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How to Connect to Verkada Camera in C# .NET

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Brand Overview

Verkada is an American cloud-managed security camera company headquartered in San Mateo, California. Founded in 2016, Verkada offers enterprise-grade cameras managed through the Verkada Command platform. Alongside the cloud management, a camera can serve RTSP streams directly on the local network once RTSP is enabled for it — the remote CR-series cameras are the exception.

Key facts:

  • Product lines: CD (dome), CB (bullet), CF (fisheye), CM (mini dome), CH and CY (multisensor), CP (PTZ), CR (remote); the -E suffix marks an outdoor variant
  • Architecture: Cloud-managed, with local RTSP streaming
  • RTSP support: Yes — enabled per camera in Command
  • ONVIF support: No
  • RTSP port: 8554
  • Stream paths: /standard and /high
  • Local network access: RTSP only, over RFC 1918 private addresses
  • Video codecs: H.264, H.265 — chosen per camera in Command
  • API access: Verkada API (cloud-based; an Organization Admin issues the keys in Command)

Enabling RTSP

RTSP is off until a Site Admin enables it for a given camera: All Products → Cameras → select the camera → Settings → Device → Real Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP). Set a username and password, then click Enable. The password is shown once, so store it. Command then shows the camera's RTSP URL with a [PASSWORD] placeholder in it: the placeholder is yours to replace with the password you just set, because the password cannot be read back out of Command. Command can also export a CSV of every RTSP-enabled camera in the organization, with its URL.

No separate RTSP licence is required — the normal one-camera-per-licence rule applies.

RTSP URL Format

rtsp://[USERNAME]:[PASSWORD]@[CAMERA-IP]:8554/[STREAM]
Stream Path Notes
Standard /standard Lower bitrate
High /high Full quality

Resolution and bitrate follow the camera's native streams and cannot be changed for RTSP.

Multisensor cameras (CH and CY series) put the camera id before the stream segment, rtsp://[USERNAME]:[PASSWORD]@[CAMERA-IP]:8554/[CAMERA-ID]/high, where the id is the one Command shows for that sensor.

Connecting with VisioForge SDK

Put the address and the stream path in the URI, and pass the credentials from Command as login and password:

// Verkada camera with RTSP enabled, high-quality stream
var rtspSettings = await RTSPSourceSettings.CreateAsync(
    uri: new Uri("rtsp://192.168.1.100:8554/high"),
    login: "rtsp-user",
    password: "YourRtspPassword",
    audioEnabled: true);

A URI with the password embedded (rtsp://rtsp-user:YourRtspPassword@192.168.1.100:8554/high) plays as well, because rtspsrc authenticates from the URL's own credentials. Passing them separately is still preferable: the URL Command shows you carries a [PASSWORD] placeholder to fill in, and once filled it travels through logs, configuration files and screenshots, where the password does not belong.

Limits

  • Local network only. The stream comes straight from the camera over private addresses and is not relayed through Verkada Cloud, so a client on another network needs a VPN into that network.
  • Unencrypted. Verkada does not offer RTSPS. Their own guidance is to keep the camera network private and to restrict which clients can reach it.
  • The codec belongs to the camera. The camera's own Settings → Device → Video Codec choice decides whether the RTSP stream is H.264 or H.265, and H.265 is not turned on for RTSP automatically. There is no H.264 fallback: a client that cannot decode H.265 sees nothing until the camera itself is set to H.264.
  • Audio is off until it is switched on. Camera audio is disabled by default; a Site Admin enables it per camera under Settings → Device → Camera Audio, which reboots that camera. Until then the RTSP stream carries no audio track at all, and CreateAsync returns settings with AudioEnabled cleared.
  • Some models have no RTSP audio even so. CD22, CD22-E, CM22, CF81-E, CF83-E, the whole CB (Bullet) series, CH52-E, CP52-E and CP63-E — pass audioEnabled: false for those. Of the models that do serve RTSP, the rest carry an audio track.
  • No RTSP on the CR63-E and CR63-TE.

Verkada API

Verkada's REST API covers camera listing and status, clip export and download, thumbnails, and event and alert data, and it streams live video as well — for a key that has been granted streaming access. An Organization Admin issues the API keys in Command → Admin → API & Integrations, where their permissions are set as well. Reach for the API when the video has to come from outside the camera's own network; the RTSP stream is the local, low-latency path.

Enterprise Cameras with RTSP and ONVIF

Verkada now streams RTSP, but it still offers no ONVIF, so discovery and profile selection are unavailable. When those matter, these brands provide both:

Alternative Market Segment RTSP ONVIF Guide
Axis Enterprise Yes Yes Connection Guide
Bosch Enterprise Yes Yes Connection Guide
Hanwha Vision Enterprise Yes Yes Connection Guide
Avigilon Enterprise Yes Yes Connection Guide
Hikvision Enterprise Yes Yes Connection Guide

FAQ

What is the RTSP URL for a Verkada camera?

rtsp://[USERNAME]:[PASSWORD]@[CAMERA-IP]:8554/high, where CAMERA-IP is the camera's private address and [USERNAME] and [PASSWORD] are the credentials set for that camera in Command. Use /standard in place of /high for the lower-bitrate stream. Multisensor cameras insert the camera id before the stream segment.

Do Verkada cameras support RTSP?

Yes. Verkada announced low-latency RTSP for its cameras, serving the streams over the local network. It is off by default and a Site Admin has to enable it per camera in Command.

Do Verkada cameras support ONVIF?

No. There is no ONVIF endpoint, so ONVIF discovery and profile selection do not apply — use the RTSP URL Command gives you.

Can I reach a Verkada RTSP stream from outside the local network?

Not directly. Verkada serves RTSP on private addresses only and does not relay it through the cloud, so a client on another network needs a VPN.

Does the Verkada RTSP stream include audio?

Not until a Site Admin enables Camera Audio for that camera in Command (Settings → Device → Camera Audio, which reboots it) — until then no audio track is present at all. And not on the models whose RTSP stream carries no audio: CD22, CD22-E, CM22, CF81-E, CF83-E, the CB series, CH52-E, CP52-E and CP63-E. Among the models that do serve RTSP, the rest carry audio, so audioEnabled: true applies.