Kick vs Twitch: Battle For The Best Streaming Platform in 2023

Kick vs Twitch: Battle For The Best Streaming Platform in 2023

Introduction

Kick and Twitch are two of the most popular streaming platforms today.

Kick took the streaming industry and world by storm in 2023, promising to build a better, more creator-centric streaming platform.

All the while, Twitch has remained the unchallenged big kid on the block, having opened its doors in 2011. Despite its dominance in the streaming space throughout the years, many streamers became displeased with their overall experience on Twitch (and understandably so).

Kick streaming is a new platform that has gained much popularity in recent months, launching officially in January of 2023. With its introduction, streamers on the platform enjoy many great benefits that we’ll discuss here.

Choosing the right streaming platform is crucial for streamers and their viewers, as it can impact your financial success, features, discoverability, and user experience. In this article, we’ll provide a breakdown comparing Kick vs Twitch. We’ll explore various aspects of both platforms to help you decide which platform is right for you: Kick or Twitch.

We’ll discuss some of the key features, pros and cons, monetization structure (how you can make money), and community features to help you pick the right streaming platform for you.

Features

Not every streaming platform is created equally. While platforms like Twitch, Facebook Live, YouTube, and Kick will share many similarities, there will be some differences setting each apart from the rest. It’s also important to note that since Kick is still a fairly new platform (having launched this year), there are still some missing features that more mature platforms have – but new features are being rolled out often.

Kick Features

Kick offers a range of unique features, making it an attractive platform for streamers. Some of its key features include:

• Low latency streaming – a reliable streaming solution that doesn’t require excess bandwidth
• Customizable overlays – easy-to-use templates and overlays to help customize the feel of your stream with ease
• Improved discoverability – getting seen and noticed by new fans is easier, thanks to Kick’s extensive discoverability opportunities
• Partnership status – a less restrictive path to obtaining partnership status faster as a new creator

Compared to Twitch, Kick’s streaming software features are more limited, which is understandable considering how new it is. With time, Kick’s features will expand, and it’s potential is exciting for big streamers and newcomers alike. The promise of improved discoverability and a clean user experience makes Kick a compelling option for creators. 

Twitch is a more mature streaming platform with more features, a larger overall user base, and an expansive list of third-party support. Twitch offers a wide range of features.

Twitch Features

• Reliable, high-quality streaming – optimized software and encoding for the best streaming experience for creators and their fans
• Customizable channel pages – page customizations to create a more interactive experience for your fans, including a video intro, panel customizations, and an expansive creator studio dashboard
• Co-streaming – get visibility on your guests’ platform, maximizing the reach of your content
• Third-party integrations – many third-party tools like Tiltify and Streamlabs provide an easy way to connect to Twitch, while integrations may still be lacking with Kick
• Expansive creator dashboard – offering many features to track stats, customize your stream, engage with your community and more

Overall, Twitch’s features are more comprehensive and offer more customization options for streamers. But recent policy changes and multi-platform streaming rules make Twitch a less ideal choice for many creators, understandably so.

Despite having more features with Twitch, it doesn’t mean you should rule out Kick based on this feature alone. The discoverability potential of Kick, monetization terms, and rapid expansion makes it a worthy choice when picking your next live streaming platform. 

User Base

Kick User Base

Kick has a relatively small user base compared to Twitch, with 12 million active users recorded as of July 2023. Its user base is primarily made up of younger viewers, with most users aged between 18 and 24. The platform is also more popular in certain regions, such as Asia and Europe.

During the first quarter of 2023, Kick had its highest viewership, consisting of the Slots and Casinos category with 26.25 million hours watched, followed by the Just Chatting category with 18.3 million and GTA V with 2.05 million hours watched.

Over the last few months, a number of high profile streamers made the jump from Twitch to Kick, including Ninja, xQc, Adin Ross, Amouranth, Train Wreck, Ac7ionman, and Destiny, to name a few.

Twitch User Base

Twitch has a much larger user base than Kick, with over 140 million monthly active users. Its user base is more diverse, with most users aged between 18 and 34. Twitch is still more popular in North America and Europe.

Despite losing major streamers like Ninja, Twitch still retains popular streamers on its platform, including Tfue, shroud, and pokimane.

The most popular categories on Twitch during the first quarter of 2023 included, Just Chatting with 2900 million hours, League of Legends with 1400 million hours, and GTA V coming in at a close third with 1300 million hours watched, according to Statista.

If you’re a Twitch streamer, there are definitely reasons to stay on the platform in terms of reach potential.

Monetization Options

Twitch and Kick offer several options regarding monetization and how a streamer makes money on the platform. The way it works is simple. A patron or fan supports a creator through subscriptions and other features (ex: cheers and bits), and the creator and platform get a set percentage of the money earned. 

Twitch vs Kick payout is a common topic that many creators are interested in learning more about and we want to provide some greater insights on the topic. Here’s a breakdown of how Kick stacks up vs Twitch:

Kick Monetization Options

Kick has one major advantage regarding monetization for creators vs Twitch. Kick pays creators 95% of subscriptions, making using their platform the most compelling benefit.

Kick offers several monetization options for streamers, including:

• Subscriptions 
• Gifted Subscriptions
• Ad revenue sharing
• Donations

Kick also recently announced they would start paying streamers who meet certain conditions a minimum wage of $16 per hour streamed on Kick. And that’s on top of the 95% revenue creators would continue to earn from subscriptions and gifted subscriptions on the platform.

Twitch Monetization Options

Twitch has two monetization levels depending on your status on the platform (whether you’re an affiliate or partnered creator). Twitch has a revenue split of 50/50 for subscriptions and ads. This means Twitch and the creator will earn 50% of the total earned (after fees).

Twitch offers a 30/70 revenue split for some partnered users, offering the creator 70% of the revenue share. 

Twitch recently announced they would be retiring this revenue split option in favor of the 50% split.

Here are the various monetization options offered by Twitch:

• Subscriptions
• Gifted Subscriptions
• Bits and cheers
• Ad revenue sharing
• Donations

Overall, Twitch’s monetization options are more comprehensive regarding the number of ways to monetize on the platform. However, sharing 50% of the revenue compared to 5% makes Kick a much better choice for streamers.

Conclusion

Kick and Twitch are both popular streaming platforms with their unique strengths.

Twitch has a larger user base, lots of great features, and is considered the biggest and most popular streaming platform in the world. It’s been around for over a decade and is backed by one of the biggest companies in the world, Amazon.

On the other hand, Kick offers more favorable monetization terms and the ability to use its discoverability options better.

Twitch offers a wider range of features and monetization options with a larger and more diverse user base. Ultimately, the choice between Kick vs. Twitch depends on your preferences and career goals as a streamer. Consider your demographic and audience. What type of content will you be streaming? How do you plan to monetize as a creator? Do you have certain features that you’d consider a must-have? 

Answering these questions will help you decide on which platform is right for you.

Whether you’re looking to get into streaming or esports, both Kick and Twitch can help you further your creator journey.