Go live on Instagram with StreamWay
How to add Instagram Live to StreamWay? Streaming on Facebook and Instagram at the same time.
You need a Professional Instagram Account to go live.
Great news: it’s free, easy to set up, and doesn’t require a specific follower count.
Instagram unlocked multistreaming from a desktop using StreamWay Studio, OBS, or any other streaming software.
Watch this video tutorial or read our guide below to learn how to set up your Instagram stream with StreamWay!
How to go live on Instagram?
- Open Instagram.com on your desktop. Currently, it’s not supported on mobile.
- Click the “Create” button [+], then click “Live video” from the dropdown menu.
❗️ You will not see this option if you don’t have a Professional Instagram Account. - Enter your video title and choose your audience:
“Practice” will keep your stream private, and “Public” will broadcast to all your followers. - You will then see a screen with your Stream URL and Stream key.
❗️The stream key is not permanent. You’ll need a new one for each new stream. - In a separate tab, open StreamWay. On the Home Screen, click Edit Destinations (or Add Destinations if you are new).Then click on the Instagram icon.
- Enter your Instagram username, the Stream URL, and the Stream Key from the Instagram Live Video screen into each field and click Add Channel.
- Start streaming from StreamWay Studio or your streaming software (OBS, Ecamm, etc.). Remember to use vertical mode.
- On Instagram, you’ll see a preview of your stream. The preview can take a few seconds to display.
👉 Once you see your preview, you have up to 5 hours to go live.
- Click “Go live” on Instagram Live Producer to start the stream.
- Click “End live video” in the Instagram Live Video screen to stop the stream.
If you end your stream on StreamWay or your streaming software before you end it on Instagram, the live video will stay ‘stuck’ the last frame it received.
To end your live video smoothly, stop the stream on Instagram first before ending it on your streaming software.
How to download your stream?
You can view, share, and download your stream from Instagram Live Archive in your mobile app.
- 💡Pro tip: The StreamWay recordings feature saves all your streams! You can download audio only, full video (MP4), or play the recording as a clip in another StreamWay broadcast.
To access the Instagram Live Archive:
- While on your profile, tap the menu button (☰) in the top right corner.
- Tap the Archive button.
- Tap the dropdown at the top of the screen and switch from “Stories Archive” to “Live Archive.”
- You will see your past live videos and an option to share them on Instagram or download them to your device.
Requirements
- Video
- 9×16 aspect ratio (recommended but not required)
- 720p at 30 fps (note: 30 fps is recommended, but Live Producer can also support 60 fps if desired. When using 60 fps, the Live Producer preview screen will still display 30 fps.)
- Video bitrate range: 2,250-6,000 Kbps
- Resolution: 720×1280
- Alternatives (supported but not recommended): 480p at 30fps, 360p
- Audio
- Sample rate: 44.1KHz
- Channel layout: Stereo
- Bitrate: up to 256 Kbps
Helpful tips
For multi-platform streaming, use Portrait mode to avoid cropping, as it’s the only format supported by Instagram.
The “Comments” tab on the Instagram Live screen lets you read and reply to viewer comments, but these comments won’t appear in StreamWay Chat.