Enabling HD video for Zoom Webinars
Zoom Webinars can send and receive HD video, allowing you to broadcast your event to attendees in high resolution.
When enabled for Zoom Webinars, 720p video quality is used for the active speaker video in a webinar, and only Zoom Events or Zoom Sessions accounts have the option for 1080p video in their webinars.
H.323/SIP devices can send and receive video up to 1080p. However, for 1080p or higher, it must be enabled by Zoom Support, as well enabled on the provisioned device, or have the device join using a specific dialing string.
Zoom Meetings can also use HD video in group meetings, with 1080p video being available to Business and Enterprise accounts.
Notes:
- Access to 720 and 1080 HD video settings are available for new paid accounts and are rolling out to existing paid accounts that may have lost access to HD during the Covid-19 pandemic..
- Screen sharing is not affected by HD video settings. Screen sharing will display content at the native resolution of the desktop, application, or portion of the screen being shared.
- When using the virtual background feature without a green screen, your video will be capped at 720p, potentially at 360p, for some lower-end Windows computers. Currently, only some macOS devices with specific hardware can send outgoing video at 1080p.
Requirements for HD video in webinars
Standard HD (720p)
- Pro, Business, Education, or Enterprise account
- Zoom Webinar, Zoom Events license, or Zoom Sessions license
- Full-screen meeting window on Zoom desktop app
- Zoom desktop app for Windows, macOS, or Linux: Global minimum version or higher
- Zoom mobile app for Android or iOS: Global minimum version or higher
Full HD (1080p)
- Pro (with Zoom Events or Zoom Sessions license), Business, Education, or Enterprise account
- Zoom Events or Zoom Sessions license
- Zoom desktop app for Windows or macOS: Global minimum version or higher
- i7 Quad-core (physical core) CPU or higher
How to enable or disable the Webinar HD video setting
Note: HD video uses a higher amount of CPU and bandwidth (~2Mbps up/down). If you are experiencing network or CPU performance issues, you may want to disable HD video.
Account
To enable or disable HD video for webinars for all users in the account:
- Sign in to the Zoom web portal as an admin with the privilege to edit account settings.
- In the navigation menu, click Account Management then Account Settings.
- Click the Webinar tab.
- Under In Webinar, click the HD Video Quality toggle to enable or disable it.
- If a verification dialog appears, click Enable or Disable to verify the change.
- If applicable for your account, select the HD video quality you want to use:
- Standard HD (720p)
- Full HD (1080p)
- Click Save if a change was made.
- (Optional) To prevent all users in the account from changing this setting, click the lock icon, and then click Lock to confirm the setting.
Group
To enable or disable HD video for webinars for a group of users:
- Sign in to the Zoom web portal as an admin with the privilege to edit groups.
- In the navigation menu, click User Management then Groups.
- Click the applicable group name from the list.
- Click the Webinar tab.
- Under In Webinar, click the HD Video Quality toggle to enable or disable it.
- If a verification dialog appears, click Enable or Disable to verify the change.
Note: If the option is grayed out, it has been locked at the account level and needs to be changed at that level. - If applicable for your account, select the HD video quality you want to use:
- Standard HD (720p)
- Full HD (1080p)
- Click Save if a change was made.
- (Optional) To prevent all users in the group from changing this setting, click the lock icon Lock to confirm the setting.
User
To enable or disable HD video for webinars for your own use:
- Sign in to the Zoom web portal.
- In the navigation menu, click Settings.
- Click the Webinar tab.
- Under In Webinar, click the HD Video Quality toggle to enable or disable it.
- If a verification dialog appears, click Enable or Disable to verify the change.
Note: If the option is grayed out, it has been locked at either the group or account level. You need to contact your Zoom admin. - If applicable for your account, select the HD video quality you want to use:
- Standard HD (720p)
- Full HD (1080p)
- Click Save if a change was made.
Once enabled in the Zoom web portal, users must also meet these additional requirements:
Bandwidth requirements for HD video in webinars
Standard HD (720p)
- 1-on-1 video calls: 1.2Mbps (up/down)
- Group video calls: 2.6Mbps / 1.8Mbps (up/down)
Full HD (1080p)
- 1:1 video calls:
- Receiving 1080p HD video requires a minimum of 3.0Mbps.
- Sending 1080p video requires a minimum of 3.8Mbps.
- Group video calls:
- Receiving 1080p HD video requires a minimum of 3.0Mbps.
- Sending 1080p video requires a minimum of 3.8Mbps.
How to send and receive HD video with the Zoom client
The following guidelines can help you achieve HD when in a webinar. This is not an exhaustive list, as there are other potential limitations, such as hardware limitations.
Send HD
- Put the meeting window in full-screen mode.
- Use speaker view.
- HD enabled in Settings in the Zoom desktop client or mobile app.
- Meet our bandwidth requirements.
- At least one attendee must be in full-screen mode.
Receive HD
- Put the meeting window in full-screen mode.
- Use speaker view.
- Meet our bandwidth requirements.
- At least one attendee must be meeting our requirements for sending HD, as mentioned above.
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