Recording Storage Calculator
Enter your recording settings to see how much storage you need — GB per hour, total session size, and how many hours fit on your drive.
Lower = higher quality + larger files. 18 is the standard recommendation for archival recordings.
Storage estimate
Per hour
5 GB–10 GB
depends on scene complexity
This session (2h)
9 GB–20 GB
1080p (1920×1080) · 60 fps · H.264
1 TB SSD holds
101h 1m–222h 13m
of recording at these settings
Recommended recording storage
Samsung 990 Pro 2TB NVMe SSD
~$145Fast NVMe for OBS recording — no dropped frames even at 4K
WD_BLACK 4TB P10 Game Drive HDD
~$804TB portable HDD — cost-effective archive storage for recordings
Samsung T7 Shield 2TB SSD
~$120Portable SSD — record on location or archive off the main rig
Affiliate links — we may earn a commission at no cost to you.
How the calculation works
OBS recordings using quality-based rate control (CQP for NVENC/AMF, ICQ for QuickSync, CRF for x264) don't have a fixed bitrate — file size depends on scene complexity. Fast-moving scenes like gaming encode at much higher bitrates than static scenes like a face camera or a desktop recording.
The estimates here use measured ranges for each codec, resolution, and quality level: the low end reflects static or low-motion content; the high end reflects fast-action gaming. Your actual file sizes will fall somewhere in this range depending on what's on screen.
HEVC (H.265) and AV1 produce files roughly 40–55% smaller than H.264 at the same visual quality — but both require hardware encoder support on your GPU. H.264 is the safe default; HEVC and AV1 are worth using if your GPU supports them, especially for 4K recordings where file sizes add up quickly.
Frequently asked questions
Should I record to an SSD or HDD?
Always record to an SSD for anything above 1080p30. HDDs have mechanical seek times that can cause write bottlenecks when OBS is writing large files at high bitrates — you'll see dropped frames in the recording. A budget SATA SSD handles 1080p60 easily. For 4K recording, use an NVMe SSD.
What CQP or CRF value should I use for YouTube uploads?
CQP 18 (for NVENC/AMF) or CRF 18 (for x264) is the standard recommendation for archival-quality recordings intended for YouTube. It produces visually lossless results indistinguishable from the raw capture. Drop to 16 for near-lossless with noticeably larger files; raise to 20–22 if storage is a constraint.
Why is my recording file smaller or larger than the estimate?
The range is intentionally wide because CQP/CRF encoding is content-adaptive. A 1080p60 recording of Minecraft or a facecam will be near the low end; a recording of a fast-paced FPS game with lots of particle effects and motion will hit the high end or exceed it.
What format should I record in — MKV or MP4?
Record in MKV. If OBS crashes mid-recording, the MKV file is still recoverable; an MP4 file is not. After recording, use OBS's Remux Recordings tool (Tools menu) to convert MKV to MP4 without re-encoding — it takes less than a minute and produces an identical file in a more compatible container.
Which codec should I use for recording — H.264, HEVC, or AV1?
H.264 is the most compatible option and works on any GPU or CPU encoder. HEVC (H.265) produces files ~40% smaller with equivalent quality — supported by NVENC on GTX 1000+, AMF on RX 5000+, and Intel QuickSync on Skylake (6th gen) and newer. AV1 is ~55% smaller than H.264 and is available on RTX 4000 and 5000 series, RX 7000 and 9000 series, and Intel Arc — all three codecs are accepted by YouTube for upload.
How do I free up space after recordings?
After editing and uploading, delete your raw recordings. Before uploading, keep the MKV source file until the uploaded video is fully published and you've confirmed the quality is acceptable. Use an external drive or cloud storage (Google Drive, Backblaze B2) for long-term archiving if you want to keep raw footage.
Does recording affect my stream quality?
Barely, when using hardware encoding. OBS can record locally using a separate encoder profile while streaming — the GPU handles both simultaneously. The main impact is disk write speed; a slow HDD can bottleneck recording without affecting the stream.
Can I record at 4K even if I stream at 1080p?
Yes. Set your OBS Base Canvas to 4K (3840×2160) and your Stream Output to 1080p — your recording captures the full 4K canvas while the stream downscales. This requires more disk space and a GPU that supports 4K hardware encoding. RTX 4000 or 5000 series is the 2026 recommendation for smooth 4K60 recording; RTX 3000 can do it but leaves less headroom.