Riverside helps you record and stream audio and video. It can also help you with podcast recording, internal communication, webinar hosting, virtual conferences, and much more.

I tested Riverside with its free plan, and although the plan is limited, I was able to conclude that the paid plans of the software have a lot of potential for marketers trying their hands on audio and video recording.

In this article, I will discuss Riverside’s pricing and explain to you all the plans it offers – free and paid.

Riverside Pricing Plan Breakdown

Riverside.fm offers four plans you can choose from:

• Free
• Standard: $19 per month
• Pro: $29 per month
• Business: Custom pricing

Here’s a short tabular overview of each plan Riverside.fm offers:

Free	Standard [$19/mo]	Pro [$29/mo]	Business [Custom]
2 hours of multi-track recording	5 hours of multi-track recording	15 hours of multi-track recording	Unlimited hours of multi-track recording
1 studio and 1 seat	Unlimited studios and 1 seat	Unlimited studios and 1 seat	Unlimited studios and seats
Video recording quality – 720P	Video recording quality – 4K	Video recording quality – 4K	Video recording quality – 4K
Clips export quality – 720P	Clips export quality – 1080P	Clips export quality – 1080P	Clips export quality – 4K
Audio quality – 44.1kHz	Audio quality – 44.1kHz & 48kHz	Audio quality – 44.1kHz & 48kHz	Audio quality – 44.1kHz & 48kHz
Use mobile as a webcam	Use mobile as a webcam	Use mobile as a webcam	Available frame rates – 24 FPS, 25 FPS, & 29.97 FPS
Magic clips	Magic clips	Magic clips	Magic clips
Screen sharing and Multicam	Screen sharing and Multicam	Screen sharing and Multicam	Screen sharing and Multicam
	Remove watermark	Remove watermark	Remove watermark
	Live streaming	Live streaming	Live streaming
	Help center, email, and live chat support	Help center, email, and live chat support	Help center, email, and live chat support
		Live call-ins	Live call-ins
		Timeline export	Timeline export
		Unlimited transcriptions	Unlimited transcriptions
		AI show notes	AI show notes
		Magic audio	Magic audio
			Producer mode
			Camera controls
			Asyn recordings
			Custom branding
			Priority support

I will come to the free plan later; first, let’s discuss what the paid plans offer.

Plan 1: Standard

The Standard plan offers you all the essential features needed to record an audio or a video.

It offers 5 hours of separate audio and video tracks. Separate tracks refer to separate recording files for each participant’s audio and video.

It also offers – unlimited single-track recordings and editing, offers one shared team space where you can access multiple studios, and allows one admin who creates studios, invite participants, or start recordings.

If we talk about video quality, the Standard plan lets you record videos in 4K via desktops and 1080P via mobiles and export clips in 1080P.

The audio quality in the Standard plan is 44.1 kHz & 48 kHz, the available frame rate is 24 FPS, and the people recorded in a single session are 8.

Other features that the Standard plan offers are:

• Audience mode: Audience members can watch but are not recorded unless granted permission during a live call-in.
• Mobile as a webcam: Connect your phone to Riverside as a webcam to record 4K videos.
• Editor: Has a built-in online editor to customize the audio and videos you produce.
• Magic clips: Clips are a way to transform your long-form content into short-form content.
• Screen sharing: Hosts, guests, or producers can share their screens during a session.
• Noise reduction: Remove background noise such as AC, fans, and heaters.
• Multicam: Use your mobile as a second camera angle.

In addition, the Standard plan offers multiple integrations, allows you to remove watermarks, and live stream your recordings. 

When it comes to support, with the Standard plan, you can access Riverside’s help center and contact the brand’s customer support team via Email and Live chat.

The Standard plan also offers an add-on for $15 per month that lets you live stream watermark-free in 1080P and customize your studio’s design to match your brand.

Pros and Cons

✅ Comes with a watermark removal feature.

✅ Let’s you record videos in 4K (via desktop).

❌ Security and data governance features are missing.

Plan 2: Pro

If you want a full studio experience, Riverside’s Pro plan is the one you must sign up for.

The plan offers everything that the Standard plan offers, and more. For starters, it offers 15 hours per month of separate audio and video tracks.

Apart from this difference, the Pro plan offers some premium features like:

• Live call-ins: Enables audience members to participate in the studio conversation and be recorded.
• Timeline export: Export your recordings as a single Zip file with your separate tracks and an XML file to easily import and edit on Adobe Premiere Pro or Final Cut Pro.
• Unlimited transcriptions: Download text transcriptions of your conversations.
• AI show notes: Let AI generate a summary of your recordings, plus key takeaways and chapters, with just a click.
• Magic audio: Transform your audio into professional sound with one click.
• Teleprompter – only for hosts.

Pros and Cons

✅ Access to unlimited transcriptions.

✅ Lets you leverage AI to create recording notes.

❌ Like the Standard plan, security is still a concern in the Pro plan.

Plan 3: Business

Riverside’s Business plan is the ultimate plan that gives you access to everything the platform has to offer.

Apart from all the features in the Standard and Pro plans, it has several other features to offer.

First things first, all the usage limits:

• Separated audio and video tracks
• Single-track recording and editing
• Productions
• Studios
• Seats

The business plan has no limits for these usage parameters. In addition, it also lets you record videos in 4K from both desktop and mobile with available frame rates of 24 FPS, 25 FPS, & 29.97 FPS.

Here are the list of features that the Business plan offers:

• Camera controls: Hosts and producers can adjust the camera’s color temperature and light exposure for participants who are recording with the Riverside iOS app.
• Async recording: Let guests join your studio and record without you.
• Presentation recorder: Upload presentations and present them during a remote session. Riverside also helps you record these presentations.
• Full frame view: The platform displays the video frames of all participants in equal sizes. With the full frame, have control over each frame view and choose to view each participant in a full 16:9 video frame.
• Upload control: Have full control over participants’ recordings. Decide if they upload automatically during the session or manually when you choose.
• Simultaneous recordings: Record in multiple studios simultaneously.
• Remote change input and output of guests: Have full control over your guests’ audio and video input to make adjustments as needed during the session.
• Prioritized processing: Have faster access to files.
• Roles and permissions: Manage access levels and give external editors access to recordings.

The business plan also offers three extra custom support features:

• Customer success manager
• Onboarding and training
• Flexible payment options

Lastly, it also gives you security and data governance features like SSO, security and legal review, and master service agreement.

Pros and Cons

✅ Comes with security and data governance features.

✅ Lets you onboard multiple team members and guests.

❌ While the basic functionalities are user-friendly, some advanced features require time to learn and master, which could be challenging and time-consuming.

Which Pricing Plan Should I Choose?

If you’re an individual practicing video and audio recording for the first time, Riverside’s free plan should be your choice. You can test the platform thoroughly, learn how to use it, and then pay for it.

But one thing to keep in mind – since you aren’t paying to use Riverside, you will be compromising on video quality as it only has the option to record in 720P.

But when you get the hang of the tool and are serious about video and audio production, you must sign up for its Standard plan, which lets you record higher-quality videos and audio.

I personally feel that Riverside’s Pro plan isn’t a great investment because the Standard plan offers most of the features you need to create great audio and videos. 

The Pro plan offers a handful of features that the Standard plan doesn’t, but before signing up for the Pro plan, I’d suggest you look for some Riverside alternatives that can offer you the same features at affordable cost (more on this later).

Does Riverside Have a Free Plan?

Yes, Riverside offers a free plan that includes two hours (one-off) of separate audio and video tracks, a full suite of editing tools, and up to 720p video quality. 

However, anything you record with the free plan will be watermarked by Riverside, and you can’t onboard any guests or team members on the account.

You get access to some premium features like magic clips, video calls, live streaming, etc., but the Free plan can only offer you so much. 

When you exhaust your two hours of separate audio and video tracks but want to use Riverside, you have no other option but to upgrade to a paid version.

Riverside Competitors – Pricing Comparison

Riverside isn’t the only audio and video recording platform I tested. I also tried some of its competitors that either had a low monthly cost or the same as Riverside. From all the alternatives, here are the top 2 and their pricing comparison with Riverside.

1. Clipchamp vs Riverside

Clipchamp is a perfect video recording software for marketers who want to try their hands on making videos without spending a dime.

Clipchamp’s free plan offers far more than what Riverside’s free plan offers.

The free plan lets you remove watermarks when exporting videos, gives you an export resolution of 1080p HD, and lets you apply filters and effects for free.

In my opinion, Clipchamp is a great free Riverside alternative, but when you want premium features like onboarding team members, templates, camera control, etc. Riverside’s paid plans are far superior to the Premium plan Clipchamp offers.

2. Descript vs Riverside

To compare Descript’s and Riverside’s pricing, lets compare the Hobbyist and Standard plan of both platforms. That’s because both of them cost $19 per month.

Both plans offer unlimited project creation, captions, animations, etc. But Descript goes a step ahead and offers 10 hours of transcription per month that Riverside doesn’t offer in its Standard plan.

Also, Descript’s Hobbyist plan comes with AI features like a green screen, filler word removal, remove retakes, and more. All these features are missing in Riverside.

Where Descript focuses on enhancing your transcription quality, Riverside offers you several integrations, magic clips, noise reduction features, multicam, and many other features.

If you ask me, both the plans are packed with features, and there’s no one winner. The best plan out of the two depends on the use case you want to use the tool for. If you only want high-quality transcriptions, Descript is the tool for you, but if you want to record videos and audio, you must pick Riverside.

Does Riverside Have any Hidden Costs?

No, Riverside doesn’t have any hidden costs, but a few things you must be aware of when selecting the paid plan are:

• Add-Ons: Some features, like advanced editing tools or additional storage, might be available as paid add-ons. It’s essential to check if any features you intend to use require extra charges.
• Third-Party Integrations: If you plan to use Riverside in conjunction with other software or services, there may be additional costs associated with those integrations.
• Recording hours calculations: Riverside calculates the hours from your monthly subscription based on the total time recorded. For example, if you have 1 host and 3 guests (4 total participants), and you record for 1 hour, this will only count as 1 hour of total recording time towards your monthly limit.

Wrapping Up

Riverside has been in the market for a while now and is one of the most reliable audio and video recording software. But not everyone on the planet might like the tool, right? 

If you find Riverside expensive, there are several alternatives to explore that offer more or less the same features at the same or lesser costs.

The Riverside alternatives I mentioned in the article above have all been tested, so go ahead and try them out. 

Frequently Asked Questions