Product image supplied by the brand
In this guide
The Stream Deck is fifteen small screens in one pad, each one firing whatever you assign to it. Elgato sells the black version for £139.99 in the UK, listed as in stock on 2026-10-18, and the package contains the pad, a desktop stand, a printed guide and a 150 cm USB-C cable. Power and data both arrive over that cable.
The hardware is the easy part to describe: 118 by 84 by 25 millimetres, 145 grams without the stand. The decision is about the software. Every key's image, label and action is configured in Elgato's free app, which requires Windows 11 or macOS 13, and the pad does nothing at all until that app is running on a connected computer.
Our verdict
Buy the £139.99 Stream Deck if eight or more actions repeat every hour in software you keep open. The hardware is simple; Elgato's app is where the value and the upkeep live.
- A good fit for
- A desk worker who repeats the same shortcuts in one or two applications all day, has the computer on whenever they work, and already runs Windows 11 or macOS 13.
- We would skip it if
- You move between several computers, your system is older than Windows 11 or macOS 13, or you need a controller that works with the computer switched off.
Reasons to consider it
- Fifteen keys with individual images, in a footprint of 118 by 84 millimetres.
- A desktop stand sets it at an angle, and the single cable carries power and data.
- Elgato's app, a free download, adds plugins and Multi Actions, so one press can chain several steps.
The compromises
- Windows 11 or macOS 13 is a firm requirement; an older machine needs an operating-system upgrade first.
- Every key's image and action lives in the app, so the pad is blank plastic when the software is not running.
- The 150 cm cable is the only connection; there is no wireless mode.
- Elgato's UK page publishes no warranty period, so the cover behind £139.99 is not stated.
What we have not verified: Elgato does not publish a warranty period on the UK page, and whether the plugin ecosystem stays free, and whether layouts survive future app versions, are also unstated.
The things in this guide
A closer look at the products, who they may suit, and what to check before buying.
Stream Deck
Fifteen keys that each show their function, a stand that angles them toward you, and one cable for power and data, all driven by Elgato's free app and its plugin library.
Before you buy: Needs Windows 11 or macOS 13, does nothing without the app, and its only connection is a 150 cm cable.
Price checked 18 October 2026. Retailer prices can change.What fifteen keys take up on a desk
The pad measures 118 by 84 millimetres, and the desktop stand lifts its back edge so the keys face up at an angle rather than lying flat. It weighs 145 grams without the stand and 270 grams with it.
That is smaller than a keyboard and deeper than a phone. On a crowded desk the stand matters: without it the pad lies flat and the key images are harder to read from a seated position.
The app is the product
A key is a small screen and a switch. What makes it useful is the action behind it: a hotkey, a chain of steps in a Multi Action, or a plugin command that talks to an application directly. Elgato's page lists plugins, Multi Actions, Smart Profiles that switch layouts per application, faceplates and screensavers.
The app is free, and the plugin library is where most of the useful behaviour comes from. Budget an evening to build the first layout; a pad left on its default profile is a row of blank buttons.
The Windows 11 floor
Elgato's requirements are Windows 11 or newer, or macOS 13 or newer, each needing a USB-C port and the free Stream Deck download. The floor is higher than a keyboard or a mouse imposes.
A working desktop on Windows 10, or a Mac held at macOS 12, has to be upgraded before the £139.99 buys anything. Check the machine before the pad.
What a shortcut already does, and where the pad differs
Every action on these keys can be triggered some other way: a keyboard shortcut, a macro recorded in the application, or a menu. The pad does not add capability. It adds a fixed, labelled surface where the same actions always sit, which removes the step of remembering which combination belongs to which app.
That is worth £139.99 to someone who switches tools constantly and keeps forgetting the shortcut. It is worth little to someone who works in one application and knows it well.
Where the pad stops paying for itself
The cases that do not work are easy to name. A laptop that moves between offices and home gets the pad only at the desk where it lives. A machine below the system floor gets nothing. A computer that is off most of the day gets a blank pad.
The pad also competes with the keyboard it sits beside. If the same money buys a better keyboard or a second screen, those improve every hour of work; the pad improves only the actions you already repeat.
Who should skip it
Skip it if your work changes applications every week, or if the £139.99 has to compete with a better keyboard or a second monitor for the same desk budget. Skip it if the operating system is older than Windows 11 or macOS 13 and you are not planning to upgrade.
Buy it if eight or more actions repeat every hour, the computer stays on, and the app can run in the background. For that desk, fifteen labelled keys replace a stack of remembered shortcuts.
How we put this together
Built from the product pages and listings below, without test scores or results we have not measured. Specifications and prices change, so check the original page for the exact model, current price, delivery, and returns.
About our shopping links
