I Tested 7 Clipping Tools So You Don't Have To (Here's What Actually Works)

I wasted three weeks trying different clipping tools before I found one that actually worked.

Three weeks of downloading software, watching tutorials, dealing with crashes, fighting with export settings, and pulling my hair out over tools that promised "easy clipping" but delivered frustration.

If you're trying to get into stream clipping, you've probably noticed there are dozens of tools out there. They all claim to be the best. They all promise to make clipping easy. And they all have suspiciously perfect reviews.

So I decided to test them all. Well, not all of them—but the seven most popular ones that people actually use. I spent a month using each one, posting clips, and seeing which ones were actually worth the time.

Here's what I learned.

What I Was Looking For

Before I dive into the reviews, let me tell you what I actually needed from a clipping tool.

I'm not a professional video editor. I don't need 47 different transition effects or advanced color grading. I just need to watch streams, clip good moments, and post them to TikTok and YouTube Shorts.

That's it.

So I was looking for tools that could do three things well:

Capture moments quickly - If I see something clip-worthy, I need to grab it in seconds, not minutes
Export in the right format - Vertical video, proper resolution, small file size
Not crash constantly - Seriously, this was a bigger problem than you'd think

Bonus points if the tool had features like multi-stream viewing, automatic clip detection, or built-in editing. But those were nice-to-haves, not requirements.

The Tools I Tested

I tested seven tools total. Some were free, some were paid, some were somewhere in between. Here's the list:

Native Twitch clipping
OBS Studio with replay buffer
Medal.tv
Streamlabs
Outplayed
Restream
Reel Clips

I used each one for at least a week, posting 20-30 clips per tool. Some I loved. Some I hated. One made me want to throw my computer out the window.

Let's start with that one.

The Ones That Didn't Work

OBS Studio with Replay Buffer

Look, OBS is amazing for streaming. It's powerful, it's free, it's customizable. But for clipping? It's overkill and unnecessarily complicated.

The replay buffer feature technically works—you can set it to constantly record the last X minutes of footage, then save it when something good happens. But the workflow is clunky.

You have to set up scenes, configure audio sources, adjust bitrates, manage file sizes, and remember to actually turn on the replay buffer before you start watching. Then when you want to clip something, you hit a hotkey, and it saves a massive video file that you have to manually trim and edit.

It's like using a chainsaw to slice bread. Sure, it'll work, but there are better tools for the job.

Verdict: Only use this if you're already streaming and want to clip your own content. For clipping other people's streams, it's way too much work.

Streamlabs

Streamlabs has a clipping feature built into their streaming software. It's basically the same as OBS—replay buffer that you can save with a hotkey.

The problem? It's even more bloated than OBS. The software is heavy, it uses a ton of resources, and it's clearly designed for streamers, not viewers.

I tried using it for a week and gave up. It kept crashing, the clips were huge files (we're talking 500MB for a 30-second clip), and the export process was painfully slow.

Verdict: Skip it unless you're already using Streamlabs for streaming.

Outplayed

Outplayed is designed for gaming clips—recording your own gameplay highlights automatically. It works great for that.

But for clipping streams? It's not built for it. You can technically use it to record your screen while watching streams, but that's not what it's designed for, and it shows.

The automatic highlight detection doesn't work on streams (obviously—it's looking for in-game events, not stream moments). The file sizes are massive. And the export options are limited.

Verdict: Great for clipping your own gameplay. Useless for clipping streams.

The Ones That Kinda Worked

Native Twitch Clipping

Twitch's built-in clipping feature is... fine. It works. It's free. It's simple.

You watch a stream, something funny happens, you hit the clip button. Twitch saves the last 60 seconds (or however long you want, up to 60 seconds). You can trim it, add a title, and publish it.

The problem? It's limited to Twitch. You can't clip YouTube or Kick streams. The clips are locked to Twitch's platform unless you download them (which is a pain). And the export quality isn't great for posting to other platforms.

Also, the 60-second limit is restrictive. Sometimes you need a 90-second clip to tell the full story, and Twitch won't let you.

Verdict: Good for casual clipping on Twitch. Not ideal if you're serious about posting clips to TikTok, YouTube, etc.

Medal.tv

Medal is interesting. It's primarily designed for gaming clips, but it has features for stream clipping too.

The good: It's free, it's easy to use, and it has a built-in community where you can share clips. The automatic clip detection is surprisingly good—it can identify potential viral moments based on audio cues and visual patterns.

The bad: The export process is slow. The file sizes are larger than they need to be. And the vertical video formatting isn't great—it just crops the horizontal video, which often cuts off important parts of the frame.

I used Medal for two weeks and had mixed results. Some clips turned out great. Others were unusable because the cropping cut off the streamer's face or the important part of the screen.

Verdict: Decent free option, but not ideal for serious clipping.

Restream

Restream is primarily a multi-streaming tool, but it has clipping features built in. You can watch multiple streams at once and clip from any of them.

The multi-stream viewer is actually really useful. Being able to watch 4-6 streams simultaneously and clip from whichever one has a good moment is a game-changer for finding content.

The problem? It's expensive ($20/month for the plan with clipping features), and the clipping itself is just okay. The exports are fine, but not optimized for TikTok or YouTube Shorts. You still have to do manual editing to get the format right.

Verdict: Worth it if you need multi-streaming features. Overpriced if you just want clipping.

The One That Actually Worked

Reel Clips

I'm going to be honest: I was skeptical about Reel Clips at first. It's a newer tool, and I'd never heard of it before. But after trying everything else, I gave it a shot.

And it's exactly what I was looking for.

Here's what makes it different:

Multi-stream viewing that actually works. You can watch up to 6 streams at once, and switching between them is instant. No lag, no buffering, no crashes. This alone makes it worth using—I can monitor multiple streamers and catch more clip-worthy moments.

One-click clipping. When something happens, I click one button. That's it. The tool automatically captures the last 30 seconds (or however long I want), trims it, and queues it for export. No manual trimming, no fiddling with settings.

Automatic vertical formatting. This is huge. The tool automatically reformats horizontal stream footage into vertical video for TikTok and YouTube Shorts. And it's smart about it—it tracks the action and keeps the important parts in frame. No more manually cropping and hoping you didn't cut off something important.

Fast exports. Clips are ready in seconds, not minutes. I can clip something, export it, and post it to TikTok in under a minute total.

AI-powered moment detection. This is the feature I didn't know I needed. The tool watches streams and flags potential viral moments based on audio cues, chat activity, and visual patterns. It's not perfect, but it catches a lot of moments I would have missed.

The downsides? It's not free—it's $7/month for the pro plan. And it's still relatively new, so it doesn't have all the advanced features of more established tools.

But for what I need—watching streams, clipping moments, and posting them quickly—it's perfect.

Verdict: This is what I use now. It's worth the $7/month if you're serious about clipping.

What I Learned About Clipping Tools

After testing all these tools, I realized something: most clipping tools are built for the wrong person.

They're built for streamers who want to clip their own content. Or for gamers who want to record their gameplay. Or for professional video editors who need advanced features.

Very few tools are built for people like me—viewers who just want to watch streams and share the best moments.

That's why so many of them are overcomplicated. They have features I'll never use. They require setup and configuration. They assume I know what bitrates and codecs are.

I don't. I just want to clip funny moments and post them.

The tools that worked best were the ones that understood this. Simple interface, fast workflow, optimized exports. Everything else is just noise.

My Recommendation

If you're just getting started with clipping and want to try it for free, use native Twitch clipping. It's limited, but it's free and easy.

If you're serious about clipping and want to post to multiple platforms, use Reel Clips. It's $7/month, but it'll save you hours of frustration and make the whole process actually enjoyable.

If you need multi-streaming features for other reasons and happen to want clipping too, Restream is fine. But it's overkill if clipping is your main goal.

Avoid OBS, Streamlabs, and Outplayed unless you're already using them for other purposes. They're not designed for stream clipping, and it shows.

The Real Secret

Here's what I learned after testing all these tools: the tool matters less than you think.

Yes, a good tool makes the process easier and faster. But the most important thing is just starting. Clip moments. Post them. See what works.

I wasted three weeks testing tools when I should have been posting clips. Don't make the same mistake.

Pick a tool that seems good enough, start clipping, and adjust later if you need to. The perfect tool doesn't exist. The good-enough tool that you actually use is infinitely better than the perfect tool you're still researching.

Just start clipping.