RTMP streaming is the technology behind nearly every live stream you’ve ever watched on YouTube, Twitch, or Facebook. Understanding what RTMP streaming is — and how it works — helps you set up better streams, troubleshoot problems faster, and unlock advanced broadcasting capabilities. This guide explains RTMP streaming in simple terms, no technical background required.
What is RTMP Streaming?
RTMP stands for Real-Time Messaging Protocol. RTMP streaming is a communication standard originally developed by Macromedia (later acquired by Adobe) for transmitting audio and video data over the internet in real time. When you go live with OBS Studio, the software uses RTMP streaming to send your video feed from your computer to the streaming platform’s servers, which then distribute it to your viewers.
RTMP streaming works by breaking your video and audio into small packets and sending them in a continuous stream to an RTMP server. The server processes and re-encodes the stream (in a process called transcoding) and delivers it to viewers at the appropriate quality level for their internet connection.
RTMP Streaming: Key Terms You Need to Know
- RTMP URL (Server URL): The address of the streaming server you’re sending your video to. For example, YouTube’s RTMP URL is
rtmp://a.rtmp.youtube.com/live2 - Stream Key: A unique private code that identifies your channel on the streaming platform. Think of the RTMP URL as the address and the stream key as the key to your specific mailbox.
- Bitrate: The amount of data (in kilobits per second, or kbps) your stream sends per second. Higher bitrate = better quality, but requires more upload bandwidth.
- Encoder: The software or hardware that compresses your video for RTMP streaming. OBS Studio is the most popular software encoder.
- Ingest server: The streaming platform’s server that receives your RTMP stream. Major platforms have ingest servers in multiple regions — choose the closest one for the best connection.
How to Set Up RTMP Streaming
Setting up RTMP streaming with OBS Studio is straightforward. In OBS, go to Settings → Stream. Select your platform (YouTube, Twitch, etc.) from the Service dropdown, or choose “Custom” to enter any RTMP URL manually. If you selected a platform, OBS auto-fills the server URL — just enter your Stream Key from the platform’s dashboard. For a custom RTMP setup, enter both the Server URL and Stream Key provided by your streaming service.
RTMP Streaming vs. Other Protocols
While RTMP streaming is the dominant standard for live broadcasting, other protocols are used for different parts of the streaming pipeline. HLS (HTTP Live Streaming) and DASH are used for delivering video from streaming platforms to viewers — you receive streams via HLS/DASH even when the broadcaster used RTMP to send their feed. SRT (Secure Reliable Transport) is a newer protocol that offers better performance than RTMP streaming over unstable or long-distance connections and is increasingly used for professional broadcasting.
RTMP Streaming to Multiple Platforms
One of the most powerful uses of RTMP streaming is multistreaming — broadcasting your single stream to multiple platforms simultaneously. Rather than sending separate RTMP streams to YouTube and Twitch from your computer (which would require double the upload bandwidth), a multistreaming service like Streemzy receives your single RTMP stream and re-broadcasts it to all your platforms from their servers.
With Streemzy, you send one RTMP stream to Streemzy’s ingest server, and Streemzy handles the simultaneous distribution to YouTube, Twitch, Facebook, LinkedIn, TikTok, and any custom RTMP destination — all for free. This means your upload bandwidth is used for just one stream, not five or six.
RTMP Streaming Troubleshooting
Dropped frames / unstable stream: The most common RTMP streaming problem. Caused by insufficient upload bandwidth or an overloaded CPU. Lower your video bitrate (try 3000 kbps instead of 6000) or switch from software encoding (x264) to hardware encoding (NVENC or AMD VCE) in OBS settings.
Stream disconnecting: Usually caused by internet instability. Switch from Wi-Fi to a wired ethernet connection. Also try a different ingest server region in your streaming platform’s settings — a closer server means a more stable RTMP streaming connection.
Invalid stream key error: Your stream key has expired or been regenerated. Go back to your streaming platform’s dashboard and copy a fresh stream key. Never share your stream key publicly as anyone who has it can stream to your channel.
Ready to use RTMP streaming to reach every platform at once? Get started with Streemzy free — connect via RTMP or our browser-based interface and go live everywhere simultaneously.