How to Use NVIDIA Broadcast Camera with Discord

The short answer

NVIDIA Broadcast does not replace your webcam. It reads video from your physical camera, applies effects such as background blur or replacement on your NVIDIA graphics card, and then provides the processed video as a separate virtual camera. In Discord, you select that virtual camera, usually listed as "Camera (NVIDIA Broadcast)", instead of your actual webcam. The Broadcast app must stay running in the background, because Discord gets its video from Broadcast rather than directly from the webcam.

Discord's desktop app on Windows is the typical setup. NVIDIA Broadcast is a Windows application, and it requires a supported NVIDIA RTX-class graphics card. If your computer does not have one, the app will not install or run, and Discord will not show the virtual camera.

Before you start

• A Windows PC with a supported NVIDIA RTX graphics card and a current NVIDIA driver.
• NVIDIA Broadcast installed and opened at least once.
• A working webcam that Windows can detect.
• Windows camera access turned on for desktop apps (Settings > Privacy & security > Camera, with access for desktop apps allowed).
• The Discord desktop app, fully restarted after Broadcast was installed, so it picks up the new virtual device.

Step 1: Set up the camera inside NVIDIA Broadcast

• 1. Open NVIDIA Broadcast and go to the Camera section.
• 2. In the source dropdown, choose your physical webcam. Do not choose the NVIDIA Broadcast camera here, because that would loop the app back into itself.
• 3. Turn on the effect you want, such as background blur, background removal, background replacement or auto frame. The available effects depend on your app version and graphics card.
• 4. Check the preview inside Broadcast.
• Success check: the Broadcast preview shows your live image with the effect applied. If the preview is black or shows an error, fix that here first. Discord cannot display anything that Broadcast is not producing.

Step 2: Select the Broadcast camera in Discord

• 1. In Discord, open User Settings using the gear icon near your username.
• 2. Under App Settings, open Voice & Video.
• 3. In the Video Settings area, open the Camera dropdown and choose "Camera (NVIDIA Broadcast)".
• 4. Click Test Video to open a local preview.
• Success check: the Discord preview shows the same processed image you saw in Broadcast, with the effect visible. If you change the effect in Broadcast while the preview is open, the Discord preview should update too.

Avoid stacking two sets of effects

Discord has its own video background options. If you also enable a Discord background on top of a Broadcast effect, both apply. That can produce odd edges or a background that is blurred twice. Choose one tool for virtual backgrounds and leave the other turned off. These virtual call effects are separate from a physical backdrop behind you and from editing a background into a still photo. A plain, evenly lit physical background usually makes either app's segmentation work more cleanly.

What the Discord test does and does not confirm

A working Test Video preview confirms three things: Discord can access the virtual camera, Broadcast is delivering frames, and the effect is applied. It does not confirm how your video will look to other people. Your upload speed, Discord's compression and the other person's connection all affect call quality, and the local preview shows none of that. To check, join a call or a voice channel with a friend, turn on your camera, and ask what they see. Pay particular attention to the edges around your hair and hands, and to any stutter when you move.

If it doesn't work

Symptom | Likely cause | What to try

"Camera (NVIDIA Broadcast)" missing from Discord's list | Discord was open when Broadcast was installed, or Broadcast isn't running | Start Broadcast, then fully quit Discord from the system tray and reopen it

Black preview in Discord, but Broadcast preview works | Discord is still using a different device, or Windows camera permission is blocked for desktop apps | Reselect the Broadcast camera in Voice & Video and check Windows camera privacy settings

Black preview in both apps | Another app is holding the physical webcam, or the wrong source is selected in Broadcast | Close other camera apps and reselect your real webcam as Broadcast's source

Effect missing in Discord | The effect is off in Broadcast, or the physical webcam is selected in Discord | Turn the effect on in Broadcast and confirm Discord uses the Broadcast camera

Choppy video or slow games while the effect is on | The effect is adding load to the graphics card | Try a lighter effect or turn off effects you don't need

About the physical webcam: once Broadcast is using it, other apps should use the Broadcast virtual camera too, rather than trying to open the webcam directly. Many webcams can only be used by one application at a time.

Discord in a web browser

If you use Discord in a browser instead of the desktop app, the browser asks for camera permission, and you choose the camera in the browser's prompt or site settings, as well as in Discord's Voice & Video settings. Whether the Broadcast virtual camera appears there depends on the browser detecting it as a Windows camera device. The steps above have not been verified for browser use, so the desktop app is the more predictable route.

Gaps in this guide

No verified measurements were available for this guide. That includes how much graphics card load each effect adds, minimum upload speeds for good Discord video, and exact quality differences between effects. Menu names can also change between versions of Discord and NVIDIA Broadcast. If a label doesn't match, look for the equivalent camera or video setting. Microphone setup through NVIDIA Broadcast's noise removal is a separate process and isn't covered here.