Twitch’s subscriber system isn’t exactly the most intuitive among the many live-streaming platforms. Between the various different types of Twitch subs, the varying pricing system, and the multitude of exclusive perks for subscribers, it can be difficult for a streamer or a brand to wrap their head around it. Twitch’s own blog is a great in-depth resource for definitions and tips, but it can be unwieldy to navigate.
In this article, we’re helping demystify Twitch subs by explaining every Twitch sub type and how they can best serve different users and promoters on Twitch. If you haven’t already, we suggest reading up on the basics of Twitch first to familiarize yourself with the platform, such as the difference between “followers” (non-paying) and “subscribers” (paying).
The topics covered below include:
- Twitch Subs Basics
- Different Twitch Sub Types
- Exclusive Perks for Twitch Subscribers
- Subscriber Events and Promotions
Subscribers are Only Available to a Small Fraction of Twitch Streamers
Twitch subscriptions work on a monthly basis, most often requiring the viewer to renew their subscription manually. The advantage of this system is that lax viewers don’t complain to Twitch when they forget to cancel their subscription. But this manual renewing system also makes subscriber numbers volatile, with top Twitch streamers by sub count dropping suddenly at the end of each month. As a result, it’s important to understand what exactly a subscriber count means on Twitch if you’re a streamer, or if you’re looking to partner with a streamer.
For starters, only Twitch Affiliates or Twitch Partners are eligible to gain subscribers. Twitch Affiliates have a lower barrier to entry – but they still require 50 followers and an average of 3 viewers per stream. This restriction essentially ensures that beginner streamers aren’t misled into thinking they can live off their content without first building a fanbase. This is crucial, since most subscribers are concentrated on Twitch channels with greater than 500 average viewers.
Additionally, streamers don’t make all of their subscription money. “How much does a Twitch streamer make per sub?” is a difficult question to answer, but Twitch promises at least a 50/50 split of subscriber revenue. However, streamers often receive much less than 50% of subscriber revenue due to taxes, local rates (different regions offer different pricing) and processing fees which all come before that 50/50 split. Additionally, popular streamers may barter for higher splits thanks to the demand their fanbase brings to Twitch. Hence, brands should consider all of these factors together when approaching streamers for partnership to determine a fair price point.
The Many Twitch Sub Types Cater to Different Viewer Circumstances
To incentivize viewers to subscribe, Twitch has created a number of subscription options or “sub types”. These Twitch sub types mainly differ in price and the way in which they are received, but some types also have exclusive perks for extra pay. All of these sub types are united by access to ad-free viewing – perhaps the greatest incentive to subscribe (in a similar system to services like Spotify Premium).
Tiered subs are the main method of subscribing on Twitch, with viewers gaining more perks as they move up from Tier 1 through to Tier 3. Tier 1 includes almost every subscriber perk, but Tier 2 and Tier 3 subscribers get access to special emotes and badges that signal their status as a super fan. These higher Tier subscribers are really paying as a show of support rather than for some reciprocal reward, meaning they’re the most loyal viewers on Twitch. Twitch gauges this relative loyalty using Sub Points – a metric only visible to streamers themselves that is weighted based on Tier (Tier 1 = 1 point, Tier 2 = 2 points, Tier 3 = 6 points). A higher Sub Point total unlocks more custom emote slots for the streamer.
Prime subs are provided to anyone using Prime Gaming. Essentially, the viewer is given one Prime sub per month to use on any streamer they want. Although Prime Gaming is a paid service, the Prime sub itself is free and encourages viewers to experiment with supporting different channels (and, Twitch hopes, later upgrading to a paid Tiered sub). Being “free” does make Prime subs seem less valuable to streamers and brands however, as the perception is that these viewers are less committed.
As seen below, Prime subs make up 15-25% of all monthly subscriptions, with Tier 1 subs accounting for virtually all other subscriptions on Twitch. Tier 2 and Tier 3 subs make up approximately just 200K subs per month – around 1%.
Gifted subs may further explain why so many monthly subs are Tier 1. Gifted subs are paid for by pre-existing subscribers and “gifted” to other viewers. For the recipient they’re completely free – but they only last one month. Regardless, the willingness of pre-existing subs to purchase gifted subs demonstrates high fan commitment and hype around a particular streamer. In other words, gifted subs are volatile but reflect exciting new talent – 100 subs gifted on Twitch would cost $500 USD! They also expose a quirk in Twitch’s system: Gifted subs cost more on mobile, showing an odd preference against mobile users by Twitch.
Turbo subs are Twitch’s platform-wide subscription system, allowing viewers who love streaming in general (rather than one particular creator) to access ad-free viewing on the platform. Turbo subs represent faith in live streaming and Twitch on the whole, and so can be hard for brands to leverage. Regardless, Twitch Turbo can be considered a great sign of the overall health and interconnectedness of Twitch’s community.
Twitch Subscriptions Offer Far More than Just Badges and Emotes
So apart from supporting their favorite creators, what does a subscription actually get the viewer? The main reason viewers subscribe (other than ad-free viewing) is sub badges: Special icons appended to one’s username to demonstrate their commitment to a particular streamer. Twitch sub badge flairs are applied to Tier 2 and Tier 3 subscribers to really make them stand out from the crowd. These badges are the streamer’s own creations, allowing them to reward their biggest fans – although designs can also be purchased from sites like Own3d or Midjourney Twitch sub badges can leverage AI image generation for quick ideas.
The full array of subscriber benefits are listed here. These exclusive benefits apply to all Twitch sub types, unless otherwise specified:
- Ad-free viewing: For the subscribed streamer, or site-wide for Turbo subs
- Sub badges: Badges appended to one’s username to demonstrate their commitment to a particular streamer.
- Sub badge flairs: Special animations or overlays to make Tier 2 and 3 subs stand out
- Sub streak rewards: New badges and emotes rewarded based on how long a viewer has been subscribed
- Custom emotes: Streamer-themed emotes to show off one’s personality either on the subscribed channel or anywhere else on Twitch
- Sub-only streams: Special streams only available to subscribers
- Sub-only chat: An exclusive chat to escape the noisy chat logs of popular streamers
- Sub-only stories: Access to special short-form clips
- VOD access: The ability to replay finished streams at will
- Competition advantages: Perks that help the subscriber to win competitions like lottery draws, etc.
Sometimes, viewers will subscribe to a channel simply to make use of one of Twitch’s quirks: Text-to-speech sub announcements. Although this feature is often seen in videos of people trolling streamers online, this text-to-speech feature is crucial for fans in being recognized even during a hectic stream. In this way, it’s clear that subscribing is a way for fans to be acknowledged by their idols in a meaningful manner. Getting a shoutout bonds the viewer with the streamer and strengthens their community.
Special Twitch Events Help to Boost Subscriber Counts
To help encourage viewers to subscribe, Twitch has a number of mainstay promotional events. The biggest time of the year for subscriptions is SUBtember: An entire month in which subscription costs are discounted by up to 30% depending on the Tier. Crucially, SUBtember isn’t just for viewers: The month also incentivises streamers to get competitive and up their airtimes to attract viewers. Brands can get in on the action by partnering with streamers whose fans are feeling more generous than usual. This past SUBtember saw a massive 40% increase in new Tiered subs compared to the month prior.
In tandem with SUBtember, many streamers run marathon-length streamers aptly named subathons. Subathons see streamers extending their airtime as long as new fans keep on subscribing, encouraging new viewers to join in or pre-existing fans to gift new subs and keep the streamer on camera. Historically, subathons have given rise to some of the most subscribed Twitch streamers of all time, showcasing how event viewing can encourage otherwise disengaged viewers to contribute to their communities.
The subscriber system is a strong indicator of a streamer’s fanbase that can snowball into a cascade of gift subs for larger streamers. Knowing a steamer’s background and content is crucial for determining whether their subscriber base is genuinely loyal, or made up of transient fans that will fade after the hype dies down. Stream Hatchet can help to separate the two with our in-depth insights and expert guidance:
