We've been spending a lot more time at home over the past few years. In-person meetings and gatherings have often been replaced by virtual get-togethers, and it's become more important than ever to have a good webcam. However, the PC market hasn't necessarily followed. Be it the result of shrinking bezels or the simple belief that users don't care about webcam quality, even some of the best laptops have bad cameras. Sometimes they're horribly placed, and sometimes they're just not there at all. If you're in need of a camera upgrade, we've rounded up some of the best webcams you can buy today.

As usual, we're going to cover a few different categories to help you find something that fits your needs and your budget. Whether you're looking to get a super cheap webcam or a very high-end one, we've got options for you.

Our top webcam picks in 2023

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Dell Pro Webcam
Best overall

Top-notch image and video quality

The Dell Pro Webcam is an excellent 2K resolution webcam. It offers great smart features like AI auto framing and noise reduction, and the image quality is outstanding thanks to the Sony Starvis Sensor. It can also be easily mounted on most laptop screens and desktop monitors.

Pros
  • Supports high-quality video capturing at 2K resolution
  • Easy to mount and very affordable
  • Sony Starvis sensor captures clear photos even in near-infrared light conditions
Cons
  • Doesn't support Windows Hello
  • Plastic body lacks premium feel
  • Poor microphone quality

Webcam quality has really improved in recent years, and these days, it's easy to pick up a highly capable webcam without spending more than $500. Take, for example, the he Dell Pro Webcam, which is easily the best external front camera for your PC.

The Dell Pro Webcam features a 2K Sony Starvis sensor that's capable of capturing vibrant photos and videos in normal and near-infrared light conditions. While an f/1.8 aperture could've suited this webcam, the lens' f/2.0 aperture isn't that far behind in terms of image quality. In our review, we found the image quality to be impressively crisp and clean, though the photos start to get a little grainy if you attempt to zoom past the 2x range. The video recording is on par with most premium webcams, and you also get 3D and 2D video noise reduction facility to eliminate motion blur.

Setting up the webcam is extremely easy, thanks to a mounting clip that effortlessly latches onto most laptops and monitors. In addition to its auto white balance correction and automatic face and light detection facilities, the webcam supports AI-based auto framing to switch the lens' field-of-view to capture all the participants during video calls.

Unfortunately, the camera has a few glaring issues, namely its lack of support for Windows Hello authentication and the poor-quality microphone. Its plastic body isn't very impressive either, but its relatively affordable price justifies Dell cutting some corners in its design and built-in microphone. All-in-all, it's hard to beat this affordable camera as it not only packs tons of features but can also capture high-quality images and videos.

Anker PowerConf C200 2K Webcam
Anker PowerConf C200 2K Webcam
Best value

For budget-conscious users

If you need better video quality for your meetings but don't want to spend a fortune on a new camera, this Anker 2K webcam is a great upgrade. It has a higher-resolution sensor, decent noise filtering capability, and even includes a privacy shutter.

Pros
  • Supports 2K resolution
  • Adjustable field-of-view
  • Built-in privacy shutter
Cons
  • Incompatible with Windows Hello
  • Lack of swivel or rotational adjustment
  • 30FPS cap on all resolutions

With tons of options available on the market, it's easy to spend over $300 on a high-end webcam. But if all you want is a decent camera that gets the job done, then you shouldn't look further than the Anker PowerConf C200 2K webcam.

Beginning with the resolution, you can go as high as 2K, though the frame rate is capped at 30FPS on all resolutions. The 5MP CMOS sensor on the camera has an f/2.0 aperture that's good enough for capturing videos in low-light conditions. The sensor also features an autofocus facility to dynamically alter the focus and maintain a clear image if you change your position in the middle of a video conference.

The webcam provides 65, 78, and 95-degree field of view settings, allowing you to control the extent of the surroundings that you want to show during video calls, and you can further protect your privacy by making use of the built-in privacy shutter. Additionally, the webcam includes noise filtering for both the microphone and the camera.

Speaking of audio, you get dual microphones, though the sound quality is on par with what you'd expect from a webcam in this price range. Unfortunately, it lacks support for Windows Hello, so you'll have to look elsewhere if you want better security on your Windows PC. That being said, the Anker PowerConf C200 2K is one of the best webcams on the market for budget-conscious professionals.

Logitech C920s Pro
Logitech C920S Pro HD Webcam
Best laptop webcam

The perfect alternative to your laptop's front camera

The Logitech C920S is a fantastic webcam for its price. Offering 1080p video support, autofocus, and light correction, it's better than the front cameras on all but the most premium laptops. It also packs a privacy shutter and is relatively easy to mount, too.

Pros
  • Premium glass lens can capture high-quality videos
  • Better audio recording thanks to dual omnidirectional mics
  • Built-in privacy shutter
Cons
  • Resolution is capped at 1080p
  • Fixed FOV

It's true that laptop manufacturers ship their devices with built-in front cameras, but most tend to skimp out on the quality of the webcam. So, the average user is usually stuck with the subpar image and video quality of 720p front cameras. This makes external webcams a decent investment, especially if your job requires you to attend virtual meetings. The Logitech C920S Pro HD is our favorite laptop webcam that strikes the perfect balance between affordability and image quality.

Hardware-wise, the camera is armed with a glass lens that significantly improves the quality of your videos. It leverages Logitech's automatic HD light correction facility to dynamically adjust your lighting, and supports autofocus, ensuring you always look as clear as possible in your video calls. The webcam also comes with a built-in privacy shutter that safeguards the glass lens and also protects your privacy. Its dual omnidirectional microphones provide a high-fidelity audio recording facility.

Logitech's C920S Pro comes with a universal mounting clip, making it easy to mount the webcam atop your laptop's display, and you can even fix it on a tripod. Sadly, the camera supports a maximum of 30FPS when recording 1080p videos, so you'll have to turn the resolution down a notch to 720p if you want to capture smooth videos at 60FPS. The fixed 78-degree field-of-view is a bummer but not much of a deal-breaker considering the webcam's affordable price.

Finally, the webcam is compatible with the Logi Tune app, where you can set the color adjustments and change the zoom, resolution, and other camera settings to finetune the image and video quality to your liking.

Overall, the C920S Pro is an easy recommendation for laptop users as it's a great camera from a reputable brand.

Obsbot Tiny 2 webcam
Obsbot Tiny 2
Premium pick

Unrivalled image and video quality

The Obsbot Tiny 2 is a high-end webcam with a 4K sensor and motion tracking with a wide degree of movement, as well as gesture and voice controls. It also supports HDR, and you can further customize the camera via the ObsBot WebCam software.

Pros
  • High-quality 4K images
  • 2-axis gimbal and AI-powered motion tracking
  • Supports gestures and voice commands
Cons
  • Very expensive
  • Lacks IR sensor for Windows Hello

If you want top-tier image and video quality on your new webcam, the Obsbot Tiny 2 is hands-down the best option. Packing a 1/1.5-inch sensor with f/1.9 aperture, the webcam is capable of capturing high-quality images in normal and low-light conditions, and its wide-angle lens has a large 85.5-degree field of view. What really set the Obsbot Tiny 2 apart from the rest are its AI-powered autofocus and tracking facilities. In our review of Obsbot's latest webcam, we found it easily outperforms the Insta360 Link when it comes to tracking movements. Besides supporting PixGain HDR, its built-in 2-axis gimbal can tilt, pan, and even alter the zoom setting when you enable auto-tracking for video calls. Moreover, it offers head, upper body, and lower body tracking modes, and you can even configure custom zones on its official app.

The Obsbot Tiny 2 looks the part of a premium camera thanks to its metal body. It also has one of the most convenient privacy features out of any other camera on this list. Instead of just turning the camera away, you can set a pre-recorded video or image in the Obsbot WebCam App. The camera will automatically play the message if you tilt it downwards during a video conference.

Speaking of, the Obsbot WebCam App provides a number of settings for you to fine-tune the webcam. From basic exposure, brightness, and HDR settings to filters, background blur, tracking, and beauty modes, the official application provides unmatched customizability for the Obsbot Tiny 2. As if that's not enough, it supports gesture and voice control, so you don't have to constantly switch to the app every time you wish to change the tracking or zoom settings.

With its excellent tracking, voice control, and support for 4K resolution, the Obsbot Tiny 2 crushes its competitors, though the steep price of $329 makes it hard to recommend this premium webcam to casual users.

Razer Kiyo Pro Ultra
Razer Kiyo Pro Ultra
Best for low-light streaming

Incredible low-light performance

If you want to capture videos in a relatively low-light setup and you want to look your best, it's hard to beat the Razer Kiyo Pro Ultra. The large 1/1.2-inch sensor supports uncompressed 4K video at 24FPS, and it captures a lot of light, making it ideal for more dimly lit setups.

Pros
  • Low-light image quality is fantastic thanks to the large sensor
  • Supports uncompressed 4K video
  • Auto face tracking and focus
  • Built-in privacy shutter
Cons
  • Very pricy
  • No Windows Hello or other fancy features

If what you're after is the ultimate image quality for streaming, look no further than the Razer Kiyo Pro Ultra. It's packing one of the largest camera sensors we've seen on a webcam — a big 1/1.2-inch Sony sensor — and it has a wide f/1.7 aperture. That large sensor means the camera captures much more light to look clear and crisp even in dim lighting conditions. That's also helped by HDR support, which helps compensate for uneven lighting scenarios to ensure you're always visible.

The wide aperture also helps achieve a natural bokeh effect, so your background is softly blurred without any software tricks. What's more, the Razer Kiyo Pro Ultra supports a completely uncompressed 4K, 24FPS video stream for the best image quality possible. For streamers using soft or dim indoor lighting, the image quality of this webcam is hard to match.

The camera also has useful features like face-tracking autofocus, which ensures your face always looks clear on camera. While the camera can't move physically to follow you around, it detects your face and ensures you stay in focus when possible. It also has some welcome privacy features, like a privacy shutter you can activate by rotating the bezel of the camera and a proper camera cover for transport.

Like most Razer peripherals, the camera also supports Razer Synapse, meaning you get all kinds of camera controls built into the software. You can change things like exposure, focus, and zoom settings, among many other things. At $300, it's a bit on the expensive side. But if you want the best quality for streaming, this is the webcam for you.

Dell UltraSharp 4K Webcam
Dell UltraSharp 4K Webcam
Best for Mac

Great image quality with macOS software

The Dell UltraSharp 4K Webcam is one of the best webcams around, and despite being made by Dell, it supports most of its features on macOS. With a large 4K sensor, it has great low-light performance and the overall quality is fantastic. It also supports features like AI auto framing and more.

Pros
  • 4K video and great image quality
  • Sony STARVIS sensor and HDR support for low-light scenarios
  • Magnetic privacy lens cover
  • Full software support on macOS
Cons
  • A little large to mount on a laptop
  • Requires USB-C adapter
  • No microphone

Most webcams on this list will work on macOS to some extent, and many have dedicated software for macOS. But if you want another alternative, the Dell UltraSharp is another fantastic option for Mac users, particularly desktop Macs like the Mac Mini or Mac Studio.

That's because this is a relatively large camera, so mounting it on a MacBook won't always be ideal, but in return for that size, you get fantastic image quality. The Dell UltraSharp 4K webcam, as the branding suggests, features a 4K sensor, specifically a Sony STARVIS sensor that's optimized for low-light scenarios, which means you should be clearly visible even in less favorable conditions. What's more, it supports HDR to help make up for uneven lighting, and autofocus should ensure you always look crisp and clear.

Unfortunately, Mac users can't take advantage of Window Hello support, one of the best features of the Dell UltraSharp, but it's there in case you ever switch to Windows. However, Dell does support macOS quite well, thanks to the Dell Display and peripheral Manager app. This lets you change all kinds of settings, including changing the field of view of the camera so you can crop out your surroundings or fit more in the frame, enable or disable AI framing, and adjust general image settings like brightness, contrast, and saturation. All of this should help you look the way you want to on your calls, and it's great that Dell goes out of its way to support macOS despite being a major player in the Windows space.

A potential downside of this webcam is that it doesn't have a built-in microphone, but if you're serious about your meeting quality, you're likely wearing a headset anyway, so this may not be a huge deal. Aside from that, the Dell UltraSharp remains one of the very best webcams on the market, and macOS support is always good to see.

HP 965 4K Streaming webcam
HP 965 Streaming Webcam
Best webcam for Teams and Zoom

Top-notch quality with Teams certification

For the best quality in video calls and meetings, the HP 965 Streaming Webcam is a fantastic choice. It's certified for Teams, Zoom, Google Meet, and many other platforms, delivering great quality with its 4K sensor and dual microphones.

Pros
  • 4K sensor with HDR supports and color correction
  • HP Presence AI features enhance webcam quality
  • Tilt and swivel adjustments to get the right position
  • Certified for multiple video calling services
Cons
  • No Windows Hello
  • Somewhat expensive

Many of us need a webcam for meetings and video calls, especially with remote work becoming as widespread as it has. If you want something that will work great across all kinds of meeting platforms, the HP 965 Streaming Webcam is for you.

On the hardware side, the HP 965 comes with a 4K Sony Starvis sensor, which should help ensure great call quality in challenging lighting conditions. HDR support further helps with this by helping compensate for uneven lighting, too. The camera also features color correction, so your skin looks more natural in different lighting conditions. And with HP Presence, you can further enhance your look thanks to features such as background removal. The camera also has two built-in microphones to help you conduct meetings without a headset.

To get the best possible angle, the webcam also supports 90 degrees of tilt and 360 degrees of swivel adjustment, so you can get the right angle for any position you might be in relative to the camera. The camera also includes a magnetic privacy cover to avoid accidentally showing yourself when you didn't mean to.

While the HP 965 Streaming Webcam misses out on Windows Hello support, it's ideal for workers because HP has achieved certification for Microsoft Teams, Zoom, Google Meet, Cisco Webex, BlueJeans, GoToMeeting, as well as streaming software like OBS and Xsplit. This means you should look and sound your best no matter what platform you need to be on.

You will be paying $200, so it's very close to the Dell UltraSharp while lacking Windows Hello support, but that software certification may be worth it if remote meetings are a major part of your life.

Logitech 4K Pro Webcam
Logitech 4K Pro Webcam
Best Logitech webcam

A fantastic camera from a trusted brand

The Logitech 4K Pro Webcam, also known as the Brio 4K, is still one of the very best webcams you can buy, even though it's been around for a while. With sharp 4K video and HDR support, it offers fantastic quality, and it even has Windows Hello support built in.

Pros
  • 4K video and HDR support
  • Infrared camera for Windows Hello facial recognition
  • Up to 90fps video support (only at 720p)
  • Privacy shutter
Cons
  • It's a few years old at this point
  • Not many movement options once mounted

Logitech is one of the most renowned brands of peripherals in the world, and the Logitech 4K Pro Webcam, which is essentially a rebranded version of the Brio 4K, is still an excellent webcam for just about anyone. The original Brio 4K is many years old at this point, but it was the cream of the crop back then, and it still holds up tremendously well.

First off, of course, it comes with support for 4K video at 30 frames per second, so you get fantastic video quality for meetings and calls. If you're streaming, you can also opt for 1080p video at 60FPS, or even 720p video at 90FPS. The camera also supports HDR and boasts Logitech's RightLight 3 technology to ensure you're clearly visible even in less favorable lighting. The glass lens and autofocus support also help deliver great quality. The webcam also includes two microphones for high-quality sound capture.

One of the highlights of the Logitech 4K Pro Webcam is that it's more than a standard camera, it also has an infrared sensor, which means it can be used to sign in to your PC using Windows Hello. Indeed, the webcam features advanced facial recognition support, so you can get up and running more quickly as soon as you sit at your PC. On the topic of security and privacy, the webcam also includes a privacy cover you can easily flip down over the lens when you don't want to be seen.

With the Logi Tune software, you can change all kinds of settings for the Logitech 4K Pro Webcam, including the field of view of the camera (ranging from 65 to 90 degrees) and various image settings to get the right look for any situation. With an MSRP of $200, the Logitech 4K Pro webcam remains one of the best webcams on the market, and it earns an easy recommendation for its quality and versatility.

Best webcams in 2023: The bottom line

With these options, you should be ready to choose something that suits your needs. When choosing a webcam, you'll want to consider your budget, how often you use it, and what you use it for. Of course, the best webcams are a bit more expensive, but they're going to give you a great experience in return. The Dell Pro Webcam is an absolute favorite among the ones we've tested. The Sony Starvis sensor provides fantastic image quality in all but the absolute worst lighting conditions. The additional features like AI-powered noise filtering and automatic white balance correction make the camera an extremely versatile choice. At $120, it's not very expensive either, so it's hard not to recommend this webcam to most users.

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Dell Pro Webcam
Best overall

Top-notch image and video quality

The Dell Pro Webcam is an excellent 2K resolution webcam. It offers great smart features like AI auto framing and noise reduction, and the image quality is outstanding thanks to the Sony Starvis Sensor. It can also be easily mounted on most laptop screens and desktop monitors.

For users who want a solid alternative to their laptop's front camera, the Logitech C920S Pro HD is a great option that supports 1080p resolution and has a great image quality. It's also far more affordable than the other webcams on this list. But if you want the webcam with the best performance-per-dollar ratio, you can go for the Anker PowerConf C200 2K. Sure, it can't record at 60FPS, but you won't find a more capable camera from a reputable brand in the $60 price range.

If you want a webcam for video-conferencing during your travels, you may want to get a laptop that stays connected wherever you go. We have a roundup of the best 5G laptops you can get right now, so you don't have to rely on Wi-Fi all the time.