CountLink
The short answer
If the countdown only ever lives on your stream and you want the most control over how it looks (fonts, message placement, shadows, illustrated themes), TimerBox is the more complete styling tool, and ten of its themes are free. If anyone besides your OBS scene needs to see the same countdown (a mod, a co-streamer, an audience on their phones), or you want to pause or add time from your phone mid-stream, CountLink does that for free and TimerBox does not document it.
Side by side
| CountLink | TimerBox | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, permanently. No paid tier exists. | Free; 10 free themes; paid themes €7.99 each or €19.99 for all (one licence key, no account) |
| Account required | No | No |
| Transparent OBS Browser Source | Yes | Yes (transparent=true) |
| Visual themes | 6 looks (split-flap, Outline, Neon, Glass, Minimal, Light), all free | 15 shown, 10 free and 5 paid |
| Fonts, message position, shadow controls | Digit colour and label only | Yes: digit font, message font, size, colour, position, shadow |
| Presets (Starting soon, BRB, Intermission, Ending) | Yes, one click, free | Not listed; the message is typed in the builder |
| Count up | Yes, keeps going past 24 hours | Yes (countup=true), no limit |
| Start when you go live in OBS | Yes (start=stream), or restart each time the scene is shown (start=scene) | Yes (start=stream or start=visible) |
| Keep counting past zero | Yes (o=1), and on every screen with the link | Yes (overtime=true) |
| Resume after an OBS reload instead of restarting | No: a go=1 overlay restarts from the full time | Yes (resume=true, same machine) |
| Same countdown on other screens via one link | Yes, every screen lands on zero together | Not documented; resume=true works on the same machine only |
| Pause / add a minute live from a phone | Yes, free (tick phone control before starting) | Not documented |
| Usage reporting from the overlay | None: /embed/ loads no analytics | A usage report, switched off with nobeacon=1 |
| Agenda of named segments | Free | Not offered |
| MCP server for AI assistants | Yes: countlink.app/mcp, including themed overlays | Not offered |
TimerBox figures verified against their own pricing page on 27 October 2026. Prices and limits change, so check theirs before deciding.
What TimerBox does better
Styling depth. TimerBox exposes far more of the look as URL settings: the digit font, the message font, its size, colour and position on screen, a shadow strength, a palette and a background. CountLink offers six fixed looks, a digit colour and a label. If the timer has to match a carefully designed stream package, TimerBox gets closer.
More themes, and illustrated ones. Ten free themes and five paid ones, several of them illustrated scenes rather than digits on a background. CountLink's looks are typographic only.
Surviving a reload. With resume on, a TimerBox countdown picks up where it was after OBS reloads the source. A CountLink go=1 overlay starts again from the full time, which is right for a Starting soon screen and wrong if a scene reload happens halfway through a break.
Sound options in the stream audio, with a choice of bell, chime or gong.
What CountLink does better
Other people can watch the same countdown. A CountLink link carries one fixed end instant, so a mod, a co-streamer, or a whole audience on their phones sees the identical time remaining, landing on zero together. TimerBox's documentation describes no shared link of this kind; its resume option keeps a countdown going on the same machine.
Phone control. Pause, add or remove a minute, stop, or flash a message to every screen from your phone while you are live, free.
Nothing is sold. Every look is free, with no licence key to paste into each browser you stream from.
No reporting from the overlay. CountLink's /embed/ build loads no analytics or third-party scripts at all, so there is nothing to switch off.
Beyond streaming. Agendas, interval timers, join codes, website embeds, calendar export and an MCP server, so an assistant can hand you a themed overlay URL directly. The full list.
Which one should you use?
Pick TimerBox if the countdown lives only on your stream and you want fine control over fonts and layout, an illustrated theme, or an overlay that resumes after a reload rather than restarting.
Pick CountLink if mods, co-streamers or viewers need to see the same countdown on their own screens, you want to pause or extend it from your phone mid-stream, or you want every look free with no licence key.
Common questions
Is CountLink or TimerBox better for an OBS starting soon screen?
Both work and both are free with no account. TimerBox has more styling controls and can resume after a reload. Both can wait until you go live. CountLink has one-click Starting soon, Be right back, Intermission and Stream ending presets, six free looks, and is the one to use if anyone else needs to watch the same countdown or you want to pause it from your phone.
Can my mods see the same countdown as my overlay?
On CountLink, yes: share the regular link and their screens count down to the same instant as yours. TimerBox's documentation does not describe a shared, synced link; its resume option keeps a countdown going across reloads on the same machine.
Are CountLink's overlay themes free?
Yes, all six (split-flap, Outline, Neon, Glass, Minimal and Light) and any digit colour, with no licence key. TimerBox keeps ten themes free and sells five others at €7.99 each or €19.99 together.
Can CountLink start the countdown when I go live in OBS?
Yes. Choose "When I go live" in the overlay builder, or add &start=stream to the overlay URL, and it holds at the full time until OBS starts streaming. &start=scene restarts it each time the scene is shown. TimerBox offers the same with start=stream or start=visible.