How to Show Keystrokes on Screen in OBS Studio

Showing your keystrokes on screen is a highly effective way to enhance gaming streams, software tutorials, and digital presentations in OBS Studio. This guide provides a straightforward, step-by-step walkthrough of the two most popular methods for displaying real-time keyboard and mouse inputs: using the dedicated Input Overlay plugin, and using external software captured via OBS.

Method 1: Using the Input Overlay Plugin

The Input Overlay plugin is the most seamless way to display keystrokes directly within OBS Studio without running background window captures.

  1. Download the Plugin: Go to the official OBS Studio resources site and download the Input Overlay plugin. Make sure to download both the plugin files and the default “presets” zip folder.
  2. Install the Plugin: Extract the downloaded plugin files. Copy and paste the data and obs-plugins folders into your main OBS Studio installation directory (typically C:\Program Files\obs-studio).
  3. Add the Preset Files: Extract the presets zip folder to a location on your computer where you won’t accidentally delete it (e.g., your Documents folder).
  4. Add the Source in OBS: Open OBS Studio, click the + icon in the Sources dock, and select Input Overlay.
  5. Configure the Layout: In the source properties window:
    • Click Browse next to “Overlay Image File” and select the texture file (usually a .png) of the keyboard layout from your extracted presets folder.
    • Click Browse next to “Layout Config File” and select the corresponding config file (usually a .json or .ini) from the presets folder.
  6. Position the Overlay: Drag and resize the keyboard graphic on your OBS canvas to place it where you want your viewers to see it.

Method 2: Using NohBoard (External Software)

If you prefer not to install plugins, you can use NohBoard, a popular open-source virtual keyboard, and capture it using OBS.

  1. Download NohBoard: Download the latest version of NohBoard from GitHub and extract the zip folder.
  2. Launch and Setup NohBoard: Run the NohBoard.exe file. Right-click inside the blank window, select Load Keyboard, and choose your preferred category and keyboard style from the list.
  3. Add Window Capture in OBS: Open OBS Studio, click the + icon in the Sources dock, and select Window Capture. Name it “Keyboard Overlay” and click OK.
  4. Select the Window: In the properties window, change the Window dropdown to select [NohBoard.exe].
  5. Make the Background Transparent:
    • Right-click your NohBoard source in OBS and select Filters.
    • Click the + icon in the Effect Filters section and select Chroma Key.
    • Set the Key Color Type to match the background color of your NohBoard window (usually Green or Blue) to make the background invisible, leaving only the active keys on your screen.