How to Make Money on Twitch: Affiliate Rules, Payouts, and Splits

To make money on Twitch, you need Affiliate or Partner status. Since 2026, any streamer can turn on subs, Bits, and other tools, but Twitch only pays out once you reach Affiliate, which now takes 25 followers, 4 hours of streaming on 4 different days, and an average of 3 viewers. After that, you earn from subscriptions, Bits, ads, and sponsorships, and Twitch sends money once your balance reaches $50.

Below is how each income source works, what Twitch keeps, and how it stacks up against YouTube if you're still picking a platform.

The 2026 change: monetization for all

In May 2026, Twitch opened its money tools to every streamer. Its Monetization for All post says Bits, subs, emotes, badges, and Channel Points are no longer limited to Affiliates and Partners. There's a catch in the same post: streamers "must earn Partner or Affiliate status to receive a payout."

So a brand new streamer can collect subs and Bits from day one, but the money sits in their balance until they qualify. In the US, Twitch also added a Spendable Balance, which lets you use that money to buy Bits or gift subs before you reach the payout threshold.

Twitch Affiliate requirements in 2026

The same post lowered the Affiliate bar:

Source: Twitch, Monetization for All. Your Creator Dashboard shows your progress under Achievements, so check it there rather than trusting an old guide. Many sites still list the 50-follower rule.

The viewer number is the hard part for most people. Getting 25 followers can happen in a week if friends show up. Three people watching at the same time, on four separate days, takes either a small community or a niche where people search for live streams.

Partner: the next step

Partner is by application, and Twitch picks who gets in. Its Partnership FAQ says Partnership "is for top-performing creators" and that completing the Path to Partner achievement "is not a guarantee of Partnership." It does open the application button and gets you a faster review. Look at the Path to Partner achievement in your dashboard for the current targets.

You don't need Partner to earn a good split anymore, which brings us to subs.

How to make money on Twitch from subscriptions

Subs are the main income for most streamers. Viewers pay monthly at Tier 1, Tier 2, or Tier 3, and Twitch splits the net revenue with you.

• Standard split: 50/50. Twitch's then-president Dan Clancy wrote in a 2022 letter on revenue shares that Twitch uses "a baseline revenue share of 50/50 on the net revenue," and that most streamers have these terms.
• Plus Program Level 1: 60/40. Hold 100 Plus Points for three months in a row.
• Plus Program Level 2: 70/30. Hold 300 Plus Points for three months in a row.

Plus Points count your paid subs: Tier 1 is 1 point, Tier 2 is 2 points, Tier 3 is 6 points. Twitch announced these levels in an update to its payout programs in January 2024, opened them to Affiliates, and removed the old $100,000 cap on the 70/30 rate. Since June 1, 2025, streamers in Latin America need only 50 points for Level 1 and 200 for Level 2, per Twitch's post on supporting streamers there.

To put 100 Plus Points in perspective, that's 100 Tier 1 subs held for three months. Most small channels will be on the 50/50 split for a long time, so plan your numbers around that.

Bits and Cheers

Viewers buy Bits and "cheer" them in your chat. When Twitch launched the Affiliate program in 2017, it said Affiliates get "a share of the revenue Twitch receives from Bits equal to 1 cent per Bit used to Cheer for them" (Twitch, 2017). So 1,000 Bits is about $10 to you. That post is old, so check your current agreement for the exact terms.

In May 2026 Twitch also added custom Power-ups and Creator Badge Drops, which give viewers more things to spend Bits and subs on. These work best for streamers who already have regulars in chat.

Ads

Twitch runs ads on your stream and shares the money. According to Twitch's September 2024 Ads Manager update, "Both Partners and Affiliates can automatically earn 55% net ad revenue by running at least 3 ad minutes per hour."

If you'd rather make videos than read about it, VidPuff turns a title into a faceless video. No waitlist, cancel anytime.

Three minutes an hour annoys some viewers, and ad income on a small channel is small. Most streamers treat ads as a bonus, not a plan.

Sponsorships

Brand deals used to be mostly for Partners. In August 2026 Twitch opened sponsorships to Affiliates. To qualify, you accept the terms in the Sponsorship Portal and finish a self-paced Creator Sponsorship Certification course on Creator Camp. Brands then invite streamers who fit their campaign. Twitch says over 50% of paid streamers in two of its Minecraft campaigns were Affiliates.

If you take a deal, you have to disclose it. The FTC's Disclosures 101 for Social Media Influencers says to disclose any financial relationship with a brand, including free products, and to say it in the stream itself, not only in a panel below it.

Getting paid

Twitch pays out automatically once you reach the $50 minimum payout threshold and have Affiliate or Partner status, per the Monetization for All post. You set up tax and payment details in the Creator Dashboard first.

Money from Twitch is taxable. In the US, if your net self-employment earnings are $400 or more in a year, you owe self-employment tax, which the IRS puts at 15.3%. Keep a record of what you earn and what you spend on gear from the start.

Scams to watch for

Once you start growing, you'll get DMs about brand deals and "promotion" services. The FTC describes a job scam aimed at influencers where a fake recruiter claims to work for a known brand, offers good pay, and pushes you to sign up fast and share bank details. Contact the brand through its official site before you agree to anything.

Also skip viewbots and follower sellers. Twitch's Partnership FAQ points to a healthy ratio of organic viewers as part of a strong Partner application, and fake viewers don't sub or cheer anyway. For the same idea on YouTube, see should you buy YouTube subscribers.

Twitch vs YouTube for making money

Twitch pays for live time. When you stop streaming, income mostly stops too, apart from subs that renew. That suits people who enjoy talking to a chat for hours.

YouTube pays for videos that keep getting views. To join the Partner Program, you need 1,000 subscribers plus either 4,000 qualified watch hours in the last 12 months or 10 million Shorts views in the last 90 days (YouTube Help). Long-form creators then get 55% of net ad revenue from their videos (YouTube partner earnings overview). The full rules are in YouTube monetization requirements, and how to go live on YouTube covers streaming there instead.

Plenty of streamers use both: live on Twitch, then highlights or longer videos on YouTube, often through a YouTube gaming channel. If you'd rather not be on camera at all, a faceless YouTube channel is a different route. VidPuff turns a title into a long-form 16:9 video with a script, narration, visuals, music, and captions, and you review each stage before uploading. It doesn't make stream clips or live content, so it fits the YouTube side only.

FAQ

How many followers do you need to make money on Twitch?

25 followers, under the Affiliate rules Twitch set in 2026. You also need 4 hours streamed on 4 different days and at least 3 average viewers on 4 different days. Without Affiliate status, Twitch won't pay out what you earn.

How much does Twitch pay per sub?

Most streamers get 50% of the net revenue from each sub. Through the Plus Program, that rises to 60% at 100 Plus Points or 70% at 300 Plus Points, held for three months in a row. Twitch doesn't publish a single dollar amount because net revenue depends on the tier, country, and how the sub was bought.

How much is 1,000 Bits worth to a streamer?

About $10. Twitch has said it pays Affiliates 1 cent per Bit cheered in their channel, subject to its terms.

When does Twitch pay you?

Automatically, once your balance reaches the $50 minimum and you have Affiliate or Partner status with your payment and tax details set up.