Riverside
FreemiumRecord podcasts and videos in studio quality
About Riverside
Riverside is a remote recording platform built specifically for high-quality podcast and video interview production. It records each participant locally at up to 4K video and 48kHz audio as separate tracks, then uploads them — eliminating the compression artifacts and sync issues that plague Zoom or Google Meet recordings. The producer view lets a host or producer manage guests, cue speakers, and monitor audio levels in real-time. Transcription and AI-powered clip creation turn long recordings into highlight clips for social media. The magic clips feature automatically identifies the most engaging moments. Pricing starts at a free tier (2 hours recording per month, 720p), then $19/month (Standard) and $29/month (Pro) with annual billing. The Pro plan removes watermarks from clips and enables 4K recording. Reddit podcast and video production communities consistently recommend Riverside over Zencastr or SquadCast for video-first podcasts — the local recording approach and the producer controls are the main draws. The main criticism is that the AI clip quality varies and the editing tools are basic — you will still need Descript or a traditional NLE for serious post-production.
Key Features
Pricing Plans
Free
- 2 hours recording
- 720p video
- Separate tracks
- Text-based editing
Standard
- Unlimited recording
- 4K video
- Transcription
- Live streaming
Business
- Everything in Standard
- AI show notes
- Custom branding
- Team features
Enterprise
- Everything in Business
- SSO
- Dedicated support
- Custom integrations
Pros
- Records locally for studio-quality output
- Separate audio and video tracks per participant
- Connection issues do not affect recording quality
- Built-in AI-powered editing tools
- Live streaming to multiple platforms
- Very easy for guests to join
Cons
- Free plan is limited to 2 hours
- Browser-based recording can vary by browser
- Post-production features are basic
- Storage limits on lower plans
- No advanced audio mixing tools
- Mobile recording quality is lower
Best For
- Podcast hosts recording video interviews remotely where audio and video quality are priorities
- Video podcasters who want separate local tracks per guest rather than compressed Zoom recordings
- Content teams repurposing long-form interviews into short social media clips
- Producers managing multi-guest remote recordings who need real-time monitoring and controls
Not Ideal For
- Teams doing screen-share-heavy technical demos where local recording adds no benefit over Zoom
- Solo podcasters recording monologues — the multi-guest recording value does not apply
- Productions requiring advanced editing in the same tool — Riverside's editor is basic
Potential Deal Breakers
- Requires guests to record locally — bandwidth or device issues on the guest side cause recording failures
- Built-in editing is too basic for serious post-production — plan on exporting to another tool
- AI clip quality is variable — the magic clips feature misses good moments as often as it finds them
Data & Privacy
Recording platform. Records locally and uploads to cloud. AI features process recordings for transcription and editing. No customer recordings used for training. Recordings downloadable in original quality.
Who Is This For?
Hands-on tested May 2026
Signup Experience
Email or Google signup with free tier available -- no credit card required. Browser-based studio launches immediately. Guest join via link with no account needed. Local recording starts automatically -- each participant records locally and uploads to Riverside servers after the session ends. First recording session ready in under 3 minutes.
For Home Users
Free tier includes 1 hour of recording per month with up to 4 participants -- enough to evaluate quality. The local recording approach produces noticeably better audio and video than tools that record via server. Personal podcasters or video creators will find the free tier too limiting for regular use but Standard at $15/mo is affordable for hobbyists publishing regularly.
For Business Users
Standard at $15/mo covers 5 hours of recording per month with AI transcription and magic clips. Pro at $24/mo adds unlimited recording, live streaming, and advanced editing. Enterprise is custom pricing. The local recording quality is the primary differentiator over StreamYard and Zoom -- guests record directly to their device which eliminates internet quality issues. Production teams using Riverside consistently report better raw audio and video than any server-side recording tool.
Our Verdict
Riverside solves the core remote podcast recording problem better than anything else at its price point — local recording eliminates the compression and sync issues that make Zoom recordings sound unprofessional. At $19-29/month it is the standard choice for video podcast productions with remote guests. Plan to export to Descript or Premiere for post-production, because the built-in editing tools are not where you want to finish.