Everything people ask about CamDeck.

CamDeck relies on a macOS camera extension, background permissions, and system-level integrations (Now Playing, weather, RSS, camera device selection) that go beyond what the sandboxed App Store review process comfortably allows for this category of utility. Distributing directly as a signed, notarized DMG lets CamDeck ship features and fixes quickly without waiting on App Store review, while still going through Apple's own notarization security scan, so it's just as safe to install as an App Store app.

CamDeck is a free Mac app that turns your webcam into a broadcast-style virtual camera. It floats image or video overlays over your feed, adds a live lower-third text bar, and applies 20 real-time camera effects, then sends the whole composited picture into Zoom, Google Meet, or any app that reads your Mac's camera.

Yes. Every feature is unlocked with no trial, subscription, or paywall. CamDeck is tip-supported through Buy Me a Coffee for anyone who wants to support development, but tipping is entirely optional.

Yes. CamDeck is signed with an Apple Developer ID and notarized by Apple's automated security scan, so it opens normally on macOS without a Gatekeeper warning, the same as any App Store app. See the full breakdown on the Help page.

CamDeck is tested on macOS Tahoe 26.5.1. It is not compatible with macOS betas yet, since it's built directly on macOS's native camera extension framework.

No. We don't build Windows software at this time.

CamDeck was built backstage for a live weekly broadcast, in the same independent Mac-utility spirit as older shareware and tip-supported tools. It was shared publicly because it turned out too useful to keep to ourselves.

Yes. CamDeck was built backstage for a live weekly video podcast, so lower thirds, guest names, and quick effect switches are the whole point. It works just as well for gaming streams — run an effect over your reaction cam, drop a QR code for viewers to follow your channel, and use the broadcast timer to track how long you've been live.

Google Meet (with a settings change), Zoom, Photo Booth, and Microsoft Teams have all been tested and are believed to work well with CamDeck. Any app that lets you pick a camera source from a standard device list should be able to select CamDeck the same way it would a physical webcam.

No. Apple restricts FaceTime from using any third-party virtual camera, so CamDeck cannot appear there. That's an Apple platform restriction that applies to every virtual camera app on Mac, not a CamDeck limitation.

Yes. Settings → Video Devices lets you pick the exact physical camera CamDeck captures from when you have more than one connected, and it works alongside Zoom virtual backgrounds with or without a green screen.

CamDeck includes 20 real-time camera effects: Old TV, Security Cam, Flame, VHS, Thermal, Holiday Mode, 3D, CyberOps, NightOps, Local Cable, X-Ray, Noir, Drunk Mode, Mission Control, Dream Sequence, Game Boy Arcade, Ghost Hunter, Weather Report, City Life, and Confetti. Each is a distinct filter with its own burned-in graphics, not just a color tint. See the full channel listing.

Yes. Drag in images or video clips, paste an image URL, or press ⌘V to add anything on your clipboard. Videos can play full-frame as the camera output with Play, Stop, and Rewind controls, and a picture-in-picture option keeps your live camera visible in a corner while a video plays.

Yes. You can group images and videos into named folders, reorder both folders and items by dragging, and the pinned "All Items" view always shows your entire library regardless of folder.

These are five alternate live-data sources for the lower-third bar. Weather mode shows live conditions for a zip code you set. Now Playing mode shows your current Spotify or Apple Music track. RSS mode tickers headlines from a news feed URL you provide. Video Title mode shows the name of whatever video overlay is currently playing. Countdown mode counts down to a date and time you set, like a launch date or show start time. Turning one on automatically switches the others off.

Yes. The main window has alignment, color swatches, and a transparency slider for quick changes mid-show, and a full design panel adds text color, scroll speed, a text-shadow toggle, and scrolling behavior settings. Full details are on the Help page.

Yes — it's called Play as Channel. Right-click any folder of videos and choose it to play every clip in order, looping back to the first when it reaches the end. A Next button skips ahead manually, and an Up Next label shows what's coming.

Yes — Emergency Slide. Pick a standby image once in Settings, and a button next to Start/Stop Camera Feed instantly cuts your entire output to that image, with no video, effects, overlay, or lower third. Your camera keeps running underneath, so switching back is just as instant.

Yes. Type a URL, phone number, or any text into the QR Code URL field at the bottom of the main window and click Show QR Code to drop it into the floating-image slot, using whatever corner, size, and Fancy Mode settings are already set. It replaces a regular image overlay, since it's one or the other, never both.

Yes — the Preview panel. Right-click any image and choose Preview Image…, or use the panel button in the sidebar footer, to see it large before your viewers do, then click Send to Air (⌘↩) to put it out. Turn on "Always preview images before sending them to air" in Settings → General → Live Show to keep this on permanently, including for pasted, downloaded, and dragged-in images. You can also set a default standby image and send it to air in one click for clean cutaways between segments.

No. CamDeck cannot see or monitor your camera in any way, at any time. Everything is processed locally on your own Mac with no remote access or cloud processing, and clicking Stop Camera Feed shuts the camera off completely. Full details are in the Privacy Policy.

No. CamDeck has no account system and no analytics or ad tracking. The only network requests it makes are ones you directly trigger, like a weather lookup, an RSS feed fetch, or an image URL import.

This almost always means the camera extension was never turned on. When macOS first asks about the camera extension, don't just click OK, since that dismisses the dialog without enabling anything. Click the option to open System Settings and switch the extension on in the list that appears; a banner in CamDeck will bring you back to that step if you missed it.

Turn on "Adjust Bottom Bar for Google Meet Calls" in the lower-third design panel. Google Meet sometimes crops or zooms the incoming camera feed, and this setting grows the bar down to the true bottom edge and lifts the text up so it's never clipped. Leave it off for Zoom and other apps that don't crop the feed.

CamDeck's virtual camera publishes a single fixed 16:9 frame, and Photo Booth's capture window isn't 16:9 — it's closer to 4:3/square. Since Photo Booth only offers one format, it doesn't letterbox the mismatch; it crops to fill its own window, cutting off the left and right edges where overlays, text, and effect graphics sit. Zoom, Meet, and most other apps letterbox or resize instead, which is why this only shows up in Photo Booth. It's not a CamDeck bug — just a different app expecting a different frame shape — so for the cleanest look in Photo Booth specifically, keep overlays and lower-third text away from the far left/right edges.

Check the full Help & Support page for a complete feature walkthrough, or send us a message — you can attach a screenshot of the issue directly.