CamRelay Download on theMac App Store
CamRelay  /  camera and microphone relay for macOS

One Mac's camera.
Live on another Mac.

CamRelay sends the camera and microphone of one Mac to another. Zoom, Teams, FaceTime and Chrome on the far Mac see an ordinary camera.

Download on theMac App Store Follow the signal
macOS 14 Sonoma or laterFree to usePro from $1.99/year
Fig. 1  Signal path, camera Mac to receiving MacIsometric  ·  not to scale
Share this Mac's cameraCAMERAStudio Display CameraMICROPHONEStudio Display MicSHARING MEETING● LIVECamRelay Camera ▾BlackHole 2ch ▾ MAC TO MAC · NO RELAY SERVER SENDING MACMac Studio + Studio Display RECEIVING MACMacBook Pro ACAMERAStudio Display camera and mic BENCODERH.264 or HEVC CAES-GCMFresh keys, every connection DUDP, DIRECTPaced. Lost pieces resent. EDECODERBack to frames FCAMRELAY CAMERAAny app can select it GMEETING APPSees an ordinary camera CAMRELAYFIG. 1SIGNAL PATHTOUCHBITS
  1. ACamera. Studio Display camera and mic, on a Mac Studio.
  2. BEncoder. H.264 or HEVC.
  3. CAES-GCM. Fresh keys for every connection.
  4. DUDP, direct. Paced. Lost pieces are resent.
  5. EDecoder. On the MacBook Pro.
  6. FCamRelay Camera. A virtual camera any app can select.
  7. GYour meeting app. It sees an ordinary camera.
A Studio Display camera on a Mac Studio becomes the webcam and mic of a MacBook Pro.
What it does

Your best camera is on the other Mac.

Say your Studio Display camera sits on a Mac Studio, and you work on a MacBook Pro over remote access. CamRelay makes that camera and microphone the webcam and mic of the MacBook Pro. Your meeting app picks CamRelay Camera like any other webcam.

Example setup

Both Macs run the same app. One shares its camera and mic. The other uses them as its own.

Source
Mac Studio with Studio DisplayShares its camera and microphone
Destination
MacBook Pro over remote accessGets CamRelay Camera, plus the mic through BlackHole
Link
Local network or the internetFound by Bonjour, or reached by host name or IP
Apps
Zoom, Microsoft Teams, FaceTime, Google Chrome, SafariAnd any app that can pick a webcam
Two roles

One app. Two jobs.

Every Mac with CamRelay can share its camera, use a remote one, or both.

Role S  /  sending Mac

Share this Mac's camera

Pick the camera and microphone this Mac offers. It stays linked and idle until the other Mac asks for a picture.

  • CameraAny camera on this Mac, such as a Studio Display
  • MicrophoneAny input on this Mac
  • New MacsShows an 8-character pairing code
Role R  /  receiving Mac

Use a remote camera

CamRelay adds a virtual camera named CamRelay Camera. Any app can select it. The remote mic plays into BlackHole, a free audio driver, so meeting apps can use it as their mic.

  • VideoCamRelay Camera, in every app's camera menu
  • AudioThe remote mic, played into BlackHole 2ch
  • Local cameraCan also use its own camera, with Picture settings applied
On demand

Linked all day. Live only when an app asks.

The Macs stay linked but idle. The far camera turns on only when an app opens CamRelay Camera. The mic turns on only when an app records. Both turn off when the app lets go.

Menu bar Idle StreamingThe icon turns green while streaming.
Signal path

Seven stages, Mac to Mac.

Frames are encoded, sealed and sent straight to the other Mac. Nothing passes through a server on the way.

07AppZoom, Teams, FaceTime, Chrome 06CamRelay CameraPicture settings on the GPU (Pro) 05DecoderOn the receiving Mac 04UDPPaced, direct, resent on loss 9f 3a c1 07 e24b d8 10 6e a5c3 77 2f 90 1de6 05 b4 58 ca21 af 6c 03 7b88 d1 f4 9e 30 03AES-GCMSealed with fresh keys 02EncoderH.264 or HEVC 01CameraStudio Display camera and mic SENDING MAC RECEIVING MAC
Fig. 2  Exploded view of the signal path

Transport

Codec
H.264 or HEVC
Control
TCP
Video, audio
UDP, paced
Loss
Lost pieces are re-requested and resent
Fallback
TCP, if UDP is blocked
Bitrate
Adapts to the network from real delay measurementsOnly queueing on the path counts as congestion
Encryption
AES-GCM on control, video and audioFresh keys for every connection
Discovery and pairing

Find it. Pair once. Done.

On the local network, Macs find each other automatically with Bonjour. To work across the internet, connect by host name or IP, such as a Tailscale address.

Connect to100.88.12.4|Example address
  1. 01Read the code.The camera Mac shows an 8-character code.
  2. 02Enter it within 2 minutes.Type it on the other Mac before it expires.
  3. 03That's it.The two Macs remember each other from now on.
  4. 04Manage pairs any time.Paired Devices shows who is connected, with Disconnect, and every paired Mac, with Forget.
Pairing codeExample
K7Q4XMP2
Valid 2:00
Paired Devices
Mac StudioConnectedDisconnect
Mac miniPairedForget
iMacPairedForget
Security and privacy

Sealed in transit. Nothing in between.

Video and audio go directly from Mac to Mac. There is no account to create and no server that sees your picture.

KeysFresh keys, every connection.

Each new connection negotiates its own keys.

CipherAES-GCM on everything.

All control messages, video and audio are encrypted.

RouteMac to Mac.

No account, no relay server, no cloud.

DataNo analytics. No tracking.

CamRelay collects nothing about how you use it.

CamRelay Pro

Picture settings, on the GPU.

Every adjustment happens on the GPU, before any app sees the frame.

MetalFX upscalingto the size the app asks for, up to 4K
Noise reductionmacOS 26 or later
Zoom and panframe the shot
Flipmirror the picture
Brightness, contrasttone
Saturation, warmthcolor
UP TO 3840 2160 ZOOM PAN FLIP OUTPUT FRAME · SIZE SET BY THE APP METALFX UPSCALING
Works with

If it can pick a webcam, it can pick CamRelay Camera.

ZoomMicrosoft TeamsFaceTimeGoogle ChromeSafariAny webcam app
Pricing

Free works fully. Pro removes the frame.

Everything works in the free version, with a "CamRelay.app" frame around the picture apps see. CamRelay Pro removes the frame and unlocks the Picture settings.

Free
$0
Everything works
  • Camera and mic relay
  • Pairing, encryption, on demand
  • "CamRelay.app" frame on the picture
  • Picture settings
Pro Yearly
$1.99/year
Auto-renews. Cancel any time in App Store account settings.
  • Everything in Free
  • No frame
  • Picture settings
Pro Lifetime
$9.99
One-time purchase
  • Everything in Free
  • No frame
  • Picture settings

Bought in the app. Prices in USD, may vary by region.

Requirements

Both MacsmacOS 14 Sonoma or later

On the camera Mac and the receiving Mac.

Receiving MacBlackHole 2ch

A free audio driver, needed for the microphone.

CamRelay  /  for macOS 14 and later

Use the camera you have, on the Mac you're using.

Free to download. Pro from $1.99 a year, or $9.99 once.

Download on theMac App Store