How to Stream Private on Twitch

Do you want to make private Twitch streams just for your friends and family?

Does the general Twitch public scare you?

Is your Twitch setup potentially not holding up how you want it to?

Private streaming is perfect if you answered yes to any of those questions.

Don’t know what that is or how to do it?

No worries, this article will answer all your questions, so you can start streaming privately on Twitch in no time! 

What is a Private Twitch Stream?

A private Twitch stream is exactly what it sounds like; it is a way for Twitch streamers to stream privately on Twitch so only certain people can watch your stream. 

Technically, you can’t do private streams on Twitch does not have an official solution way of making a private stream.

But luckily, there are some workarounds to this.

Currently, there are two primary workarounds that you can use as a Twitch streamer to stream privately. 

There’s also the third option, which means using other streaming services, fx that of your YouTube channel instead:

1. creating a new account
2. doing a subscriber-only stream
3. streaming on alternative platforms like Youtube Live (which allows for private-only streams) or Steam instead.

Now, let’s look at how to do each of these.

Setting Up Your Private Twitch Stream

While private Twitch streams are not technically a thing and using one of the workarounds can take some effort, it is still a fairly easy process. 

Out of all the workarounds, doing a subscriber-only stream will take the longest if you are a newer streamer because you have to be a Twitch Affiliate or Twitch Partner to accept subscriptions. 

Without subscribers, you can’t have a sub-only stream, so if that is the method you want to use, you better buckle in for a potentially long process. 

To learn what it takes to become a Twitch Partner or Affiliate, here is Twitch’s official FAQ article. 

Creating a New and additional Twitch Account

Twitch allows you to create additional accounts as long as you follow the Twitch terms of service and community guidelines.

Since new streams can take months to garner many viewers and subscribers, by creating an alt account, you are almost guaranteed that no strangers will stumble across your stream.

Start your new Twitch channel, share the direct link with your closest friends or most loyal subscribers of your main account, and start playing those video games for only a select few.

However, while it is unlikely, that does not mean that no one will come across the stream, so if you plan on doing private streams multiple times, you will be better off using one of the other methods provided below. 

Subscriber-Only Streams

Once again, subscriber-only streamers are not truly private streams, but it is the closest you can get on Twitch.

With subscriber-only streams, only people currently subscribed to your channel can view the channel, which can be a great way to convert more viewers into subscribers. 

If you are a small to mid-sized creator, this is the perfect way to stream to a smaller, more intimate group. 

Stream on Another Platform

If you want a truly private stream, then I am afraid you will have to ditch Twitch and head over to a different streaming platform entirely.

I recommend checking out Youtube Live, a Discord Voice Channel, Steam, or Facebook Gaming, as they have gamers in mind. And who knows, you might even create a new following on one of these different platforms.

YouTube Live

To stream privately on Youtube Live, set up a live stream as you would normally, but change it to unlisted before going live. 

By doing this, the stream will not appear in search results, and the only way anyone can join is if you share the link directly with them. 

But what if you don’t like Youtube Live or forgot to request access to host streams? Yes, you have to request access to stream live on Youtube, and it can take up to 24 hours before your request is processed.

Discord Voice Channel (VC)

If that is the case, you can stream on Discord in a Voice Channel, with two main options for making it private. 

Firstly, you could create a private discord and then share it with your friends, family, or whoever you want to have access to the stream. 

Your second option is to create a locked Discord VC so only people with a certain role can join and watch your stream.

Steam

If you’re a PC gamer, you can stream privately using Steam. Here’s how to do it in a few simple steps:

1. Open the Steam client (not through the web browser) and log into your Steam account
2. Go to Settings (In the drop-down menu in the top left corner)
3. Click on Broadcasting
4. Choose Friends can request to watch my games

This ensures that only those in your Streams friends list can watch your streams

Facebook Gaming

If neither of these options is available to you for some reason, you can technically do a private live stream on Facebook Gaming. 

To stream privately on Facebook, create a private Facebook Page, invite your viewers to it, and then set up a live stream on that page. Voila, you now have a private stream! 

Reasons to Stream Privately

So why would anyone want to stream privately on Twitch in the first place? After all, the whole point of the platform is to grow your following and connect with fellow creators. 

Well, there are a couple of main reasons to stream privately that are not just for the sake of your family or friends.

First, you might want to create a test stream if you try a new setup. After all, you probably don’t want to test your setup, have people join, and wonder what’s happening. 

Setting up a new Twitch account for testing purposes is one of the best ways to ensure everything looks as it should before you finally decide to go live, as it is unlikely that anyone will come across your stream while doing it.

Second, maybe you’re having a bad hair day or are not in the mood for live streaming and want to use the Twitch app for just chatting that day.

Third, you might want to avoid stream snipers. Like in regular sports, where you have long had spies checking out the other team’s preparation, esports has become prone to this too.

If your opponents can see your base location or which bunker you hide in because it’s on Twitch, they can use this again you.

Using additional Twitch accounts is a quick way to ensure you’re streaming to fewer people and practicing together as a team.

Conclusion

While streaming privately on Twitch is not technically possible, you can still keep your stream private for your subscribers, select viewers, or family and friends by utilizing one of the workarounds in this article.

However, if you want a truly private streaming experience, I recommend using one of the alternative ways I’ve covered in this article.

If you found this article helpful, check out how to set up Twitch sound alerts or how to set up your overlays to spice up your stream. Until next time, happy gaming!

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FAQ:

Can I put a password on my Twitch stream?

Twitch used to allow content creators to create password-only streams so only the most loyal fans could watch.

Since no adult content or streaming of copyrighted materials is allowed on the Twitch platform, and a private password-locked stream could facilitate this, my guess is that this feature is gone for good.