What Does Always on Top Do in OBS Studio?

The “Always on Top” setting in OBS Studio is a display option that forces the OBS application window to remain visible in the foreground of your desktop, preventing other windows from hiding it. This article explains how this feature works, why it is useful for content creators, and how to easily enable or disable it within the OBS interface.

How the “Always on Top” Feature Works

When you enable “Always on Top,” OBS Studio pins itself to the front of your screen. Even if you click on another application, such as a web browser, a chat window, or a game running in windowed mode, the OBS Studio interface will remain layered over those other programs.

Normally, clicking on any background application brings it to the front and hides OBS. With this setting active, OBS overrides the standard window layering system of your operating system.

Why Use “Always on Top”?

This feature is particularly beneficial for streamers and video editors, especially those operating with a single-monitor setup. Key use cases include:

Monitoring Your Stream: You can keep an eye on your live preview, audio levels, and dropped frames while actively interacting with other applications.
Easier Scene Switching: If you need to manually change scenes or sources during a stream, keeping OBS visible saves you from having to minimize or drag other windows out of the way.
Recording Verification: It provides peace of mind by allowing you to verify that OBS is actively recording and capturing your screen without needing to constantly Alt-Tab to check.

Note: This feature will not overlay OBS on top of video games running in “Exclusive Fullscreen” mode, as games in this mode take complete control of the display. To use Always on Top while gaming, you must run your game in “Borderless Windowed” or “Windowed” mode.

How to Enable or Disable the Setting

Activating or deactivating this feature takes only two clicks:

Open OBS Studio.
Click on the View menu at the top of the window.
Click on Always on Top to toggle it. A checkmark next to the option indicates that it is active.