OBS Studio requires the following hardware and operating systems to function. Having a compatible system does not guarantee that it is capable of streaming or recording using OBS Studio.
The CPU requirements vary considerably depending on the chosen encoder, resolution, FPS and your scene complexity. Try Tools menu -> Auto Configuration Wizard
to find appropriate settings for your hardware and settings.
Hardware encoders are generally recommended for best performance as they take the workload off the CPU and to a specialised component in the GPU that can perform video encoding more efficiently. Modern hardware encoders provide very good quality video with minimal performance impact.
However, earlier generation hardware encoders provide a lower-quality image. They offer minimal performance impact in exchange for a reduction in quality at the same bitrates as software encoding using the default preset of veryfast. As such, they can be a last resort if software encoding is not possible such as due to performance constraints.
Consumer-level hardware encoders are built into the following GPUs:
NVIDIA's NVENC encoder is supported on Windows and Linux.
Make sure you have the latest drivers for your GPU.
Intel's Quick Sync Video encoder is supported on Windows and Linux.
Make sure you have the latest drivers. These are usually provided by your manufacturer but may also be found at the Intel Download Center.
AMD's Advanced Media Framework encoder is supported on Windows and Linux.
Make sure you have the latest drivers
Apple's VideoToolbox is supported on macOS.