select components. In the installation flow, choose the overlay elements you want to add.
- Install. Streamlabs says the overlay appears in your scene collection after installation. Open the relevant scene and check that the components are positioned and visible as expected.
Import an existing .overlay file
If you already have an overlay file, open Streamlabs Desktop, go to Settings > Scene Collections, and choose Import Overlay File. Select the .overlay file and then inspect the imported scene collection. Exact labels can vary by software version.
Use a Streamlabs overlay in OBS or another app
The best route depends on how much of the Streamlabs scene you want to bring over and whether you want to use Streamlabs’ OBS plugin.
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OBS with the Streamlabs plugin
Streamlabs documents installing its OBS plugin and selecting an overlay through the plugin’s overlay settings. After installation, use the plugin’s overlay controls to choose the design. Refer to the current Streamlabs overlay instructions for the plugin route and current labels.
OBS without the plugin
Streamlabs also documents transferring overlays by importing a Streamlabs scene collection into OBS. This is a way to bring scenes across without using the plugin. The exact transfer steps depend on the current versions of both applications; follow Streamlabs’ linked transfer guidance from its overlay instructions rather than assuming that every scene element will behave identically in each program.
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Other streaming software: add a widget as a browser source
For software that does not use Streamlabs’ native integration, copy the URL for the widget you want and add it as a browser source in that application. This approach works per widget, so you can add separate sources for separate elements. Use the browser-source controls in your streaming program to position and size each source.
Customize widgets and organize themes
A widget theme stores alert and widget settings as a profile. Streamlabs’ widget theme guide describes editing widgets in the dashboard and using themes to keep different looks or settings together.
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Edit a widget in the dashboard
- Open the Streamlabs dashboard and go to All Widgets.
- Choose the widget you want to change.
- Adjust its appearance and behavior using the available controls.
- Save your changes, then preview the widget in your streaming setup.
Use the current dashboard controls to make design and behavior changes; available options can differ by widget. For example, an alert widget’s appearance and alert behavior are managed in its own settings rather than by changing the overlay file as a whole.
Switch the active theme or associate one with a scene collection
Select Use on the theme you want active. In Streamlabs Desktop, you can associate themes with scene collections so the intended widget settings follow the relevant collection. If a native widget source appears to have the wrong look or behavior, check which theme is active and which theme is associated with the current scene collection.
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Mix widgets from different themes
To use a widget from a theme that is not active—or to combine, for example, an Alert Box from one theme with a Chat Box from another—open that theme’s widget links, copy the URL for each widget, and add each URL as its own browser source. This is also Streamlabs’ documented approach for using widgets in software that is not integrated with Streamlabs.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Test the result before you go live
Previewing an overlay in the editor is not a substitute for triggering its alerts. Streamlabs documents test controls in the dashboard, Streamlabs Desktop, and its OBS plugin. From the dashboard, use the test dropdown or test a specific alert variation. In Streamlabs Desktop or the OBS plugin, use the corresponding test menu. Check that the alert or widget appears in the intended scene and that its saved look and behavior are correct. See Streamlabs’ alert setup guide for the available testing routes.
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Fix common overlay and widget problems
- The overlay is missing after installation: Confirm you are looking at the scene collection where you installed it, then inspect the scene’s component list. Streamlabs says an installed library overlay appears in the scene collection.
- A widget has the wrong look or settings: Check the active theme and, in Streamlabs Desktop, the theme associated with the current scene collection. A theme switch changes the active settings profile.
- A widget from an inactive theme does not appear: Add that theme’s widget URL as a browser source. Native widget sources follow the active theme; a URL source lets you use an individual widget from another theme.
- A browser-source widget is not showing as expected: Confirm you copied the URL for the correct widget and added it as a browser source in the intended scene. Then check the source’s size and placement in your streaming software.
- An alert has not been verified: Use the dashboard, Streamlabs Desktop, or OBS plugin test controls to trigger the relevant alert before broadcasting.
- A design cannot be installed or selected: Check the item’s access requirements in Streamlabs. Library access can depend on whether the specific design is free or requires Ultra.
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