To learn more about how to set-up and host your virtual or hybrid wedding with Joy, click here.
When it comes to virtual events, Joy supports streaming through Zoom, YouTube, Google Meet, Facebook Live, Instagram Live, EventLive, or any streaming platform of your choice.
But which one is right for you?
Here are some questions to think about to help you choose the right streaming method.
- What is more important – simplicity and ease of use or the ability for you and your guests to see and talk to each other?
If interacting with guests is important to you, Zoom and Google Meet are your best choices. While both services allow the host to mute all or selected guests at any time, Zoom gives you the additional options of being able to spotlight certain guests during speeches and toasts and also split guests up into “breakout rooms” where the couple can talk to smaller groups of guests in each “room” separately.
If you are looking to do a one-way livestream, EventLive, YouTube Live, Facebook Live, Instagram Live are more appropriate. All make it easy for guests to join live or rewatch later. EventLive, which is custom-designed for live streaming weddings is paid but also offers a guestbook and more customizations (logo, event cover, and pre-recorded slideshow/video). YouTube Live is free, however if you have a channel with less than 1,000 subscribers, you can only go live from a desktop – you will not be able to use a smartphone or tablet for your livestream. - How many guests would you like to invite to watch live?
Both EventLive and YouTube allow you to have unlimited participants/devices.
Zoom and Google Meet’s free options both limit an event to 100 participants. - How long would you like to livestream for?
YouTube Live does not have a time limit on their livestream.
EventLive lets you stream for 24 hours from event start time. You can stop and start the live stream as many times as you’d like, and your guests will receive a notification each time you’re live.
Zoom’s free option allows you to stream for 40 minutes while Google Meet’s free option allows you to stream for 1 hour. Both allow you to purchase a paid plan to stream for 30 or 300 hours, respectively. - Would you like a recording of your livestream or a guestbook?
With YouTube Live, your live stream will automatically upload to your videos after you stop streaming.
With EventLive, your live stream video will be recorded automatically and you’ll be able to download a full recording after the event. Here is a sample of what that looks like.
With Google Meet and Zoom, the host can record the event on desktop. (Mobile app users cannot control the recording.) With Google Meet, recording is only available to paid users, and the recording will be saved to Google Drive. With Zoom, recording is available to both free and paid users. - What kind of device would like to stream from?
If you’re looking to stream from a laptop, you’ll be happy to know that is supported by all four platforms.
If you’re looking to stream from an Android or Apple smartphone or tablet, we recommend EventLive, Zoom, or Google Meet. You can only create a live stream on mobile for YouTube Live if you have at least 1,000 subscribers.
If you’re looking to stream from a DSLR or GoPro, you can easily do that with the Broadcaster tool in EventLive.
It’s not a one size fits all approach, but there’s something for everyone.
Still have some questions?
Ask us directly! Click on the black and white chat bubble in the bottom-right corner of this page to ask us your questions, or you can email us at support@withjoy.com. You’ll get a friendly response from someone on our team! 🙂