Twitch is an Amazon-owned live streaming platform where creators broadcast in real time and viewers reply in chat as it happens, and brands use it to reach an audience that is hard to find anywhere else. It has grown well past its gamer origins into a working social media marketing channel, though it suits some brands far better than others. Whatever you build on Twitch still points somewhere, so the channel works best when it sends viewers back to a site you own. Wix powers professional growth by letting you build a business website designed to convert.

This guide covers how the platform works and how to decide whether it earns a place in your marketing.

Starting a business with Twitch? Make sure to create a website for your brand and direct Twitch audiences back to your owned-and-operated channel.

TL;DR: using Twitch for business

Businesses show up on Twitch in three ways. They run their own channel, they buy ads through Amazon DSP or a managed campaign, or they sponsor a creator who already has the audience. Streaming costs time rather than budget, advertising costs budget rather than time and sponsorship sits between the two. The audience skews young, heavily male and international, so Twitch earns its place for brand awareness and struggles when your buyers sit outside that group.

What you’ll learn

• How account pages, live broadcasts and chat actually work

• How big the Twitch audience is and who is in it

• What Twitch advertising costs and how it is bought

• What streamers earn, and why that shapes how they price sponsorships

• Five questions that tell you whether Twitch fits your brand

What is Twitch?

Twitch is an Amazon-owned, live video-streaming platform. While the most popular content created on Twitch falls into the video game category, creators stream out other genres of content as well.

The main categories of content include:

• Games

• IRL (In Real Life)

• Music

• Esports

• Creative

However, individuals and brands alike can live stream content related to topics like music, web design, product unboxing, DIY, animals and fitness.

How does Twitch work?

The Twitch.tv platform works as follows:

Account page

Twitch streamers create branded account pages. At the very top of the page, users can see if the streamer is currently online or offline. While offline, the streamer can choose to embed a recent stream for users.

For example, the Netflix Twitch account page looks like this:

Users can peruse information about the streamer, view recent broadcasts, watch select videos and look at the upcoming streaming schedule.

They can also follow the streamer from this page. Some channels also allow followers to subscribe for a fee. In return, the subscriber gets special benefits such as ad-free streams, exclusive chats and special badges.

Live broadcast

Twitch creators can stream videos that last anywhere from one minute to eight hours.

When streamers go live, the video broadcast takes up the majority of the user’s screen. For example, a broadcast from TheStockGuy looks like this:

In many of these broadcasts, the streamer appears in a small box in the video’s corner so that users can watch them as they talk. This format is common in gaming and other visual-forward content.

Other broadcasts look more like YouTube or Instagram’s video streams. Here’s a good example from the tominboston account:

If users want to focus on the broadcast, they can minimize the two sidebars. The one on the left shows recommended streamers and the one on the right contains the stream’s chat.

Chat box

Like other live streaming services, Twitch creators can engage with anyone watching their live streams via the chat box. Users can also interact with other users by replying and sending emoticons.

However, Twitch allows streamers to enable and create custom Emotes (i.e. emoji) for their audience. You can catch a glimpse of one of these Emotes in the chat box beside Maya’s live stream:

When you click on an Emote a user shares, more details appear about the Emote:

You can see that these Emotes are unique to Maya’s channel and that only Tier 1 subscribers can access it. Calls-to-action for following and subscribing appear as well.

Who uses Twitch?

Twitch is the most watched live streaming platform in the world. Viewers spent 19.2 billion hours on it in 2025, a little over half of all live streaming watch time.

On an average day, more than 2 million people are watching Twitch at the same time.

This is likely because Twitch streams to many devices, including:

• Desktop computers

• Laptops

• Tablets

• Smartphones

• Streaming devices (like Roku and the Fire stick)

• Smart TVs

• Game consoles

Gaming is no longer the whole story. Non-gaming content accounted for 22% of everything watched on Twitch in 2025, with Just Chatting and in real life streams both growing.

In terms of Twitch users, the audience breakdown looks like:

• 70% of Twitch viewers are between 18 and 34.

• Around two-thirds of the audience is male.

• Streams run in dozens of languages, with English the most common and Spanish the next.

In sum, Twitch tends to attract a young, multicultural and heavily male audience that use the platform for building and engaging in community.

How to use Twitch for business

The massive number of highly engaged users makes Twitch one of the best marketing strategies for businesses. Twitch Sales reports that its users have a special relationship with advertising:

• They believe that ads enable streamers to continue creating free content.

• They tend to buy from brands they’ve seen advertised on Twitch.

• They’ll buy products or services to feel a greater connection with a community.

If you can use Twitch for your brand, you’ll market to an audience that’s receptive to marketing and advertising. In return, you’ll boost brand awareness, enhance your lead generation efforts and increase sales.

Pro tip: You can generate traffic and exposure towards your Twitch channel along with all of your online assets with the help of a link in bio tool such as Hopp by Wix.

Businesses use Twitch in three ways:

01. Become a streamer

Brands both large and small run their own channels on Twitch and point viewers back to their website in the captions. Some treat the channel as a showcase for new products while others use it as a standing conversation with the people who already buy from them.

Solo operators do the same at a smaller scale. A trainer, a maker or a consultant streaming a few sessions a week is running the same play, and the format rewards consistency far more than production budget.

To succeed as a streamer, you must have something valuable, entertaining or educational to share with your audience without asking for anything in return.

02. Run ads

Streaming isn’t a viable marketing option for many brands. Creating content, engaging with the audience in real time and building a community around a channel can prove to be too time-consuming.

If streaming isn’t for you, you can boost your brand’s presence through paid media. Similar to YouTube’s advertising model, you can run video or display ads on Twitch. Both Twitch creators and their followers understand the necessity of mid-stream ads, especially when the content is free.

With all parties receptive to advertising, consider this avenue if you have the money for it. Twitch still does not publish a rate card. You can buy video and display campaigns yourself through Amazon DSP with a minimum spend, or work with an account executive on a managed campaign. Creator sponsorships and custom activations are quoted separately.

This high cost can explain why companies like McDonald’s can afford to run ads on top Twitch channels like VALORANT’s:

Granted, brands can walk away with huge benefits. VALORANT is one of the platform’s largest channels and streams for hours every day. That means huge boosts in brand awareness (and sales) for brands whose ads appear during the broadcast.

03. Partner with streamers

Your last option for using Twitch for business is influencer marketing. By partnering with an established creator or sponsoring their content, you can get your brand in front of a large audience.

Depending on how actively the streamer promotes your brand, it could bring you major leads and revenue. That said, a popular streamer doesn’t need to name-drop a brand to influence their followers. A visual brand placement can effectively reach viewers as well.

For instance, Monster Energy sponsored a cristijAn stream and placed their logo atop the streamer’s window:

Pro tip: You can explore your options and create a similar logo for yourself with a Gaming Logo Maker or Twitch Logo Maker. Learn how to make a Twitch logo for your channel.

Twitch influencer marketing costs often depends on the following:

• What category they create content for

• How many followers they have

• How many views their videos get

• How frequently they will promote your brand

• What type of partnership or sponsorship they run

• Whether they want payment, free products or free services in exchange for promotion

Just as with other types of influencer marketing, if you want to get the greatest ROI, your Twitch partner should relate to your brand. For example, CristijAn’s channel centers around gaming; energy drinks are popular with gamers, so the partnership works.

Is Twitch right for your brand?

When brainstorming types of marketing, you may want to consider if Twitch fits your brand. Consider the following:

01. Is your target audience there?

Twitch tends to skew younger, male and international. If your brand targets a broad range of users, then you might be okay using Twitch. However, if your brand happens to attract older users or operates in a more traditional or conservative space, then you may not find Twitch to be a worthwhile investment.

02. Does your brand fit with Twitch's vibe?

You don’t need to be a gamer or influencer to fit in with the Twitch crowd. All that matters is if you can naturally convey your message in a live video.

For instance, have you ever considered starting a vlog or podcast for your brand? Think about how you’ve used video or audio in your business and see if you can translate it for a Twitch audience.

Dr. Drew, for instance, has a channel on Twitch where he airs hour-long "Ask Dr. Drew" episodes:

03. Will your content be entertaining enough?

The pull of a Twitch stream is not production value. Viewers are in the room reacting in real time next to other people who care about the same thing, which is closer to a shared hobby than to broadcast television. That is also why talk and in real life formats now take such a large share of what gets watched. Does your brand, or even just you as the face of it, have something worth sitting with for an hour?

04. Do you have the time to devote to it?

If you choose advertising or influencer marketing, you’ll devote minimal time designing Twitch ads or promoting your live stream. However, if you want to create, you must invest a significant amount of time.

First, you’ll need to design your channel’s artwork, come up with content for the About page and maybe even customize Emotes for your subscribers. Second, you’ll have to produce your content, create a schedule, promote it on other channels, film the live streams and engage with viewers.

Your broadcasts must not only be super engaging, but also well-managed. Planning and organizing has allowed Twitch brands like NASA to build some of the platform’s largest followings:

05. How much money can you realistically invest in Twitch marketing?

Streaming is the cheapest of the three options to start. A webcam, a microphone and a light are enough to go live, and the real cost is the hours you spend on camera.

Advertising, on the other hand, will likely cost your brand thousands of dollars a month. You may cut costs through influencer marketing, especially if you exchange product for exposure, but it will still cost your brand money.

Twitch for business FAQ

What is Twitch used for?

Twitch is used for live streaming and watching video in real time, with chat running alongside the broadcast. Gaming is still the largest category, but music, talk shows, creative work, sports and everyday in real life streams all have active audiences. Businesses use it to run their own channel, to advertise or to sponsor a creator.

Is Twitch only for gamers?

No. Gaming remains the biggest single category, but the platform now carries music, art, cooking, fitness, science and long-form talk content. Brands outside gaming succeed there when the format suits them, which usually means someone on the team is comfortable talking live on camera for an hour or more.

How much does it cost to advertise on Twitch?

Twitch does not publish a public rate card. Video and display campaigns can be bought self-service through Amazon DSP with a minimum spend, or as a managed campaign through an Amazon Ads account executive. Creator sponsorships and custom activations are priced separately and negotiated per deal.

Can a small business advertise on Twitch?

Yes, though the entry point matters. Self-service buying through Amazon DSP brings the floor down compared with a fully managed campaign, and sponsoring a smaller creator is usually cheaper again than buying media. Running your own channel costs time rather than media budget.

How do Twitch streamers make money?

Streamers earn from paid channel subscriptions, from Bits that viewers buy and send in chat, from a share of ad revenue and from brand sponsorships. The standard subscription split is 50/50 with the platform. Qualifying Partners in the Partner Plus program keep 70% of net subscription revenue on the first $100,000 each year, after which the split returns to 50/50.

Do I need a website if I stream on Twitch?

A channel is rented space and a site is not, so most brands treat Twitch as the place people find them and their own site as the place people buy. Wix empowers you to build a professional business website for any industry.