Add overlays to OBS: lower-third, ticker, sidebar and fullscreen
Put audience questions on your stream as a browser source, with a transparent background and the theme you choose.
An overlay is a web page with a transparent background that shows the question currently on air. You add it to OBS as a browser source, exactly like a title graphic, and drive it from the stream control page. Four shapes, three themes.
1Open Stream settings
From the dashboard menu, choose Stream settings. The same page is what a streamer sees when you invite one.
2Choose a shape and theme
- Lower third: name and question along the bottom edge, the classic.
- Ticker: a scrolling strip for a rolling feed.
- Sidebar: a column on the side for a talk-show layout.
- Fullscreen: the question fills the frame, for a break slide or a big screen in the room.
Themes: Light, Broadcast (a news and sports chyron) and Editorial (a newsroom serif). Light and dark colour schemes on top.
3Copy the overlay URL
The quick URL field updates as you change shape, theme and colour. Copy it. Each shape also has its own permanent link under Overlay links further down.
4Add a browser source in OBS
- In your scene, click the plus under Sources and choose Browser.
- Paste the overlay URL. Set the width to 1920 and the height to 1080 to match a full HD canvas.
- Leave the custom CSS as it is; the background is already transparent.
- Position the source. A lower third sits at the bottom, a sidebar on the right, the ticker along the bottom edge.
5Put a question on air
On the stream settings page, pick a question from the queue and click Go On-Air. It appears on the overlay within a second. Clear On-Air takes it down.
How the queue, the modes and the streamer login work: the stream control page.