Twitch has become a powerhouse platform for live streaming, with some of the most popular streamers reaching 3.44 million concurrent viewers. It offers unique opportunities to start monetizing content, whether you play video games, create music, or simply enjoy having a chat.
Our guide will walk you through the essential steps to start making money on Twitch, from selling your own custom merch to using Twitch’s built-in monetization tools.
Ready to learn how to make money on Twitch? Let’s dive right in!
What is Twitch and how to create a Twitch account
Twitch is a popular service for live streaming, sharing pre-recorded videos, and interacting with an audience in real time.
It started as a platform primarily focused on video game live streaming but has expanded to include tons of different content, like live music performances, creative arts, cooking shows, fitness workouts, talk shows, and chatting sessions. Because of the diverse range of content on the platform, it opens up an excellent opportunity to earn money.
It’s super easy to join Twitch. Just click Sign up in the top right corner of Twitch.tv and follow the prompts to add personal info to your Twitch account. Then, start exploring its features, customize your channel, and start streaming to connect with viewers worldwide.
Once your account is set up, it’s time to learn how to make money on Twitch.
How many followers do Twitch streamers need to make money?
Other factors besides having a large number of followers can help you make money on Twitch. What matters most is building an established and engaged audience that actively interacts with your gaming and non-gaming content.
How many viewers do you need? Although it’s possible to start making money online from just a few viewers who regularly tune in to your live streams, you’ll need at least 50 to become a Twitch Affiliate and properly scale your business.
Can you make serious money on Twitch? This platform definitely offers the potential to do just that. Other Twitch streamers report earning anywhere from $50 to $200,000+ per month.
From making a little extra money at the beginning to a steady income stream as your audience grows, everything is possible with the right tools and approach.
11 ways to make money on Twitch
So, how do you make money on Twitch? Let’s find out.
1. Sell Twitch merch
Many viewers who follow Twitch channels love representing their favorite streamer by wearing hoodies or t-shirts with their logo.
Some of the most popular Twitch streamers make a ton of money selling streamer merchandise with their face, logo, handle, or unique designs. For example, Twitch gamers like Ninja and Pokimane have set up online stores with custom sweatshirts, sweatpants, mouse pads, t-shirts, and other merchandise.
Use Printify to create a free Pop-Up Store or integrate with a popular eCommerce platform or marketplace, design your own merchandise, and add store links to your Twitch channel and streams.
Send subscribers directly to your shop and let them proudly showcase what online community they belong to by buying your Twitch merch.
2. Become a Twitch affiliate or enter other affiliate partnerships
One of the most common ways streamers earn money on this platform is by joining the Twitch Affiliate program.
With affiliate status, you can allow channel subscriptions, create stories, launch polls, add extensions to your streamer page, and receive various other perks and features, including revenue from ads.
To join other Twitch affiliates, you’ll need to start streaming and reach 50 followers, stream for eight hours on seven different days, and have an average of 3 viewers, all within 30 days.
Once you’ve reached these milestones, you’ll see a link on your dashboard inviting you to Affiliate onboarding.
Track your progress by going to your Creator Dashboard → Analytics → Achievements.
Other Affiliate Partnerships
In addition to joining the Twitch affiliate program, it’s possible to partner with other businesses looking for streamers to promote their products and attract their target demographic.
Add affiliate links to your channel and stream descriptions, or share them in the chat to entice viewers to click and make purchases. This is a great way to increase your earnings and provide value to your audience by introducing them to relevant products.
Join the Printify affiliate program. Earn a commission from every order for the following 12 months.
3. Join the Twitch Partner program
Just like you leveled up to become a Twitch Affiliate, it’s possible to qualify for the Twitch Partnership program, unlocking even more features to help you generate income.
The key difference between the Affiliate and Partner programs is the benefits available exclusively to Partners, including payout fees covered by Twitch, the ability to create and manage your own team of other streamers, and access to the Twitch Partner Discord server.
To become a Twitch Partner, you’ll need to stream for 25 hours on 12 different days and have an average of 75 concurrent viewers within 30 days.
4. Collect Twitch Bits
One of the most common ways for a Twitch Affiliate or Partner to earn money is through receiving Bits from their Twitch community.
What are Twitch Bits? It’s a virtual currency viewers can purchase and use to cheer during a live stream, showing their support for the streamer they’re watching.
Each Bit shared in chat will appear as an animated Bit gem emote or a Cheermote that is either an animated version of a popular emoji or a custom Partner emote.
Aside from it just being fun, it will also give you $0.01 per Bit. While this may not seem like much initially, streaming regularly and encouraging your audience to cheer can lead to a substantial income over time.
Your audience can also use Bits in specific extensions you’ve added to your channel. You’ll receive 80% of the revenue, and the remaining 20% will go to the extension developer.
5. Generate Twitch subscriptions
Subscriptions help your community show support while receiving exclusive perks in return, including custom emotes they can use across all of Twitch, subscriber badges, and ad-free viewing.
There are multiple subscription tiers available, allowing viewers to pay a monthly or one-time fee of $4.99, $9.99, or $24.99 or subscribe to your channel via a Prime free subscription.
On the business end, streamers get 50% of the money earned from subscriptions, while Twitch receives the rest. A 50/50 split is a pretty great deal. For Prime subs, you’ll get a fixed rate of $2.25.
Additionally, you’ll receive Sub Points from every subscription, allowing you to unlock more emote slots. The higher the subscription tier, the more points you get.
To maximize your subscription revenue, stream regularly and maintain an engaging presence on your channel. Run a Hype Train to create an exciting, interactive experience that motivates more viewers to support your channel through subscriptions and Bits.
6. Upgrade to Twitch Plus
Both Affiliates and Partners can earn a lot more from viewer subscriptions by joining the Twitch Plus program.
To qualify, you need to accumulate a specific number of Plus Points from paid and gifted subscriptions over a three-month period.
This program has two levels:
- Level 1 – You’ll receive a 60/40 net revenue share if you reach 100 Plus Points monthly.
- Level 2 – There’s a 70/30 split if you accumulate 300 Plus Points every month.
7. Chime in on ad revenue
Another easy and low-maintenance way Affiliates and Partners can make money on streaming platforms like Twitch is by running ads. There are various ad formats to add to your channel or seamlessly incorporate into your live broadcasts.
Your Twitch ad revenue depends on several factors, including:
- The total hours you broadcast.
- The ad minutes you run per hour.
- The content you stream and your monthly viewership.
- The number of ads available from brands in your country.
Use the Ads Manager to schedule ads, adjust their length, set start delays, and snooze them, ensuring revenue without disrupting viewer engagement.
Set them to run for at least three minutes per hour to qualify for a 55% advertising revenue split. Otherwise, you’ll earn only 30% of the money generated from ads.
Partners can join the Ads Incentive program, which offers ad length recommendations and ad revenue estimates.
8. Partner up with brands
Collaborate with companies that align with your content and audience to ramp up your revenue and visibility. Many brands are on the lookout for micro-influencers (with 1,000 to 100,000 followers) who can authentically promote their products.
While Twitch enables brands to reach new audiences by sponsoring promotions for individual streamers of recurring and gift subscriptions, these brand sponsorships are currently only available to a select group of streamers.
This means that you’ll most likely need to find a sponsorship that fits your brand, beliefs, and audience on your own.
Reach out to specific brands directly, participate in trending campaigns like the Mountain Dew raid, use platforms like Upfluence, or, if you’re playing video games, partner with game developers like Epic Games.
Note that if you promote other products and services on Twitch, you’ll need to add a disclaimer on your brand sponsorships by using the Branded Content Disclosure tool in your Stream Manager.
9. Link to Patreon
Expand your revenue streams by using Patreon – a platform where fans can subscribe for a small fee in exchange for exclusive content and rewards.
By offering unique perks like behind-the-scenes access, early previews, personalized interactions, and custom merchandise, Patreon provides a direct way for your audience to support your creative endeavors in addition to Twitch subscriptions.
Create an account, add a Patreon link to your Twitch profile description, and check out Make’s Patreon and Twitch integrations to automate your workflow.
Promote your Patreon and special rewards during live streams to encourage viewers to sponsor you.
10. Collect donations
Receiving donations from your viewers is a great way to make money on Twitch, especially if you have a loyal fan base.
Viewers can donate any amount they choose, with some streamers receiving exceptionally generous donations reaching up to $1 million. While receiving a donation that large is extremely rare, getting multiple smaller donations of a few dollars is more common.
To make more money on Twitch via donations, spruce up your channel and post quality content regularly. Streaming once a week most likely won’t get you far. Stick to a strict schedule to attract more viewers to your channel.
If you want to collect donations for charity, use Twitch’s Charity Tool. This feature allows you to seamlessly integrate charitable fundraising into your streams, making it easy for viewers to contribute to your chosen cause.
11. Use social media
To expand your reach beyond Twitch, create accounts on Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, and other social media channels.
Each platform offers unique opportunities to engage with different audience demographics and promote your Twitch content.
Use the Clip Editor to create short videos. Connect your Twitch account to YouTube and TikTok for direct sharing or partner with third-party services like Streamlabs to share your Twitch stream across multiple platforms.
Share highlights from your streams, behind-the-scenes content, and announcements about upcoming broadcasts.
- YouTube
Upload shorts with highlights that showcase your best moments and YouTube videos of streams to attract new viewers to both your YouTube channel and Twitch.
- TikTok
Create short, captivating videos tailored to TikTok’s audience to attract more viewers to your Twitch channel.
Interact with your community, announce stream schedules, and participate in discussions in relevant Facebook groups.
How to build a Twitch audience
Be interactive
Engage with other Twitch users during live streams through chat, polls, and other interactive Twitch features. Thank them for sending you cheers.
Stay consistent
Stick to a regular streaming schedule to keep your Twitch audience engaged and coming back for more.
Establish a strong brand
Define your brand identity with a memorable logo, clear vision, consistent visuals, and tone of voice to distinguish your personal brand from other Twitch streamers.
Seek feedback
Ask for and listen to your audience’s feedback and adapt your content based on their preferences.
How to make money from Twitch with Printify
Step 1 – Create a Printify account
The first step in selling Twitch merch online is creating a Printify account. Use your email address to sign up, fill in all necessary information, and start browsing our huge selection of over 900 products.
Step 2 – Choose products for your Twitch merchandise
Pick products that speak to you and your niche – anything related to you and your Twitch channel. Many Twitch streamers create custom gaming equipment and apparel (mouse pads, sweatshirts, mugs, and more).
Step 3 – Apply your design
Click Start designing and create a one-of-a-kind design using our beginner-friendly Product Creator. Create patterns, add photos, texts, layers, and more. Preview and adjust the design to perfection.
Step 4 – Order samples
To fully know what you’re offering your Twitch fans, order samples for yourself. Test the print, quality, and delivery to ensure nothing but the best goes out to your subscribers.
Step 5 – Start selling
Open a free Pop-Up Store to sell merch through a custom link or create a store on a sales channel that aligns with your target audience and goals.
We’ve set up automated integrations with some of the most popular eCommerce platforms and marketplaces in the industry, which makes inventory management and order processing seamless and efficient. All you need to do is create products, list them on your store, and start selling – we’ll handle the rest.
FAQ: How to make money streaming on Twitch
You don’t need a gaming console to start streaming and making money on this platform. All Twitch users need is a good internet connection to stream from a computer or mobile device.
Once you’ve gained a comfortable following, it’s possible to start earning money through various methods we’ve covered in this blog, from selling custom merch to opening a YouTube channel and using other social media platforms.
It’s not just about having a large number of followers but building an engaged audience that interacts with your Twitch streams.
Can you make money on Twitch with just a few regular viewers? Yes, but you need at least 50 followers to become a Twitch Affiliate and scale your business.
Twitch streamer earnings vary widely. Some earn a few dollars per month, while top streamers can make hundreds of thousands per month or even $1 million from subscriptions, donations, and brand sponsorships.
Twitch typically doesn’t pay per-view like some other platforms. Instead, streamers get money through various other monetization methods.
The amount you earn from 1,000 views depends on how engaged those viewers are and how many of them interact with your content, subscribe, cheer with Bits, donate, watch Twitch ads, or buy your merch.
If you become a Twitch Partner or Affiliate, you’ll receive money via a direct deposit to your registered payout method if your balance exceeds $50 (for most methods) or $100 (for wire transfers).
Payments are typically made around the 15th of every month and can take three to five business days to get deposited into your account.
Final thoughts
Twitch is not just for video gaming – it’s a powerful platform for making money online.
From selling print-on-demand merchandise and joining the Twitch Partner program to partnering with brands and collecting donations, Twitch streamers have quite a few ways to earn money on this popular streaming service.
As with all things, most streamers didn’t start out as amazing gamers and entertainers. They practiced. They worked hard. They failed and succeeded. And so can you!
Use this article as a guide for how to get paid on Twitch. Make notes, take action, and start creating content!
