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Mac Webcams That Just Work

Looking to buy a driver-free, fully Macintosh compatible webcam? Have USB 2.0, 3.0 or 3.1 ports? The external webcam models listed here are UVC - USB Video Class compliant. They're simply Plug and Play on modern Macs running MacOS Sur, Catalina, Mojave and Sierra, as well as OSX El Capitan, Yosemite, Mavericks, Lion, and Leopard. Some older cameras made for Windows PC's may not work on Apple Macintosh computers, or Mac web camera drivers may not exist.

Top Pick: Affordable Logitech Mac Streaming Camera Full 1080p @ 30FPS - 720p @ 60FPS Ask any seasoned teleconference host and many will say the Logitech C922 Stream Pro is the new number one choice. This top-quality premium webcam supports H.264 video compression and is optimized for streaming video at high frame-rates. Ripcasting Cam lets you do live webcam broadcast of mac including both video and audio. You can view the broadcast on a different mac or iOS device such as iPhone, iPad, or iPod Touch. Use the built-in camera on Mac Many Mac computers and displays have a built-in iSight, FaceTime, or FaceTime HD camera located near the top edge of the screen. The camera automatically turns on when you open an app that can take pictures, record videos, or make video calls. You can decide which apps are allowed to use the camera on your Mac. Auto Focus Webcam 1080P, Zoom Skype Web Camera Noise Cancelling Microphone, Skype Zoom Web Cam Full HD for PC Laptop Computer, Plug Play for Windows 10/8 / 7 Mac.

Save yourself wasted money and frustration. Make certain you have USB 2.0 speed or faster ports, OSX 10.5+, and a Mac faster than 1Ghz.

Live Cam For Macbook Pro

You can then confidently choose one of these Apple friendly driverless UVC webcam models listed below and elsewhere on the site. We're devoted to tracking the Mac friendly web camera and video conferencing peripheral scene.

Plug-N-Play Mac Webcam Picks

Recommended UVC compliant external cams for OSX
Last Updated: October 18th, 2020
(Note: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases)

Best Logitech Cameras For Mac

C922 Stream Pro w/Tripod Mount
Improved Frame Rates Up To 60FPS
#1 CHOICE : Mac Compatible HD Webcam With Standard Tripod Mount
Like: Revised C920-series optimized for high frame-rate live streaming: 1080p @ 30FPS and 720p @ 60FPS with H.264 video compression. Optical quality glass lens. Stereo Dual microphones.
For 90% of Mac users, this is your BEST CHOICE for high-quality video capture, conferencing and live streams. Besides Amazon, you can find competitive pricing for the C922 webcam on eBay as well.
Dislike: Logitech packages two different confusing SKU's: The C922 model comes bundled with a mini-tripod, the C922X (x=without) model doesn't.
Wide-Angle HD Camera
90 Degree Field Of View
#2 CHOICE : Premium Logitech C930e HD Webcam
Incredible State-Of-The-Art Image Detail, Smooth Autofocus, H.264 Compression.
Like: Tripod Mount. 1080p HD Webcam. Zeiss Optical Lens. Dual Microphones.
Dislike: You Might Not Prefer A 90 Degree Wide-Angle View.
Logitech C920S Cam
High Quality : Great Value
#3 CHOICE : Mac Compatible Logitech HD Webcam
Excellent detail and clarity, Hardware Autofocus, H.264 Compression
Like: Tripod Mounting Hole. Zeiss Glass Lens. Stereo Microphone. Privacy Shutter. Though superceded by the newer 922, this remains an excellent camera - especially at it's lower street price.
Dislike: None. Excellent All-Around Choice - Razor Sharp.
Portable HD Webcam
Tripod Camera Mount
Like: Lower-priced 1080p HD webcam. Glass lens. Standard camera tripod mount for flexibility in camera angles and placement. Folds flat for travel.
Dislike: Considered a 'Portable' cam - Has a rather short 3' cable.

Best Microsoft Webcams For Mac

Microsoft HD Pro Webcam For Mac
Optical Lens w/AutoFocus
Like: Premium 1080p Resolution. Excellent Audio, Color Balance and Light Sensitivity.
Dislike: Flexi-Bend Clip May Not Be Ideal - But Has Standard Tripod Mounting Hole.
MS LifeCam HD For Mac
720p HD With AutoFocus
Like: Autofocus. Sharp Optical Glass Lens. Excellent Color Fidelity.
Dislike: No Tripod Mount. 720p Max Resolution HD Camera.

Best Creative Web Cameras For Mac

Creative Live Cam Chat
720p HD Resolution
Like: 720p HD Resolution, Fixed Focus, Echo Cancelling Microphone.
Dislike: Image not as sharp as Logitech C310 at this price point.

3rd-Party Apple Compatible Cameras

Although Logitech, Creative Labs, and Microsoft have dominated the OSX friendly videoconferencing cam market, several other brand-name cameras are worthy of consideration, espcially if you're on a budget.
Hue Flexible Neck Webcam
Excellent For Adult Video Play
Like: Ultimate Positioning Freedom. Clear HD Image. Internal Mic.
Dislike: Manual Focus. LED Lights Can Be Annoying Head-On.
Hewlett-Packard UVC Webcam
HP's Premium HD Camera
Like: 1080p Resolution. Autofocus. High-Quality Microphone.
Dislike: Snapshot Buttons Non-Functional on OSX. Excellent HD Cam.
RocketFish Mac HD Webcam
Autofocus + Stereo Microphones
Like: 720-1080P Resolution. Good Light Sensitivity and Color Balance.
Dislike: Discontinued. Snapshot Button Non-Functional.
Best Cheap Webcam
RocketFish 720p HD Camera
Like: Great Image! Responsive AutoFocus and Excellent Microphone Quality.
Dislike: Discontinued - But Still Available. Flimsy Mounting Clip.
1080p HD GearHead Webcam
Cheap 1080p Mac Webcam
Like: High HD Resolution. Auto-Focus. Stereo Mics.
Dislike: Lacks Precision Optics, Not As Sharp An Image.

About Driver-Free UVC Webcams

UVC is a compatibility standard for USB video chat cameras. Apple's UVC Kernel Extensions are built into MacOS Big Sur, Catalina, Mojave and Sierra, as well as OSX ElCapitan, Yosemitie, Mavericks, Lion and Leopard. That means any UVC compliant external USB camera should just work when plugged into a Mac's USB 2.0 speed or faster port. No additional webcam drivers are required. Windows, Linux, Andrioid, and Chrome OS also now natively support UVC class video camera device standard.
The cams listed here are ideal as an add-on webcam for an Apple Mac mini or Pro tower. They can also provide iMac and MacBook users more flexibiity in camera placement and quality over their built-in iSight. They're also good cross-platform PC and Linux webcams for those who use VMWare Fusion, Parallels or Apple's BootCamp on their Macs to run other operating systems.
All recent Logitech's webcam models are now UVC compliant and officially supported on a Mac. However, many older discontinued mid-to-low end Logitech cameras were not UVC compliant: Depends on model number, different internal sensors, and part numbers.

Dirt Cheap Generic UVC Mac Webcams

'You get what you pay for...' seems to apply to many dirt-cheap no-name import USB video class web cameras. Feeling lucky? Don't care about warranty or returning it? Then explore cheap webcams on eBay or Amazon for ought-to, should, might probably work on an Apple web camera options from China. In our testing, many of the cheap import cameras available for $10-$15 had high dead-on-arrival failure rates. Image quality varied widely. Some claimed to be High-Def 'HD' but were only low-resolution camera sensors. Microphones sounded poor or were non-functional. Even some of the cams with a decent image simply stopped working soon after purchase. Overall they were poorly-constructed, cheap junk with a few rare exceptions.

Apple Compatible Web Cameras For Old Macs

For long obsolete Macs from the G4 and G5 era, remember UVC compliant webcams require USB 2.0 or faster ports. With their slow CPUs, 640x480 resoultion won't overwelm them. The Mac MUST also be running OSX 10.4.x at a minimum - the point where Apple began including UVC device support into the OS.
Best Webcam For Old Macs
VGA QuickCam Ultra - 640x480 Fixed Focus
Microsoft Live! Web Cam - Value Priced
Like: Suprising Image Quality, Adjustable Focus Ring, Low-Cost
Dislike: Stand Designed For Desktop Not Laptop. No Microphone

Webcams For Obsolete Macs?

Trying to keep an antique Macintosh in use? Think FireWire instead. Modern high-resolution UVC cams simply WILL NOT WORK on old 800mhz or less Macs, who's slow and incompatible USB 1.x speed ports are FOURTY TIMES slower than USB 2.0. Those that claim to be USB 1.1 compatible in their specification listings may have utterly abysmal frame-rates on USB 1.x or show NO image at all, even though Apple's System Profiler may show that the camera exists on the USB 1.1 bus. Otherwise you're left dinking around with any of hundreds of old, discontinued webcams made for Windows and fiddling with Macam open-source drivers hoping for a combination that will work.
You can still find decent, used Apple iSight cams at Amazon or find a deal on an iSight on eBay. Sadly, Apple stopped manufacturing their very high-quality 1394 FireWire auto-focus web camera rather quickly. 1394 is better than USB for video conferencing and chat in many technical aspects: External FireWire webcam compatibility with iMovie, less CPU overhead, high frame-rates and avoids USB device contention when slugging it out on a USB hub. USB cameras aren't the only options to provide Macintosh users with high quality choices to chat and videoconference using popular Mac OSX applications like FaceTime, Zoom, Apple Messages, Skype, and ISPQ VideoChat, or for capturing and uploading clips to YouTube, Vimeo, Daily Motion or other video sites.

Choosing An External Mac Compatible Web Cam

What are key features to look for when shopping for an Apple compatible webcam? Even though the vast majority of Apple computer systems incorporate an iSight camera into the display, there's still tremendous interest in buying an external Mac camera that offers improved image quality, higher frame rates, a better internal microphone, increased HD resolution, or additional flexibility in camera angles, mounting options, and positioning. Please see the Mac Webcam Shopper Guide on this site for a more in-depth review of camera features to look for when pondering the optimal hardware for your business or personal video capture, streaming and conferencing needs.

Video Conferencing Microphones & Headsets

Most, but not all Macs have a built-in microphone for 'good enough' sound capture. But another option is a good quality Mac compatible USB webcam with a mic that most (but not all) webcams incorporate. A separate USB desktop microphone might be desired to provide the best sound quality to dramatically improve your online streaming, voice and video capture and recording sessions.
Headsets or earbuds can help you have a far better videoconferencing, FaceTime, Zoom or Mac Skype call experience and help minimize background noise, or echo and feedback. USB headsets may have more advantages than 4-Pole 1/8' TRRS Analog mini-jack types that often compete with your external speaker system. A high-quality Mac headset comes in handy for not only Mac VOIP, video conferences and Apple speech recognition, but top notch iTunes audio playback and Podcast recording and listening as well.

Specialty Webcams For MacOS

Beyond conventional chat, streaming and capture cams, this website also features more specialized Apple compatible web camera solutions. These include: Document Cameras for educators and presentations. Mac compatible USB Digital Microscopes for labwork and inspections. There are also both wired and wireless Security and Surveillance Cameras. Lastly, for group video chat we cover Mac friendly webcams that offer fully-featured voice and video conferencing with mic and speakerphone hardware for business meeting and huddle room environments.

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Requires macOS 10.12 or newer.

The all-in-one livestreaming production
platform for Mac.

Ecamm Live puts the power of Facebook Live, YouTube Live, Periscope, and Twitch video streaming at your fingertips.

Your New Broadcasting Studio

Everything's here, including support for multiple cameras, Blackmagic HDMI capture devices, iPhone and Mac screensharing, and more. A live camera switcher lets you direct the show in real time.

Support for saved scenes means you can compose scenes in advance, complete with on-screen titles and split screens.

Advanced support for Elgato's Stream Deck means fast access to scene switching, sound effects, and more.

The Power of a Mac App

Stream in HD quality with one click, using any connected mic and capture device, including your DSLR or mirrorless camera from Canon, Nikon, Sony and others. And when your broadcast is done, you'll find a high-quality recording has already been saved on your Mac.

Seamless Platform Integration

Integration with four leading broadcast platforms means there's no need to worry about stream keys or complicated set-up steps. Whether you're streaming to your Facebook business Page or YouTube channel, or scheduling a broadcast in advance, the app takes care of the details.

And once you're live, you'll see audience size, comments and reactions showing up right in Ecamm Live.

Expand Your Reach with Multistreaming

Ecamm Live's integration with Restream.io and Switchboard Live means livestreaming to multiple platforms simultaneously is as simple as one click. And with built-in support for Restream's chat aggregation, Ecamm Live can even display chat comments from over 20 platforms.

Add Remote Guests With Interview

Ecamm Live inludes a powerful Interview feature for adding guests to your broadcast.

Simply send your guests a web link to join the show for instant split-screen and picture-in-picture layouts.

Add Overlays For a Pro Look

We've made it incredibly easy to add text and graphics such as a company logo, viewer comments and lower thirds to your livestream. Simply type a title or drag an image or comment into place.

Animations and Countdowns

Ecamm Live even supports video overlays and countdowns.

Roll Pre-Recorded Video

Ecamm Live streams high-quality live video, but that's not all. Broadcasting a video file for introductions and pre-recorded segments is as easy as dragging a movie file into the app.

Live Picture-in-Picture

And why stop there? Add a live picture-in-picture to your pre-recorded content. Live and pre-recorded audio is mixed seamlessly.

Share Your Mac Desktop

Livestream your presentations, tutorials and demos with one click. Choose to share your entire screen, or just a particular app or window.

Add a live picture-in-picture to the broadcast for a personal touch.

Ecamm Live In Action

Our users trust Ecamm Live to bring their live show or event to a worldwide audience.

Check out Ecamm Live reviews and testimonials here!

360 Marketing Squad

Jenn Herman, Stephanie Liu, Amanda Robinson and Mike Allton are the 360 Marketing Squad. Stephanie uses Ecamm to create exciting live shows for their popular Facebook page.

This Week in Photo with Frederick Van Johnson

Ecamm Live has really saved my butt! The software has really upped my game and allowed me to focus on content rather than stressing over production during recording my shows or livestreams.

RV Lifestyle: Ask Us Anything

Just downloaded and installed the update. Thank you!!! I am SO pleased with Ecamm. It has been the most effective community building tool I have ever used. Thank you Glen and Ken!

-Mike Wendland, YouTube Personality on the RV Lifestyle Channel

Pro Video Academy with Adrian Salisbury

Adrian uses Ecamm Live's support for professional cameras, image overlays and more to produce great professional livestreams on his Facebook Page, Facebook Groups and YouTube channel.

CG Media Solutions

Video producer Carlos Gonzalez of CG Media Solutions relies on Ecamm Live for professional multi-camera live productions.

Bradley Vinson

Speaker, trainer and author Bradley Vinson uses Ecamm Live's graphic overlays and an introduction screen to add a pro touch to his Facebook Live broadcasts.

Roller Hockey Live on Facebook

Alastair Andrew of Drew Media Productions relies on Ecamm for hiccup-free Facebook Live broadcasts.

All Saints Anglican Cathedral

Thanks to Ecamm, we were able to stream live, include a visiting missionary via Skype AND have folks who don’t have FB follow along with a phone-in session using another service. Cool!

Desktop-class features you won't find anywhere else:

Scheduling

Build an audience by announcing your broadcasts in advance.

Local Recording

Every broadcast is automatically saved to your Mac.

Comments and Reactions

No need to leave the app to see the latest comments from Facebook, YouTube, Periscope, and Twitch.

Professional camera support:

DSLR via USB Cable

Go live using your Canon, Nikon or Sony DSLR/mirrorless camera for an amazing pro look.

HDMI Capture Made Easy

Native support for HDMI encoders like Elgato Cam Link, AJA U-TAP, Blackmagic Design and more means hassle-free HDMI input.

Newtek NDI®

NDI video sources show up in the camera switcher automatically.

Put on a show:

Screen Sharing

Broadcast your screen, an app or a specific window.

Play Pre-Recorded Videos

Roll video introductions and show pre-recorded clips.

Picture-in-Picture

Provide live video commentary as you share your screen or play clips.

Feeling Social?

Live Camera Switching

View all camera feeds and switch instantly.

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Interview Mode

Instantly invite up to 4 remote guests in crystal clear HD.
(Pro version only.)

Split Screen

Show cameras and guests in a split screen or grid view.

Add a finishing touch:

Overlays

Add text, logos, lower-thirds, PDFs, and even animated GIFs.

Comment Overlays

Promote viewer comments to onscreen overlays with one click.

Green Screen

Change your background with our studio-quality green screen feature.

Get even more with Ecamm Live Pro:

4K Streaming

Record and broadcast in crystal clear 1440p and 4K.

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(Pro version only.)

Virtual Webcam

Use Ecamm Live features in many Mac video apps.
(Pro version only.)

Realtime Monitoring

Monitor your broadcast on a connected display.
(Pro version only.)

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