What’s the difference between the Elgato HD60 Pro and 4K60 Pro?

Elgato currently has two PCIe capture cards on the market with the HD60 Pro and 4K60 Pro. So, what are the main differences between these two internal game capture cards?

You can find out in this comparison guide.

Quick Summary

When compared to the Elgato HD60 Pro, the Elgato 4K60 Pro is able to capture gameplay videos at up to 4K and 60 frames per second. You can also play games, via HDMI passthrough, at higher quality with the 4K60 Pro thanks to support of up to 4K/60fps, 1080p/240fps and 1440p/144fps.

The only advantage the Elgato HD60 Pro has is that it comes with a built-in H.264 encoder that you can use to produce H.264 master copies of captured gameplay videos.

We recommend picking up the Elgato 4K60 Pro PCIe Capture Card if you want to capture and play games at 4K, especially if you want to use it with the PlayStation 4 Pro, PlayStation 5, Xbox One X and/or Xbox Series X.

If you don’t mind capturing and playing games at 1080p, then the Elgato HD60 Pro PCIe Capture Card is the more affordable option.

HD60 Pro vs. 4K60 Pro Comparison Chart

You can check out Seeking Tech’s comparison table for these PCIe capture cards below.

What’s in the Box

In addition to the main capture card unit, both products also come with a high and low profile bracket along with a HDMI cable.

You can check out the full breakdown of what’s included in each box below:

Elgato HD60 Pro:

• HD60 Pro PCIe Capture Card
• High and low profile bracket
• HDMI cable

Elgato 4K60 Pro:

• 4K60 Pro PCIe Capture Card
• High and low profile bracket
• HDMI cable

Weight

The Elgato 4K60 Pro weighs more than twice as much as the HD60 Pro.

You can take a look at the weight specifications below:

• HD60 Pro: 120 grams
• 4K60 Pro: 270 grams

Dimensions

The Elgato 4K60 Pro is also a bit bulkier than the HD60 Pro.

You can check out the full measurements for both internal game capture cards below:

• HD60 Pro: 122 mm x 56 mm x 14 mm
• 4K60 Pro: 178 mm x 121 mm x 21 mm

Supported Capture Resolutions and Framerates

The 4K60 Pro can capture gameplay footage at up to 4K resolution and 60 frames per second in addition to higher frame rates at lower resolutions. On the other hand, the HD60 Pro can capture gameplay videos at up to 1080 resolution and 60 frames per second.

You can take a look at the supported capture resolutions and frame rates below:

Elgato HD60 Pro:

• 480p (720 x 480)
• 576i (720 x 576)
• 576p (720 x 576)
• 720p (1280 x 720) at 30 FPS
• 720p (1280 x 720) at 60 FPS
• 1080i (1920 x 1080)
• 1080p (1920 x 1080) at 30 FPS
• 1080p (1920 x 1080) at 60 FPS

Elgato 4K60 Pro:

• 480p (720 x 480)
• 576i (720 x 576)
• 576p (720 x 576)
• 720p (1280 x 720) at 30 FPS
• 720p (1280 x 720) at 60 FPS
• 1080i (1920 x 1080)
• 1080p (1920 x 1080) at 30 FPS
• 1080p (1920 x 1080) at 60 FPS
• 1080p (1920 x 1080) at 120 FPS
• 1080p (1920 x 1080) at 240 FPS
• 1440p (2560 x 1440) at 30 FPS
• 1440p (2560 x 1440) at 60 FPS
• 1440p (2560 x 1440) at 120 FPS
• 1440p (2560 x 1440) at 144 FPS
• 4K (3840 by 2160) at 30 FPS
• 4K (3840 by 2160) at 60 FPS

Supported Game Systems

The two PCIe capture cards can capture videos from videogame systems that use the HDMI output.

These consoles include the following:

• PS3
• Xbox 360
• Nintendo Wii U
• PS4
• Xbox One
• Nintendo Switch
• PS4 Pro
• Xbox One S
• Xbox One X
• PS5
• Xbox Series S
• Xbox Series X

Game Passthrough

While capturing videos, you can play games at 1080p and 60 frames per second with the HD60 Pro.

On the other hand, you can play games, while capturing gameplay footage, at up to 4K resolution and 60 frames per second with the 4K60 Pro. You can also play games at up to 240 frames per second in 1080p in addition to up to 144 frames per second in 1440p.

Built-In H.264 Encoder

The Elgato HD60 Pro is the only PCIe capture card in this comparison guide to come with a built-in encoder.

Master Copy (H.264)

The HD60 Pro is also the only one of the two that can produce H.264 master copies of captured gameplay videos.

Instant Gameview

Both capture cards support Instant Gameview, a feature that provides an instant view of your captured footage along with your audio commentary and webcam reaction.

Unlimited Capture

The two Elgato products also feature unlimited capture as you can capture gameplay footage for an uncapped amount of time as long as you have enough free space available.

Flashback Recording

Both also come with flashback recording, a feature that lets you rewind captured gameplay videos and then retroactively record from that point onwards.

Stream Command

The two products also feature stream command, which lets you customize the layout when streaming your gameplay. The options include alerts, overlays, webcam position and more.

Maximum Bitrate

The HD60 Pro has a maximum bitrate of 60 Mbps. The 4K60 Pro has a much higher max bitrate of 140 Mbps.

Interface

The Elgato HD60 Pro PCIe Capture Card uses the PCIe x1 interface while the Elgato 4K60 Pro PCIe Capture Card uses the PCIe x4 interface.

Supported PCIe Slots

You can take a look at the supported PCIe slots below:

Elgato HD60 Pro:

• PCIe x1
• PCIe x4
• PCIe x8
• PCIe x16

Elgato 4K60 Pro:

• PCIe x4
• PCIe x8
• PCIe x16

Operating System Requirements

Both capture cards require the 64-bit Windows 10 operating system.

CPU Requirements

The 4K60 Pro has higher CPU requirements than the HD60 Pro.

You can check out the prerequisites below:

• Elgato HD60 Pro: 4th Gen Intel quad-core i5 CPU (i5-4xxx or comparable)
• Elgato 4K60 Pro: AMD Ryzen 7 (or better) or 6th Gen Intel core i7 CPU (i7-6xxx or comparable)

GPU Requirements

The 4K60 Pro also has higher graphics cards requirements than the HD60 Pro.

You can take a look below:

• Elgato HD60 Pro: Intel HD or NVIDIA GeForce GTX 600 (or better)
• Elgato 4K60 Pro: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 10xx (or better)