When Is The Best Time To Stream On Twitch?
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Hey, sorry to jump in here, but we wrote a new and improved version of the best time to stream on Twitch article on our website! This version was written in 2017 and is slightly outdated now.
You can find it right here.
First things first, Twitch is built on a worldwide audience and is popular 24/7. Thanks to the different timezones there is always an audience for your stream, but it is a learning you must make yourself.
Your time should be the best time for you
If you find that 2am your time is the most popular time for you to stream, but it means you only sleep four hours a night, then that is not a good stream schedule.
Sure you may pick up an extra viewer, but you’ll be half asleep, and it’ll affect your real life the next day. So ultimately it’s not worth it.
Primetime isn’t always the best time
Think about it. It is 7pm in the evening and everyone loads up Steam, turns on OBS and starts streaming. This isn’t the magic hour, this is the noisiest channel.
- Why not stream in short bursts twice per day?
- Why not test streaming at other times?
Twitch Peak Time
If you are aiming for an international audience (which starting out, you probably shouldn’t be), don’t worry about the ‘peak times’ or the quietest ‘dead zones’ on Twitch, these provide you with opportunity to stand out in a smaller crowd.
You can use a tool such as Twitch Tools or Twitchstrike to see when Twitch (and channels) are most active.
The ratio below (shown as a darker colour) is the number of people watching per broadcaster. Higher the ratio means higher demand and therefore more opportunity for you to find viewers.
You can use the Twitch tool to see how many other broadcasters are live at which time per game. Here is an example comparing H1Z1 and Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds.
Be aware of others
So you are streaming a small game and then somebody like Lirik comes along and starts streaming it. It may raise awareness to the game and people start watching your stream, or it may do the opposite and drive every potential viewer to the big streamers and not you. The best thing to do is to be aware of what is going on as you stream and adjust accordingly.
Consistency is everything
A viewer base is built off consistency. It is all well and good streaming when the most people are online, or when you are most likely to stand out, but if you can’t do that time week in, week out, then people are less likely to come back and watch your broadcast.
Bonus round: Don’t forget hosting and Communities
Primarily a means to build a community, make friends and support your friends, hosting can be used to keep your following entertained until your next broadcast.
You can learn more here about hosting here:
What is The Emergence?
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- Blog — medium.com/the-emergence
- Website — theemergence.co.uk
- Twitter — twitter.com/emergencegg
- Twitch — twitch.tv/theemergence
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