8 Best Microphones for Streaming for 2022

Elgato has been one of the most recognized brands in streaming for years. Recently, the company decided to also venture into microphones. Its Elgato Wave 3 immediately earned a reputation as one of the best streaming mics on the market.

This condenser microphone comes with a built-in stand and eggshell-like finish that looks amazing. Including the stand, it’s 8 inches tall and 3.5 inches wide. It’s a relatively small device that shouldn’t take up too much space in your work area.

The stand comes with a heavy and rubberized bottom that helps prevent knock-overs and surface sliding. The mic can swivel on the stand, providing you with the ultimate desktop experience.

The front of this streamer microphone has a multifunctional knob that lets you control its mic gain, headphone volume, and low-latency audio mixing. To assist users, tiny LEDs indicate the option in current use. Additional indicator lights reflect the volume of each function.    

The back of the device reveals a USB-C input and a 3.5mm monitoring jack for headphones.

The feature everyone agrees on as being super handy is the mute button located on the top of the device. It’s more sensitive than your standard knob, but not enough to be activated by accident. 

Elgato developed the Wave 3 in close collaboration with Lewitt, a renowned Austrian microphone company. So, while Elgato isn’t exactly known for audio devices, there’s no reason not to expect top-notch sound.

This microphone uses the reliable cardioid polar pattern, meaning that it primarily captures sound from one angle. That’s precisely what you want from your mic for streaming, as you don’t want any other sounds picked up, other than your own voice.

The mic offers frequency in the range of 70Hz to 20kHz and has a maximum sample rate of 96kHz/24-bit.

Elgato Wave 3 ditches the typical DSP (digital signal processing) and uses a tech called Clipguard. It’s an analog-digital hybrid that chooses the cleaner among the two analog mic signals. For example, if you end up screaming into the microphone, the sound will be perceived softer by your viewers.

What sets this mic apart from other mics on the market is its Elgato stream deck compatibility.

Elgato Stream Deck has become an indispensable tool for all streamers, and it works great with the company’s streaming microphone. It’s something between a tablet and a controller.

When you sync these two devices, you’re able to control all of the mic’s functions from the deck. These include everything from changing pickup sensitivity to activating a low-frequency filter. Moving these commands to your streaming deck can save valuable seconds when you’re live.

At $159.99, it’s neither cheap nor the most expensive mic on the market. This price is entirely in line with the quality you get.

It’s possible to get better audio with a more expensive device. However, if Elgato Wave 3 fits your budget and you want the streaming deck compatibility, you can’t go wrong with it.

If looking for a condenser mic with USB capabilities, which will look great when you go live, you can’t go wrong with HyperX QuadCast S. What makes this device unique are the LED lights beneath the grille and the overall awesome design. Not only that, high-quality audio is not compromised.

The device comes bolted onto a shock mount. This helps prevent noise and vibrations from affecting your stream. However, since you can’t detach it from the stand, its portability is limited. If you continuously broadcast from the same spot, this shouldn’t be a problem.

It’s 8 inches tall and 2.2 inches wide, and it’s lighter than some other popular options.

Located at the bottom of the base is a matte dial that lets you adjust the gain. There’s also a mute button on top. When muted, the LEDs smartly turn off. That way, you always know whether you’re streaming hot or not.

HyperX QuadCast S is one of the best USB mic options on the market. For your monitoring purposes, it conveniently houses both a USB-C input and a 3.5mm headphone jack. The cable provided is fitted with USB-A, allowing connectivity to your Windows, Mac, or PlayStation device.

The device’s backside has a dial enabling you to select your preferred polar patterns: cardioid, bidirectional, omnidirectional, and stereo. You really don’t need all of these for streaming purposes, but it’s nice to know you have more options.

For example, having more patterns permits you to have a guest or for field recording uses.

This microphone has a frequency response of 20Hz to 20kHz and records audio at 48kHz/16-bit with three 14mm condensers. The sound you get when going live is excellent, and there’s plenty of data for your post-production recording needs. 

When considering the best mic for streaming, the first thing that comes to mind is a device designed for gamers. And that’s precisely the case with the HyperX QuadCast S. Unlike the previous version, which only had red LED lighting, this one employs a dynamic RGB color scheme.

The device is compatible with Ngenuity, meaning that you can customize its color dynamics and adjust headphone volume levels.

Also, QuadCast is compatible with some of the most popular software used by the streaming community, such as Streamlabs OBS, OBS Studio, and XSplit.

As potentially the best USB microphone for streaming, its $159.99 price tag is reasonable. 

If lighting is your thing, the LEDs beneath the grille are reason enough to check out this microphone. And with high-quality audio and a sturdy stand, it’s an ideal option for all streamers.

The original Blue Yeti is possibly the best USB microphone on the market. The new X version is aesthetically updated from the original and includes some new features that streamers will find cool.

This microphone comes in two color schemes - black and silver. Overall, it’s a very agreeable device to use. It’s 11.4 inches tall and 4.2 inches wide. You can use it on its stand or opt for a custom one. The provided base can swivel and be angled upward for a desktop configuration.

Blue Yeti X comes in a standard design topped with a metallic grille. Its multipurpose button sits at its base, and its LEDs are arranged in a circular pattern indicating which option is engaged. A knob, located mid-shaft, controls the audio channel you hear in your headphones, as well as the mute function. 

The LED lighting comes in handy with this streaming microphone, as they indicate when live or recording.  

On its backside, there’s a mic pattern button that switches between the four polar sectors. Some user reviews find it to be too sensitive, and we agree. However, it’s generally not advisable to touch the microphone when streaming or recording. As such, an accidental touch of this button is highly unlikely. 

The back also includes a micro USB connection and a 3.5mm audio jack.

Another thing to mention is that there’s a Blue Yeti X World of Warcraft edition for those streaming through the Shadowlands. This includes some game modifications and the voice modulator setting, allowing you to mimic some of the game’s characters’ voices.

Blue Yeti was already in contention as being the best USB microphone on the market. Fortunately, the X version has the same convenient recording patterns - cardioid, figure-8, omnidirectional, and stereo. And for even greater clarity, it boasts a four capsule condenser array.

When it comes to sound recording, it goes up to 48kHz/24-bit, with a frequency range of 20Hz to 20kHz. 

There’s no DSP, meaning you rely on its LEDs when trying to achieve clean audio without peaking out. Once you get a good sense of how each works, it’s not tricky to achieve high quality audio when using each pattern.

A pop filter is not specifically necessary when going live with the Blue Yeti X. With that said, there are no limitations to your setup, and clean audio can be expected with or without.   

This streamer microphone also comes with the BlueVoice recording platform. The program includes presets and vocal effects for Twitch, which you’ll find quite handy. BlueVoice is the company’s way to stay true to its no-DPS approach and still provide more options for users.

Blue Yeti X will cost you $209,99, which isn’t too much considering we’re talking about one of the most popular microphones on the market.

Not everyone is ready to spend a lot of money on their audio device for streaming. This is especially true when you’re just getting introduced to streaming life. For such individuals, JLab Talk is a perfect alternative to some of the more expensive options.

One of the best things about this mic is that it doesn’t look cheap. In fact, it comes in a stream-ready design that looks amazingly well on camera.

The device measures 9.5 inches in height and 6.6 inches in width. You can easily angle it to meet your needs and then lock it into place.

Considered one of the best mics for streaming, JLab Talk sports a desirable design.

You can expect to receive a versatile tripod base with this mic. With a simple screw-in function, this mic and tripod combination is a great fit.  With silicon coated legs, you can count on this base not slipping.  

JLab Talk is pretty much all plastic, but it doesn’t come across that way, especially when you’re in the audience. It also has a retro look to it that resembles old-school broadcast microphones.

It includes a prominent mute button and an additional one for selecting your desired polar pattern. There’s also a LED indicator panel for both volume and gain level.

At the bottom, you’ll find a 3.5mm jack, a USB-C port, and a button for adjusting the color of the separate LED ring around the base.

Considering the price, JLab Talk competes quite well with other best microphones for streaming when it comes to polar patterns. The best part is that the popular cardioid pattern works reasonably well. 

We found that the cardioid pattern is a bit more sensitive to external noise than what we’re used to. But that shouldn’t be a big problem as long as you’re alone in the room when streaming.

In addition to cardioid, the mic also has stereo, omni, and figure-eight/bi-directional patterns. Please note, there is an unpleasant noise when switching between patterns. But you’ll most likely never do this when live. 

Also, because this device is highly sensitive, it may require a pop filter and adjustments to help prevent distortion.

None of these issues are deal-breakers, and overall the audio quality fits what most people are listening for in a streaming mic.

The device records audio at 24-bit/96kHz and has a frequency range of 20Hz to 20kHz.

It’s available for only $99, which is half of what many other microphones cost. For that amount, you get a great-looking device and performance that’s just below par with many of the more expensive models. 

All in all, JLab Talk is the best budget microphone for launching careers on Twitch.

It’s easy to understand why there was so much hype around the Shure MV7 device. Its predecessor, the Shure SM7B, is known for being used by the music industry for studio recordings. At-home content creators were quite excited when the hybrid XLR-USB Shure mic was announced.

When you look at this dynamic mic, it’s easy to spot its resemblance with the Shure SM7B. While the overall shape is similar, the iconic oblong grille from the SM7B is no longer present. Instead, you can see the actual capsule with a removable filter.

In terms of dimensions, it all depends on what kind of stand you decide to use since the mic doesn’t come with one. On its own, the mic is 6.5 inches tall and 3.6 inches wide.

The fact that the microphone doesn’t come with a stand is quite disappointing, considering most devices, even cheaper ones do.

With that said, as possibly the best streaming microphone, getting a stand is worth the additional cost. 

Cleverly, it includes a swivel mount that fits most available stands. Shure also sells its own tripods, boom arms, and mic stands that the MV7 fits perfectly with.

Rather than having a typical knob, this mic comes with a slider located on the top panel. You can adjust levels with this slider. An adjacent button lets you toggle between mic gain, monitor, and headphone levels.

As you can imagine, MV7 also has a separate mute button conveniently located next to the slider.

While most microphones are without a lock feature, this one comes with this desired capability. If you simultaneously hold the mute and toggle buttons for two seconds, you’ll lock the control panel and not have to worry about touching something accidentally while streaming. You can unlock the panel using the same combination.

On the back, you can see why professionals often use the MV7. In addition to having a USB connection and a 3.5mm jack, there’s also an XLR connection for studio cables. Keep in mind that you only get two cables terminating in USB-A and USB-C. For the use of the more professional connections, you will need to purchase cables separately. 

Shure MV7 uses only one pattern - cardioid, which is exactly what you need for streaming, so the absence of other patterns shouldn’t worry you.

The fact that you can bring this mic to a pro studio and record music tells you enough about how good the audio is. There are noticeable sound quality differences between XLR and USB cables, but either should suit your streaming needs. 

As such, this mic is easily in contention as the best dynamic microphone for streaming.

Its capsule has a frequency range of 50Hz to 16kHz while sampling at 44.1kHz or48kHz/16-bit or 24-bit.

To make the most of the mic and to adjust settings, you need the ShurePlus MOTIV app. You can also choose to rely on Shure’s auto mode to do all the heavy lifting for you.

As you can expect, this device isn’t cheap at $249. Additionally, you’ll need to spend more on a stand.

Shure MV7 is often viewed as the best professional microphone, especially when looking for studio use. So, if you’re ready to pay a bit more, you can’t go wrong with this mic.

If you’re into gaming, chances are you’ve already used some of Razer’s gear. Well, the company also has its own USB microphone directed at gamers.

This small microphone is 8.8 inches tall and 2.4 inches wide, perfect for most desktop setups. Its size is inclusive of the swivel stand that comes with the microphone. 

Razer’s ecosystem is known for its gaming aesthetics. And although the company only dipped its toes into microphones recently, it has managed to make the Seiren Elite look amazing.

It features the company’s logo smartly backlit with LED lighting. With that said, you unfortunately won’t find RGB patterns, as some might expect from a Razer device.

Sitting between its grille and base is an appealing ring of LEDs. This lighting feature indicates when the analog/digital limiter is activated and automatically reduces gain to achieve a balanced broadcast. As such, this is an excellent mic for streaming.

On the front, there is a mute button and two separate knobs for volume and gain. The mute button has a LED signal light, ensuring you are aware of your mute status.

The bottom of the device includes a micro USB and a 3.5mm jack. There’s also a high-pass filter button you can toggle on and off.

This cardioid-pattern dynamic microphone records at 44.1kHz or 48kHz/16 bits. It has a frequency range of 50Hz to 20kHz.

Compared to other microphones, to achieve optimal settings, expect to play with its options a bit more. Unlike many other brands, the Seiren Elite can impressively take up to 75% gain to create the optimal spoken sound. But this largely depends on your setup.

The microphone adds a notch of low-end response to the human voice, which helps create excellent sound quality. As such, it’s often considered the best microphone for voice over on YouTube, and you can expect similar quality when streaming.  

Earlier, we mentioned the high-pass filter button. This unique feature makes the Seiren Elite special. When enabled, it suppresses background noises coming from your PC or keyboard and prevents them from entering the broadcast.

The microphone is available for $199.99, making it one of the more expensive options on the market. The steep price is though justifiable due to its high-quality sound and the relatively unique high-pass filter function.

You know you’re getting quality when you buy a Razer device, and that’s absolutely the case with the Seiren Elite.

Epos is best known for its gaming headsets, and the release of the B20 marks its debut in the USB microphone sector. The device comes in a simple yet distinctive design. And once you effectively manage its features, it's a conversational must when discussing condenser microphones.

The first thing you notice when looking at the EPOS B20 is that its positioning is different. While most devices come with a typical stand, this mic is attached to the chassis’s side. This allows it to move in a circular motion providing greater directional ability.  

Initially, it seems that the device is attached to the stand, but fortunately, it can be dismounted and used with a boom arm if preferred. The mic’s cylinder is 9.4 inches tall and 4.4 inches wide. 

Another distinctive feature is that the function buttons on this USB condenser mic lie on both sides of the base. While differently placed, the buttons are pretty standard in that they control volume, gain, and mute.

There is a prominent mute indicator light to help limit potential broadcasting mistakes.

Underneath the metal grille, you will find three condenser capsules that work with four different pickup patterns. Besides the cardioid pattern, you can also choose bidirectional, omnidirectional, and stereo.

B20 samples at 48kHz/24 bits, along with a frequency response of between 50Hz and 20kHz.

If you download its companion app, you can access tons of features not available with every USB condenser mic, including sidetone, noise cancellation, high-pass filter, and more.

Online reviews show a tendency for dissatisfaction by users of the high-pass filter, and our tests confirmed this. Even with the function activated, you still hear unwanted sounds. 

Unfortunately, if not set as your default output device, you have limited access to all the B20’s features. And this is despite having three port options for monitoring cables. So unless you are using the 3.5mm jack, don’t expect to access these features. Not ideal!

Achieving optimal audio with this mic isn’t straightforward. Even if you follow the recommended settings, chances are you still won’t achieve optimal sound. You will be left having to tweak everything until the audio settings are satisfactory. 

With that said, if you figure out how to unlock all of its power, the B20 definitely could meet and exceed your audio expectations. It’s all about how much testing you’re ready to do with this mic.

At $199, this mic is on the expensive end, which may be a problem for many streamers. 

Overall, this is a suitable model for competent streamers who appreciate infinite opportunities to adjust their mic’s settings.

Blue has found the recipe for success when it comes to USB microphones. Adding to their quality mic lineup and often considered the best recording microphone for under 200 bucks is their cheaper and more portable version, the Blue Yeti Nano.

When mounted to the stand, Yeti Nano is 8.3 inches tall and 3.8 inches wide and easily fits into most desktop setups. The device’s design positions the microphone at an ideal distance from the speaker.

Since it puts the power of the original Blue Yeti into smaller dimensions, the Nano is an indispensable portable microphone for streamers who are on the go.

And despite its size, the mic has a more professional appearance than the original. Most controls must be adjusted through its app due to its clean design with fewer buttons and knobs.  

It only has a headphone volume knob that lights up green when the mic is active and red when muted.

The backside houses a micro USB port and a 3.5mm jack.

For the color-conscious, Blue Yeti Nano comes in muted gold, black, blue, and red variants.

This mini microphone for PC has two recording capsules, one for cardioid, and the other for the omnidirectional pattern. Although you’ll probably only use the former when streaming, switching between these two options only takes a click of a button.

It records 48kHz/24-bit audio, with a frequency response of 20Hz to 20kHz.

Using the Blue Sherpa app, you can control all the physically missing functions. The program is intuitive, and if you don’t need anything special, the default settings are just fine.

Given how good the Yeti line of microphones is, it’s easy to see why anyone with a modest budget will consider the Nano. For just $99.99, you get a professional-looking mic that delivers terrific audio.

Despite lacking some options like physical functions, there’s just enough to keep your stream running with quality sound. Given how portable the device is, it’s a perfect choice if you need an external microphone for laptop streaming.