Best Webcam for Mac in 2023 (User Tested Reviews)

This guide to the best webcams for Mac covers everything from enhancing your gaming streams to optimising your home office.

I’ve tested webcams across a range of budgets to assess their video and audio performance and the additional features included.

If you’re looking for a new Mac webcam to use with the most popular video services, there’s something here to suit your requirements.

Let’s take a look at my recommendations.

What is the Best Webcam for Mac & PC in 2023?

1. Lumina | Overall Best Webcam for Macbook

The Lumina 4K webcam is perhaps the sleekest-designed webcam on the market, compact enough to fit in your pocket without compromising on quality.

Available in silver, gold, rose, and atomic gray colours, it’s an aesthetically appealing companion to MacBooks and other Apple products with its compatible design qualities.

The Lumina webcam delivers the same excellent image quality Mac users have come to expect, with stunning 4K video whether you’re using it for video calls or video game streaming.

The available app also allows for additional fine-tuning of the image to improve exposure, white balance, tones, and other image attributes to your liking.

This comprehensive selection of advanced features allows you to push the Lumina 4K webcam’s full HD video to reach its full potential and deliver optimal performance.

If you’re looking for the best Mac webcam for video chat or professional streaming, the Lumina 4K offers outstanding HD video in a pocket-sized package.

It’s also a great webcam for YouTube, with a price tag that’s accessible for most content creators.

• Full review of Lumina AI webcam

2. Insta360 Link | Best Face Tracking Webcam for Mac Mini

Mac Mini users looking for a dedicated webcam that exceeds what Apple’s Continuity Camera is capable of should seriously consider investing in the Insta360 Link.

Sometimes referred to as the Rolls-Royce of webcams, it’s another impressive, pocket-sized webcam that delivers HD resolution and a raft of unique features.

Perhaps the biggest selling point of the Insta360 Link is the impressive auto tracking through the compact 3-axis gimbal design that utilizes AI for a higher degree of accuracy.

Combined with a range of modes, including Deskview, Portrait, Whiteboard, and Overhead, it makes the Insta360 Link a hugely popular choice for professional video call use – see more in our Insta360 Link review.

When going head-to-head with Apple’s Continuity Camera system, the Insta360 Link comes out on top across the board with more fluid and responsive tracking.

This makes the Insta360 Link the best webcam for Mac Mini users who require uncompromising performance and don’t mind paying a high price to get it.

• Best photo editing software for Mac

3. Logitech BRIO | Best Webcam for Business

Professionals who need a solid and reliable webcam for business use, such as recording video conferencing in 4K, will find plenty to love with the Logitech Brio.

Featuring a sharp and clear camera lens for a high-quality video covering a 65° – 90° field of view, it’s a versatile and popular webcam for conference calls and work use.

Like the best Logitech webcams, this image quality is carried across to the built-in mic, which improves video call performance with noise cancelling and a privacy shutter.

Mac owners who are using macOS 10.15 or later can also take advantage of the Logi Tune app’s Show Mode feature to point the camera at their desks and share work with clients.

This creates additional opportunities for Mac users who conference with FaceTime or Zoom to deliver more versatile presentations in a professional capacity.

Users of older Mac devices will also gain a stronger advantage with its superior image quality, particularly if they’re using a Mac prior to the M1 generation.

• Best Zoom Webcams

4. Meeting Owl Pro | Best 360 Degree Webcam for Conference Rooms

The aptly-named Meeting Owl Pro webcam is the best webcam for Macbook users who are looking for comprehensive coverage of their room.

(Since it doesn’t sit on top of a computer monitor, it’s more suitable for table-based placement adjacent to, or nearby a Macbook for adjustment of settings.)

Featuring 360-degree video and audio with full HD video resolution, it comes with a raft of high-end camera settings for outstanding overall performance.

Simple to set up and use, the complete field of view afforded by the Meeting Owl Pro webcam includes fantastic autofocus and crystal-clear images.

It’s also compatible with all the main streaming platforms, including Skype, Slack, Google Meet, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams, for all business use case scenarios.

The 360-degree performance is possible thanks to the inclusion of eight built-in microphones and three speakers, and it is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 650 processor.

While the Meeting Owl Pro webcam is certainly on the expensive side, professionals who need complete coverage of their meeting rooms will find few competitive alternatives.

• Best Conference Room Webcams

5. NexiGo 930AF | Budget Webcam for Mac

Mac owners who are looking for a basic webcam to use with their Mac laptop can easily set up and clip the NexiGo 930AF onto a MacBook Mini without any issues.

Installation via the USB A cable is simple without the need for any drivers, while the clip and rotate functionality lends it impressive versatility for the price.

There is a range of customisation settings you can play with to get the best results, whether you’re using Zoom, Skype, or another of the popular streaming apps.

The image quality is sharp and precise, offering 1080p resolution at 30fps and a 65-degree field of view that produces good results in all lighting conditions.

There are also plenty of manual settings to tweak, covering everything from exposure and white balance to a rare gamma option and backlight compensation.

While professional gaming streamers might want to look elsewhere, the NexiGo 930AF offers competent performance for casual Mac users looking for a budget webcam.

• Can you use a DSLR as a webcam?

6. Logitech C920 S HD Pro Webcam | Best All-Purpose Webcam for Mac

The Logitech C920 S HD Pro is another great webcam for Mac owners who aren’t looking to break the bank but nevertheless don’t want to compromise on overall quality.

Delivering excellent quality on a budget, it comes in a sturdy body that’s lightweight and durable, capable of high-quality streaming with plug-and-play compatibility.

It’s another affordable Logitech webcam that uses the familiar claw grip, with the camera lens featuring a narrow 60-degree field of view assisted with autofocus and optimal light detection.

Overall, the video quality is bright and sharp, with good contrast and accurate colour reproduction and the option to alter these attributes in the webcam’s settings.

If you’re planning on using the Logitech C920 S HD Pro webcam with Facetime on Mac, however, it should be noted that it only supports this at 720p.

This limitation aside, the Logitech C920 S HD Pro is another solid webcam for video calls and other general-purpose use that comes in at an affordable price.

• Can you use your phone as a webcam?

7. Logitech C270 | Best Casual Webcam for Mac

The C270 is another fine Logitech webcam for Mac-compatible devices that offers a budget-friendly way to participate in video calls quickly and easily.

Designed to work with Mac OSX 10.10 or later, this affordable webcam lacks the bells and whistles of Logitech’s high-end webcams but is ideal for casual meetings and video calls.

Locked in at 720p, it nevertheless gives clear and bright images, although you may wish to amplify lighting conditions with a desk lamp in some circumstances.

While it omits pan, tilt, and zoom, there’s the option to rotate it from landscape to portrait mode, and it also comes with a noise-reduction microphone built in.

This represents a significant improvement over most laptops’ native microphones, making it a worthwhile investment considering its low price point.

If you’re looking for a no-frills basic webcam for a home office or for video calls with the family, the Logitech C270 delivers the goods at an attractively low cost.

• Best snipping tools for Mac

8. Razer Kiyo Pro | Best Gaming Webcam for Mac

Gamers dedicated to the best possible quality live streaming in full 1080p at 60fps have widely adopted the Razer Kiyo Pro for their content.

Offering exceptional dynamic performance, this excellent webcam delivers optimal image quality with a viewing angle of up to 103 degrees.

There’s also the option to switch to a high dynamic range, although you’ll have to drop the frame rate down to 30fps to achieve this result.

The Razer Kiyo Pro is larger than most webcams, so while it isn’t suitable for laptops, dedicated streamers using computers won’t have issues mounting it on their monitor.

Since Synapse for Mac doesn’t function with the webcam, Mac owners should be aware that they’ll need to adjust autofocus and other settings within their video conference app.

It’s a small gripe considering the overall stunning picture quality delivered by the Razer Kiyo Pro, tailor-made for hardcore gamers looking for a premium-level webcam.

• Best streaming webcams

9. Razer Kiyo | Best Mac Webcam for Low Light Conditions

An affordable alternative to the Razer Kiyo Pro, the Razer Kiyo is another streaming-friendly webcam that offers great picture quality with crystal clear 1080p along with 60fpds at 720p.

The built-in ring light opens up its potential for low-light conditions, amply brightening up dark environments to deliver sharp images.

It’s smaller than the Pro version, making it capable of sitting comfortably on a MacBook or similar device via the wide front tooth and rubber grip.

There’s also a thread for attaching a tripod, giving more options for users to take advantage of the Rizer Kiyo’s tilting to set the best possible angle.

Unfortunately, the high standards set by the picture quality aren’t carried over to the microphone, so you may want to invest in a standalone mic to optimise performance.

Gaming streamers or home office users looking for a webcam with a built-in ring light will be well served with the Razer Kiyo, particularly when combined with a good USB mic.

• Best video editing tools for Mac

What Makes a Good Quality Webcam for Mac?

Here are the features to look for when buying a webcam for your Mac:

1. High resolution: At least 1080p Full HD, but preferably 4K for crystal-clear video quality.
2. High frame rate: A frame rate of at least 30 fps (frames per second), but preferably 60 fps for smoother video.
3. Good low-light performance: A high-quality sensor that can perform well in low-light conditions – better than the standard webcam on your Macbook.
4. Wide field of view: A wider field of view allows you to capture more of your surroundings which may or may not be appropriate for the type of video conferencing you want to do.
5. Good microphone: A built-in microphone that can capture clear audio without picking up too much background noise like the mic on Macbooks usually do.
6. Mounting options: Consider whether the webcam has the ability to be mounted on a tripod or other mount. This can be helpful if you want to change the camera angle or position during the stream, instead of having it fixed to your Macbook or iMac monitor.
7. Audio quality: While a webcam’s primary function is to capture video, it can also capture audio. Consider the quality of the microphone in the webcam and whether it can pick up your voice clearly without distortion or background noise.
8. Autofocus: While most of the best webcams for streaming have autofocus, some may have better autofocus performance than others. Fast and accurate autofocus can help keep the stream in focus even if you move around, and tracking has the ability to keep your face in the frame or zoom using AI-powered auto framing.
9. Lighting: some of the best webcams for Mac feature built-in ring lights, which can greatly enhance how you look on camera while live streaming.

What about the Video Quality on Default Macbooks?

If you’re investing one of the best Mac webcams listed above, you need to be sure it’s going to be better than the existing webcam in your Macbook.

If you have a current M1 MacBook Air or 13-inch M2 MacBook Pro, both have old 720p webcams.

This means that any 1080 or 4k webcam will deliver much better image quality.

(The best Mac webcam above has 4k video, and so do several of the others.)

The current MacBook Pro 14-inch and Pro 16-inch have 1080p cameras, and so do the 2021 24-inch M1 iMac and the 2022 M2 MacBook Air.

The jump from 1080 to 4k on a webcam isn’t so noticeable when viewed small (on a mobile device, for example), but if you’re viewing it large on a monitor, 4k offers much sharper and clearer picture quality.

How do I check the quality of my webcam on my Mac?

You can actually check the quality of your webcam on your Mac by using the built-in “Photo Booth” app:

1. Open “Finder” on your Mac and click on “Applications”.
2. Locate and open the “Photo Booth” app.
3. Once the app is open, you should see yourself on the screen from the webcam.
4. To check the quality of your webcam, take a photo by clicking on the camera icon or record a video by clicking on the video camera icon.
5. After taking a photo or recording a video, click on the thumbnail of the image or video on the bottom right of the screen to view it in full screen.
6. Check the quality of the image or video to see if it meets your standards.

Another option is to use a website such as Webcamtests, which allows you to check your Mac webcam online.

What are the Best Settings to Use on a Webcam?

Here are some general recommendations which can be applied when setting the best Mac webcams listed above:

1. Resolution: Use the highest resolution available on your webcam for the best video quality. The best webcams for Mac offer resolutions of 1080p or 4K.
2. Frame rate: A higher frame rate (FPS) can result in smoother video, but it also requires more processing power. 30 FPS is the standard for most webcams – if your Macbook or Mac desktop computer has enough RAM, you should be fine.
3. Bitrate: A higher bitrate results in better image quality, but also larger file sizes – this may only be relevant if you intend to save the video captured by your webcam.
4. Lighting: Although not something you can control on your webcam (unless it has its own light), lighting is essential for high-quality webcam video conferencing. Make sure you have adequate lighting in your recording environment – the light given off from your Macbook or iMac monitor isn’t sufficient, and will be too ‘cold’ – see next tip.
5. White balance: Adjusting the white balance can help ensure that colors in your video look accurate and natural. The light from your Mac’s screen will be cold and blueish, so you may need to adjust your WB to a lower kelvin number.
6. Exposure: Adjusting the exposure can help prevent the video from looking too dark or too bright. All the best webcams for Mac should allow you to control this manually.
7. Focus: Make sure your webcam is properly focused on the subject to ensure sharp and clear video. Some of the best Mac webcams have AI-powered focus, which can help recognise your face and keep it in focus as you move around.
8. Audio: Consider using an external microphone for better audio quality, as built-in microphones on webcams often produce low-quality sound. Experiment with the default mic on your Macbook – it may be better than the one on your webcam.

Frequently Asked Questions about Mac Webcam Usage

Do all webcams work on Macs?

Most available webcams are connected to a computer via a USB port, so they are fully compatible with all Mac devices.

Some of the more recent webcams are connected via USB-C cables, so you can use these if you opt for a webcam with this connection.

Should you cover your Mac webcam?

While it is possible to close your MacBook, MacBook Pro, or MacBook Air with a cover over the camera, Apple recommends against doing so.

This is because the cover is liable to damage your Mac laptop’s display when closed, so you should remove the cover before doing so.

If you’re using a desktop Mac computer, using a cover may interfere with the ambient light sensor and prevent the True Tone and automatic light correction from working.

Do Microsoft webcams work on Macs?

Microsoft webcams are available that can be used on Macs since these use USB cables that can be connected to Apple devices.

If you use a Microsoft webcam and it isn’t working, it may be your system preferences need changing to alter the privacy setting.

How do I install a webcam on my Mac?

Connecting a webcam to a Mac is easy by inserting the USB cable into the USB port and heading to the computer’s System Settings.

From here, choose the Security & Privacy option, then click Camera and turn on the relevant webcam device.

How do I adjust the settings of my Mac webcam?

If you need to adjust the settings of your Mac webcam, you can do this by following the same steps outlined above in the Camera options located in the System Settings.

If the Camera option isn’t available, you may need to upgrade your device to macOS Mojave or later.