The three biggest settings for 1440p recording in OBS on a Windows PC are Output Mode set to Advanced, both resolutions set to 2560x1440, and a hardware encoder using Constant QP in the 16-23 range (lower values mean higher quality and larger files). OBS documentation has no 1440p-specific local recording bitrate, so aim for a quality value rather than a fixed number of kbps. If you have an RTX card, the RTX NVENC settings guide covers the encoder options in more depth, while this article stays on 1440p resolution, encoder choice, and quality values.
The short answer
There is no separate recording bitrate defined for 1440p. OBS's Advanced Recording Settings Guide gives quality baselines of 16-23 per encoder without splitting them by resolution, so starting in that range and adjusting with a test recording is the closest thing to an official answer. As of September 30, 2026, the latest stable OBS Studio release is 32.2.2 (released August 14, 2026) and 33.0 is in beta. Menu names below follow 32.x and can differ slightly in other versions. If you see an encoding overloaded warning while recording, start with the encoder overloaded fix.
Setting up 1440p recording in OBS 32.x
- 1Match the resolution in the Video tab — Open Settings > Video and set both Base (Canvas) Resolution and Output (Scaled) Resolution to 2560x1440. When the two match, no scaling takes place, which helps quality. Set FPS to what the game actually delivers, and drop from 60 to 30 if 60 is too much. A Downscale Filter only applies when the output is smaller than the canvas.
- 2Switch Output Mode to Advanced — In Settings > Output, change Output Mode from Simple to Advanced. The Simple view only offers presets under Recording Quality, such as High Quality, Medium File Size or Indistinguishable Quality, Large File Size. To choose the detailed values yourself, you need the Recording tab in the Advanced view.
- 3Pick a format and encoder in the Recording tab — In the Recording tab, leave Type on Standard and choose Matroska Video (.mkv) as the Recording Format. For Video Encoder, pick a hardware entry such as NVENC on GeForce, AMD on Radeon, or QSV on integrated graphics, and avoid (Use stream encoder). Choosing an encoder different from your stream is what lets you set recording quality separately.
- 4Enter the quality value in Encoder Settings — On NVENC, set Rate Control to Constant QP and start with a value between 16 and 23. The official baseline also lists Keyframe interval 2, Preset P5: Slow (Good Quality), Tuning High Quality, Multipass Mode Two Passes (Quarter Resolution), Profile High, Look-ahead off, Adaptive Quantization on, and B-Frames 2. For x264, use CRF 16-23, Keyframe Interval 2, and the veryfast CPU Usage Preset.
- 5Adjust with a one to two minute test recording — Record for a minute or two with the game running, then check file size, image quality, and dropped frames. If files are too large, move the value toward 23; if quality falls short, move it toward 16. If an encoding overloaded warning appears, the documentation says to lower Output Resolution first and then FPS. Lowering the Base (Canvas) Resolution is generally not recommended.
- 6Change the rate control only if you need a fixed bitrate — To cap file size, switch Rate Control to Variable Bitrate, or use Variable Bitrate with Target Quality (added in OBS 31.0) and set a maximum bitrate. If you plan to upload to YouTube, its recommendation for 1440p SDR is 16 Mbps for 24, 25, or 30 fps and 24 Mbps for 48, 50, or 60 fps, and 20 and 30 Mbps for HDR. These are upload recommendations, not recording recommendations.
1440p options at a glance
| Option (OBS label) | What it does | When to use it and source |
|---|---|---|
| Base (Canvas) Resolution / Output (Scaled) Resolution | Set both to 2560x1440 (16:9). | Use when the game runs at 1440p. Fewer scaling operations are better for quality per the Aspect Ratio Guide (2021-11-27). The 2560x1440 figure comes from YouTube Help. |
| Output Mode: Advanced | Lets the Recording tab use its own encoder and quality values, separate from streaming. | Use when you want to tune recording quality on its own. Based on the Standard Recording Output Guide (2023-05-26). |
| Video Encoder | Chooses a hardware encoder (NVENC, AMD, QSV) or the x264 software encoder. | Hardware encoders move the load from the CPU to dedicated GPU circuitry and are generally recommended (Hardware Encoding, 2022-01-11). |
| Rate Control: Constant QP | Encodes to a quality target instead of a bitrate. | NVENC Constant QP 16-23, x264 CRF 16-23, AMD CQ Level 16-23, QSV ICQ Quality 16-23. Lower means higher quality and larger files (Advanced Recording Settings Guide, 2023-11-30). |
| Keyframe interval, Preset, Tuning | The NVENC baseline is Keyframe interval 2, Preset P5: Slow (Good Quality), Tuning High Quality. | The same guide also lists Multipass Mode Two Passes (Quarter Resolution), Profile High, Look-ahead off, Adaptive Quantization on, and B-Frames 2. |
| Recording Format | Use MKV by default and convert to mp4 when needed. | MKV keeps the whole file intact after an abnormal shutdown (Audio/Video Formats Guide, 2023-03-26). Hybrid MP4 arrived in OBS 30.2 (OBS Studio 30.2 release notes). |
| Bitrate (CBR/VBR) | Sets kbps by hand. | Use only when you need a file-size ceiling. There is no official 1440p recording kbps; YouTube's SDR upload figures of 16 Mbps (24, 25, 30 fps) and 24 Mbps (48, 50, 60 fps) are a reference only. |
Final check before recording
- Base (Canvas) Resolution and Output (Scaled) Resolution are both 2560x1440.
- Output Mode is Advanced and a hardware Video Encoder is selected in the Recording tab.
- Rate Control is Constant QP with a value inside the 16-23 range.
- Keyframe interval is set to 2.
- Recording Format is MKV, and File > Remux Recordings converts to mp4 when needed.
- A one to two minute test recording confirmed file size and no dropped frames.
When tuning OBS feels like too much
If you are wondering whether you really need 60 frames, see the 60fps game recording guide. To cut the amount of setup itself, DOR is another option. It automatically detects supported games and records the full match as an mp4, and on an NVIDIA graphics card it uses NVENC hardware encoding by default. It also records game audio and your microphone at the same time. That said, if you must pick a specific resolution and quality value such as 1440p, the OBS method above is the right fit, and this article does not cover DOR's resolution options. Why setup can feel heavy is discussed in why OBS feels too complicated.
Verification date and official sources
Verified as of September 30, 2026. The 16-23 quality baselines and per-encoder items come from the OBS Advanced Recording Settings Guide (revised November 30, 2023), the 1440p upload bitrates from YouTube's recommended upload encoding settings, and NVENC codec support from NVIDIA's video encode and decode GPU support matrix. I also consulted the OBS pages Standard Recording Output Guide, Recording Encoder Presets Guide, Hardware Encoding, Encoding Performance Troubleshooting, Aspect Ratio Guide, Audio/Video Formats Guide, and the OBS Studio 30.2 release notes. Some OBS pages carry revision dates from 2021 to 2023, so trust what your own screen shows if it differs.
