Add a Spin Wheel Overlay to OBS

ChoiceSpin's stream overlay is a wheel made for Browser Sources: see-through background, scene-ready sizes, and every setting carried in a single URL. This page walks through the OBS side, from that URL to a live spin.

Open the overlay builder

What the stream overlay is

The overlay builder creates a lightweight wheel designed to sit inside streaming software. You type your choices on that page and it produces one Browser Source URL that carries the whole wheel with it: names, colors, shape, and spin settings.

Any app with a browser-style source can load that URL. OBS Studio calls it Browser, Streamlabs Desktop calls it Browser Source, and other tools usually label it web or webpage. The overlay's background is transparent by default, so the wheel floats over gameplay or your camera instead of covering the scene with a white page.

If you would rather capture a full browser window, or you stream from an app without a browser source, the streamer guide compares those capture routes and covers giveaway pacing in more depth.

Build the wheel and copy its URL

Start on the stream overlay page and enter one choice per line. The overlay holds 2 to 100 entries of up to 80 characters each, which covers most on-screen draws and challenge lists.

Then pick a scene shape (square, landscape, or portrait), a background, and one of three color palettes. Spin duration runs from 1 to 15 seconds, and Advanced settings holds an optional on-screen title. The preview beside the form shows the exact wheel your audience will get.

Press Copy Browser Source URL when it looks right. One caution before you share a scene collection or a settings screenshot: anyone holding that URL can read your entry list, so leave private viewer details out of it.

Exact OBS Studio steps

1. Select the scene that should show the wheel, then click the plus button at the bottom of the Sources panel.

2. Pick Browser, name it something like Giveaway wheel, and confirm.

3. Paste the copied URL into the URL field, then match Width and Height to the shape you chose: 800 x 800 for square, 1280 x 720 for landscape, or 720 x 1280 for portrait. Click OK.

4. Drag a corner handle to fit the wheel into your layout, keeping the full circle and its pointer on screen.

5. To spin, right-click the new source and choose Interact. OBS does not pass clicks through the program canvas, so the Interact window is where you click the wheel during a draw.

Streamlabs Desktop follows the same pattern: add a Browser Source from the plus menu, paste the URL, match the size, and spin through its Interact option.

Running a giveaway or raffle on stream

Lock your entrant list in chat first, paste the final names into the builder, and draw where viewers can watch the pointer land. Handing out several prizes? Turn on Remove each winner in the builder so every pick drops off the wheel before the next spin.

Two OBS source options can quietly undo a draw in progress: Shutdown source when not visible, and Refresh browser when scene becomes active. Each one reloads the source, and a reload rebuilds the wheel from its URL, which puts removed winners back. Keep both unchecked until the last prize is drawn.

Bigger raffle than 100 names? Open the giveaway winner picker in a normal browser window and capture that window instead. It accepts up to 2,000 lines, records winners in a browser-local Results history, and its auto remove winner setting takes each pick off the list until two lines remain. Every enabled line starts with the same chance there; pasting a name twice or using Advanced weights changes the totals, which is how bonus tickets work.

An honest limit: chat commands are not connected yet. Entries come from the list you paste, not from join messages, so close entries before you build the final wheel.

Troubleshooting the Browser Source

Clicking the wheel does nothing. Normal OBS behavior, not a bug. Right-click the source and open Interact, then click Spin inside that window.

No finish sound. The sound toggle starts off in the builder. Rebuild with Play a finish sound enabled, paste the fresh URL, and test one spin in a private scene to confirm the audio reaches your mix.

Your changes are not appearing. The wheel's settings travel in the URL, so edit on the builder page, copy again, and replace the URL in the source properties. If an old version lingers, use the source's Refresh cache of current page button.

The wheel reset mid-draw. The source reloaded and rebuilt itself from the URL. Check the two options above and avoid manual refreshes until the draw ends.

The circle is cut off. Set the source's Width and Height back to the builder's numbers for your shape, then resize by dragging in the scene so nothing gets cropped.

OBS wheel questions

What size should the Browser Source be?

Match the shape you picked in the builder: 800 x 800 for square, 1280 x 720 for landscape, 720 x 1280 for portrait. After that, scale the source in your scene instead of typing new dimensions.

Is the wheel background transparent in OBS?

Yes. Transparent is the overlay's default, so there is nothing to key out. Dark and light backgrounds are also available in the builder if you want a solid panel behind the wheel.

Can viewers enter the wheel from chat?

Not yet. Commands like join and spin are planned but need a secure platform connection first, and ChoiceSpin does not place account tokens in a URL anyone can read. For now, paste the entrant list yourself.

Do I need an account to use the overlay?

No. Building the wheel and loading its URL in OBS or Streamlabs are free, with no sign-up.

Why did my wheel jump back to the original names?

The Browser Source reloaded. A reload rebuilds the wheel from the entries stored in its URL, which clears removed winners. Keep the source's shutdown and refresh-on-active options off during a multi-winner draw.

Build your Browser Source wheel

Open the overlay builder, add your entries, and copy the one URL your scene needs.

Open the overlay builder