YouCast vs Upstream: price, storage, quality and platforms
Both services stream your pre-recorded videos 24/7 from the cloud, with no PC or OBS. This page compares what each one publishes about price, storage, quality and platforms. We make YouCast, so we link the source for every competitor number.
Side by side
| YouCast | Upstream | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | From $10/mo (1 HD stream $7 + 10 GB storage $3) | From $30/mo for 1 stream (1080p, 30 fps) |
| How pricing works | Build your own plan: HD $7, 2K $14 or 4K $20 per stream per month, with a lower per-stream price as you add streams of the same quality, plus $3 per 10 GB of storage | $30 for 1 stream, $50 for 2, $70 for 3, then $20 per stream from 4 streams (1080p, 30 fps, monthly). 1080p 60 fps: $40 for 1 stream; 4K 30 fps: $70; 4K 60 fps: $120 |
| Free option | 3-day free trial, no credit card required | Free plan: 1 stream, 24 hours of streaming per month, 1080p at 30 fps, no credit card |
| Concurrent streams | HD, 2K and 4K streams, up to 50 of each | Paid plans scale from 1 to 1000+ concurrent streams |
| Storage | Pay per 10 GB block ($3/mo), 10 to 1,000 GB | 100 GB per stream (help center) |
| Quality | HD (1080p), 2K and 4K stream tiers | 1080p and 4K, at 30 or 60 fps |
| Platforms | YouTube (connected channel or stream key); Twitch, Kick and Instagram via stream key | 30+ destinations including YouTube, Twitch, Kick, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and custom RTMP/SRT; multistream to up to 10 at once |
| Features | Upload videos once, playlists, looping, automatic restart and a restart schedule, runs from the cloud with your computer off | Cloud playout, scheduling, pre-recorded live, Live Studio, Stream Designer with overlays, team access, Live Streaming API, MCP server, no watermark |
| Longer-billing discounts | 10% (3 months), 20% (6 months), 30% (12 months) off the total | Yearly billing: 20% off for 1080p 30 fps, 10% off for 60 fps and 4K |
What it costs at different sizes
Monthly list price of the cheapest published plan that covers each setup, 1080p unless stated. "n/a" means no plan covers it or no public price. The lowest price in each row is highlighted. YouCast is calculated from its price list: streams plus $3 per 10 GB.
| Setup | YouCast | Upstream |
|---|---|---|
| 1 stream, 1080p, library up to 5 GB | $101 HD stream + 10 GB storage | $301 stream, 100 GB included |
| 1 stream, 1080p, library up to 20 GB | $131 HD stream + 20 GB storage | $301 stream, 100 GB included |
| 3 streams, 1080p, about 75 GB in total | $39.993 HD streams + 80 GB storage | $703 streams, 300 GB included |
| 8 streams, 1080p, about 150 GB in total | $778 HD streams + 150 GB storage | $1608 streams at $20 each, 800 GB included |
| 1 stream in 4K, library up to 50 GB | $351 4K stream + 50 GB storage | $704K at 30 fps; 4K at 60 fps is $120 |
| 2 streams in 4K, about 150 GB in total | $75.462 4K streams + 150 GB storage | $1304K at 30 fps; 4K at 60 fps is $220 |
YouCast bills storage by the gigabyte ($3 per 10 GB), so you pay only for the library you keep. Longer billing lowers the price further: 10%, 20% and 30% off for 3, 6 and 12 months.
Why choose YouCast
Choose YouCast if…
- You run one or a few streams and your video library is modest (tens of GB, not hundreds).
- You want to pay per stream and per GB instead of a fixed bundle, with a lower per-stream price as you add streams of the same quality.
- You want to try it first: YouCast has a 3-day free trial with no credit card.
- You want to send the same kind of 24/7 stream to YouTube, Twitch, Kick or Instagram with a stream key.
Try it with your own videos
Upload a video, connect a channel or paste a stream key, and the stream runs from the cloud with your computer off. The 3-day free trial needs no credit card, so you can compare it with the others on your own channel.
Frequently asked questions
Is YouCast cheaper than Upstream?
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In the setups compared on this page, yes: one 1080p stream with up to 20 GB is about $13 per month at YouCast against $30 at Upstream, three streams with about 75 GB are about $40 against $70, and eight streams with about 150 GB are $77 against $160. Prices are list prices from each vendor's pricing page; use the YouCast calculator for your own setup.
Does Upstream have a free plan?
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Yes. Upstream lists a free plan with 1 stream, 24 hours of streaming per month, 1080p at 30 fps and no credit card. YouCast offers a 3-day free trial with no credit card.
Which platforms does YouCast stream to?
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YouTube (connect your channel or paste a stream key) and, with a stream key, Twitch, Kick and Instagram.
Can I switch from Upstream to YouCast?
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Yes. Both work from video files you upload and a stream key or channel connection, so the setup is similar: upload videos, create a stream, press start. Keep the old stream running until the new one is live.
Sources
All competitor facts come from these pages, read on October 6, 2026.
- YouCast pricing — YouCast
- Upstream pricing — Upstream
- Upstream help center: quick start guide (storage) — Upstream