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Can I Use the Canon EOS R5 as a USB Webcam?

Yes, you can use your Canon EOS R5 as a webcam using a USB cable. 

Here’s a quick summary of this post:

All you need to do to use your Canon EOS R5 as a USB webcam is:

  1. Use the Canon IFC-100U to connect your Canon EOS R5 to your computer
  1. Install the Canon EOS Webcam Utility Pro
  1. Use a compatible video conferencing software like OBS, Streamlabs, Zoom etc.

The free version of Canon EOS Webcam Utility Pro gives you up to 720p (digitally upscaled) resolution.

The paid version ($4.99 / month) of Canon EOS Webcam Utility Pro gives you up to 1080p (digitally upscaled) resolution.

If you want further details then read on. I’ll give you the step by step rundown of how to do this all.

How Do I Use My Canon EOS R5 as a USB Webcam?

To use your Canon EOS R5 as a USB webcam you will need to:

  1. Have the right USB cable – Canon IFC-100U
  1. Have the Canon EOS Webcam Utility Pro software
  1. Have a compatible application to use such as Zoom, Skype or OBS Studio.

This post will teach you how to achieve high quality video by using your Canon EOS R5 as a webcam using USB. 

What USB Cable Do I Need to Use My Canon EOS R5 as a Webcam?

To use your Canon EOS R5 as a USB webcam you will need an IFC-100U interface cable.

The IFC-100U interface cable is normally included in the box when you buy the Canon EOS R5. 

If you need a spare cable then there are replacement cables on Amazon like the two examples below, either would work fine. 

The official Canon IFC-100U interface cable is a USB 3.1 Type C to Type C cable.

IFC-100U USB CABLES ON AMAZON:

Both cables above are USB-C to USB-C so you will need a USB-C port on your computer/laptop.

What Canon Software Do I Need to Use My Canon EOS R5 as a USB Webcam?

You will need to download and install the latest Canon EOS Webcam Utility Pro software.

Here’s how to do that.

  1. Go to the Canon support website for the EOS Webcam Utility software Pro.
  1. Scroll down to the section where it asks you to choose your camera model. You will want to choose the Canon EOS R5.
  1. When you click on the Canon EOS R5 you should be taken to this page which is a support page for the Canon EOS R5.
  1. Make sure you are on the ‘drivers and downloads’ tab and click on ‘software’.
  1. Choose the correct Windows or Mac operating system, it should default to the correct operating system as it normally detects this automatically.

    For example, if you are using Windows 10, then it will most likely detect ‘Windows 10’ or ‘Windows 10(x64)’
  1. Go down to the list of software and download the most recent version of ‘EOS Webcam Utility Pro’ software for your operating system.

    Don’t get this confused with ‘EOS Utility’ which is different to ‘EOS Webcam Utility Pro’.
  1. Once it is downloaded, open up the downloaded file which should look similar to this ‘EOSWebcamUtilityPro-WIN2.0.zip’.

    It might look slightly different depending on how recent your version is.
  1. It should be saved as a ‘.zip’ file. Open and extract the ‘.zip’ file. On Windows you can normally do this by right clicking and clicking ‘extract all’.
  1. Read the ‘readme.txt’ file and run the ‘setup.exe’ file within the folder.
  1. Follow the instructions that are shown until setup and installation is complete.
  1. Once installation is complete you should restart your computer.

Now I’ll show you how to set up your Canon EOS R5 to work as a USB webcam with the software you just downloaded.

How to Set up My Canon EOS R5 as a USB Webcam

  1. Turn on your Canon EOS R5 camera and set it to movie/video mode.
  1. Adjust the settings until you have your desired look.
  1. Connect the Canon IFC-100U USB cable to your Canon EOS R5. Your EOS R5 should have a USB-C port which you can plug the cable into. 

    Use the other end of the cable to connect your EOS R5 to your computer.
  1. Now open up your compatible application on your computer. This could be something like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Skype etc. (there’s a more extensive list further below.)
  1. Locate the EOS Webcam Utility feed in your video settings for your webcam app. This should connect your camera’s video feed to your live streaming or video conferencing app.
  1. You should now have a much better quality image for your online video conferences or live streams. 

What Applications Are Compatible With EOS Webcam Utility?

At the time of writing (updated April 2023) this article, the following applications are compatible with EOS Webcam Utility Pro on Windows and Mac

  • Cisco Webex
  • Discord
  • Facebook Live
  • Hangouts
  • Hangouts Meet
  • Messenger (Facebook)
  • Microsoft Teams 
  • Open Broadcaster Software (OBS)
  • Skype
  • Slack
  • Streamlabs
  • YouTube Live
  • Zoom

Mac:

At the time of writing (updated April 2023) Canon EOS Webcam Utility Pro currently supports the following Mac OS:

  • macOS 10
  • macOS 11
  • macOS 12

Windows:

At the time of writing (updated April 2023) the Canon EOS Wecam Utility Pro currently supports the following Windows OS:

  • Windows 10
  • Windows 11

Further resources

I’ve found that the videos below by Canon are pretty helpful in showing you the process visually even though they are for the slightly older version of the Utility.

For Windows:

For Mac:

Related Reading: