Simulive Webinar: How It Works and Where to Run One

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A simulive webinar is a pre-recorded presentation that plays to registered attendees at a scheduled time while your team answers chat and Q&A live. As of October 2026, simulive-capable plans start at $75 a month billed yearly (Vimeo Advanced), followed by Riverside and WebinarJam at $79, Demio at $80 and Zoom Webinars Plus at $82.50; ON24, BigMarker and Webex sell it by quote.

Below: how simulive differs from live and on-demand, how to run one without misleading anyone, and what each vendor’s own pages say it supports. If you’re still deciding whether to automate at all, read Live vs evergreen webinars first. Full plan details for 18 platforms are in our Webinar Platform Index.

Simulive webinar platforms: key facts

Platform	What it is called	Plan needed	Price, billed yearly
Vimeo	Scheduled simulive	Advanced	$75/mo ($900 a year)
Riverside	Pre-record and stream as live	Webinar	$79/mo
WebinarJam	Automated webinars via EverWebinar	Basic	$79/mo
Demio	Automated events	Growth (150 attendees)	$80/mo per host
Zoom	Simulive	Webinars Plus or Events	$82.50/mo (100 attendees)
Livestorm	Event automation (play a video)	Pro	$1,200 a year for 400 attendee credits
EasyWebinar	Simulive	Growth	$96/mo
EverWebinar	Simulated live	Single plan	$99/mo
Airmeet	Simulive webinars	Premium Webinars	From $167/mo
GoTo Webinar	Run recordings as live events	Elevate	See our GoTo pricing guide
BigMarker	Simulive webinars	Enterprise	Quote only
ON24	Simu-live, Sim-2-Live	Webcast Elite	Quote only
Webex Webinars	Simulive streaming	Webinars	Quote only

GoTo’s prices load only in a browser, so they’re in our GoTo Webinar pricing guide rather than here. GoTo’s Elevate card lists recordings run as live, while its comparison table also marks simulive on Reach, so confirm the plan with GoTo.

Simulive vs live vs on-demand

	Live	Simulive	On-demand
Start time	Fixed	Fixed	When the viewer presses play
Presenter	Speaking live	Recorded; team staffs chat and Q&A	Recorded; questions answered later
Shared audience	Yes	Yes	No
Can switch to live	Not needed	On some platforms	No
Best for	Launches, panels, first runs	Repeat sessions, other time zones, polished demos	Libraries and replays

Simulive keeps what makes live webinars work: a date people commit to, an audience in the room together, and someone answering questions. It removes the risk of a speaker fumbling a demo or a slide deck crashing. ON24 makes the same point in its help center: a scheduled event drives registrations, and a recording lets you run several sessions in a day.

How simulive works on the main platforms

Zoom. Simulive plays a saved cloud recording inside a webinar. You need a Pro, Business, Enterprise or Education account, a Webinars Plus or Events license, and the recording in the Zoom cloud. Hosts can set the session to switch to live after playback, with a notice before the switch, and must join from the desktop or mobile app. Webinars Plus costs $99 a month or $990 a year for 100 attendees; see our Zoom webinar pricing guide.

ON24. Webcast Elite offers Simu-live, Sim-2-Live, which rolls over to live audio and video at the end, and On-Demand. You must publish at least 2 hours before the start, and ON24 recommends 24 to 48 hours. Once playback starts it can’t be paused, and a stopped webcast can’t be restarted. Pricing is by quote; see our ON24 pricing guide.

Demio. Automated events play a pre-recorded video at scheduled times or on demand, with timed polls, handouts and calls to action, and you can join the room to chat live. They start on Growth: $80 a month per host billed yearly for a 150-seat room, or $117 monthly.

Livestorm. Automation rules (Start event, Play a video, End event, Redirect to a page) run at set times from the session start. You can still join to chat, or run a live Q&A and end the event yourself. Event automation is on Pro, sold as yearly attendee credit packs.

EverWebinar and WebinarJam. EverWebinar runs scheduled or just-in-time sessions with timed chat messages, polls and offers, plus a hybrid mode where your team staffs live chat. It costs $99 a month billed yearly, and WebinarJam Basic ($79 billed yearly) includes it at no extra cost.

BigMarker. Automated webinars follow a timeline of videos, chat messages, offers and polls, and hosts can go live at any point. Simulive and evergreen webinars are listed on the quote-only Enterprise plan.

Others. Airmeet lists simulive on Premium Webinars, Vimeo includes scheduled simulive on Advanced (100 registrations per event), Riverside’s Webinar plan streams a pre-recorded session as live, EasyWebinar Growth runs simulive with a moderator in the chat, and Webex Webinars lists simulive streaming. Attendee limits and CRM options for each are in the Webinar Platform Index.

How to run a simulive webinar well

Say it is pre-recorded. Put it on the registration page and in the opening minute: the talk was recorded, the speakers are in the chat now. Demio’s own guide puts it plainly: “The key is to be transparent.” B2B buyers notice, and a discovered fake costs more trust than the format saves.
Staff the chat and Q&A. Assign a named host plus the subject expert, introduce them at the start, and answer questions as they arrive. A simulive session with an empty chat is just a video.
Edit the recording. Cut dead air, “can you hear me” moments and references to a live audience that no longer exists.
Plan the ending. If your platform can switch to live (Zoom, ON24’s Sim-2-Live, BigMarker), close with a live Q&A. If not, end with a clear next step and answer leftover questions by email.
Time polls and calls to action to the video. Demio, BigMarker, EverWebinar and EasyWebinar let you fire them at set minutes.
Publish early and rehearse. ON24 needs the recording published at least 2 hours before the start, and Livestorm automation only runs if you switch it on before the session. Use our dry run checklist.
Don’t fake the crowd. Some tools post scheduled chat messages. If you use them, send them from a named host with useful links or reminders, never as invented attendee comments.

Bottom line

Already on Zoom: add Zoom Webinars Plus ($82.50 a month billed yearly for 100 attendees).
B2B team that wants timed polls, calls to action and on-demand in one tool: Demio Growth or Livestorm Pro.
The same pitch every day, in every time zone: EverWebinar, or WebinarJam Basic, which includes it.
Enterprise programs with a procurement process: ask ON24 or BigMarker to put simulive in the quote.
Small budget, small audience: Vimeo Advanced at $75 a month, if 100 registrations per event is enough.

Frequently asked questions

What does simulive mean?

Simulated plus live. A recorded session plays at a set time to a live audience, and your team interacts through chat and Q&A while it runs.

Is simulive the same as an evergreen or automated webinar?

They are close relatives. Simulive usually means one scheduled airing with your team present. Evergreen webinars repeat on a schedule or start when someone registers, often with nobody watching the chat. See our guide to evergreen webinar platforms for those tools.

Should you tell attendees a simulive webinar is pre-recorded?

Yes. Say it on the registration page and at the start, and make the live chat the selling point. Our live vs evergreen guide covers how disclosure affects results.

Can a simulive webinar switch to live Q&A?

On several platforms, yes. Zoom can switch to a live session after playback, ON24’s Sim-2-Live rolls over to live audio and video, BigMarker hosts can go live at any point, and Livestorm lets you end the event manually after a live segment.

Sources

Prices checked against the vendors’ own pages on October 9, 2026.

Simulive Webinar: How It Works and Which Platforms Run It