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The short version
Retracts into its own case, which is the only reason a green screen survives a shared room.
See at Amazon — Elgato Green Screen (opens in a new tab)A collapsible screen and stand for a fraction of the price, if you can store it somewhere.
See at Amazon — Emart Collapsible Green Screen (opens in a new tab)Not a screen, but the thing most people are actually missing when their key looks bad.
See at Amazon — Elgato Key Light Mini (opens in a new tab)A green screen is the easy part. Lighting it evenly and getting far enough away from it are the parts that decide whether the key looks clean.
What makes a key clean
Even lighting on the screen. The software is removing one colour. If half the screen is brighter than the other half, that is two colours, and the edges of the removal will be ragged. A panel of its own pointed at the screen is how you avoid it.
A flat surface. Creases produce shadows and highlights, which again means more than one green.
Distance between you and it. Green light bounces. Sitting close means green on your shoulders and in your hair, and removing green then removes part of you.
Enough light for the camera. The webcam amplifies noise in a dim room, and a noisy image turns one flat green into many shades the keyer has to guess at.
Retractable or fabric
Retractable screens, of which the Elgato Green Screen (at Amazon, opens in a new tab) is our pick, cost several times what fabric costs, and they solve the problem that actually stops people using a green screen: setup time and storage in a room that has to go back to being a room.
Fabric on a stand, such as the Emart Collapsible Green Screen (at Amazon, opens in a new tab), is far cheaper and far larger, and needs somewhere to live and a few minutes each time.
How we chose
No screens were keyed against or photographed for this guide. It rests on published dimensions, surface construction and mounting, and on the optics of chroma keying.
The picks
(opens Amazon in a new tab) - Band
- $$ Mid tier
Elgato Green Screen
Retracts into its own case, which is the only reason a green screen survives a shared room.
- Pulls up and retracts in seconds
- Rigid frame keeps the surface genuinely flat
- Wrinkle-free surface makes keying much easier
- Costs many times a fabric sheet
- Height is fixed and fairly low
(opens Amazon in a new tab) - Band
- $ Budget tier
Emart Collapsible Green Screen
A collapsible screen and stand for a fraction of the price, if you can store it somewhere.
- Much larger surface for far less money
- Includes a stand and a carry bag
- Reversible with a second colour
- Creases need steaming or careful storage
- Takes real time to set up and take down
(opens Amazon in a new tab) - Band
- $$ Mid tier
Elgato Key Light Mini
Not a screen, but the thing most people are actually missing when their key looks bad.
- Even screen lighting fixes most keying problems
- Battery power means it can go behind you easily
- Small enough to position out of frame
- Does nothing about creases in the fabric
- Small output for a large screen
Questions people ask
Why does my key look bad even with a green screen?
Three causes, in order of frequency. Uneven lighting on the screen, which gives the software several different greens to remove instead of one. Creases, which create shadows and highlights that behave the same way. And sitting too close to the screen, which bounces green light onto your shoulders and hair, so removing the green also eats into you. Fix the lighting and the distance before blaming the software or the fabric.
How far should I sit from the screen?
As far as the room allows, and at least an arm span if you can manage it. Distance does two things: it stops green light bouncing off the screen onto your skin and hair, and it lets you light yourself and the screen separately rather than with the same source. Sitting close to a green screen is the most common reason someone ends up with a green fringe around their hair that no software setting removes cleanly.
Do I need a green screen at all?
Only if you actually want to remove your background. Software background removal without a screen has improved considerably and is perfectly acceptable for meetings, though it still struggles with hair, glasses and anything you hold up. A real screen produces a much cleaner result. But a tidy, well-lit real background frequently looks better than a mediocre key, and it involves no equipment at all.
Elgato Green Screen
Retracts into its own case, which is the only reason a green screen survives a shared room.