How much does one Twitch sub actually pay? (per-sub breakdown)

"How much do Twitch streamers make" usually gets answered in vague monthly ranges. This is the narrower, more useful version: what does one single subscription actually pay, tier by tier, after Twitch takes its cut? If you're deciding whether subs are worth pushing for, or sizing up whether Affiliate is worth the switch, the per-sub number is the one that actually does the math for you.

The three subscription tiers

• Tier 1: $4.99/month. The default sub tier, and where gift subs and Prime subs land.
• Tier 2: $9.99/month. Roughly double the streamer payout of Tier 1.
• Tier 3: $24.99/month. The highest tier, used by a minority of subscribers on any channel.

What each tier pays the streamer

Per Twitch's own payout documentation, Affiliates start at a standard 50/50 split with Twitch. Partners can qualify for a better split through Twitch's review, commonly 60%, with 70% reserved for a small number of large channels. Here's the same $4.99/$9.99/$24.99 sub, at each split:

• Tier 1 ($4.99): 50% split = ~$2.50 · 60% split = ~$3.00 · 70% split = ~$3.49
• Tier 2 ($9.99): 50% split = ~$5.00 · 60% split = ~$6.00 · 70% split = ~$7.00
• Tier 3 ($24.99): 50% split = ~$12.50 · 60% split = ~$15.00 · 70% split = ~$17.50

These are pre-tax, pre-payment-processor-fee figures. Twitch's public documentation doesn't publish an exact processor-fee percentage, so treat the numbers above as the gross split, not the exact deposit amount.

Gift subs: same payout, different buyer

A gift sub is priced and split identically to a self-bought sub at the same tier. If a viewer gifts five Tier 1 subs, that's five separate $4.99 transactions, each paying the streamer the same ~$2.50-3.49 depending on split, exactly as if five different people had subscribed themselves. Gift subs are common during raids and community sub-trains, and they count toward sub-goal alerts the same way individually-bought subs do.

Prime subs: no cost to the viewer, same payout to you

Per Twitch's Prime Gaming documentation, an Amazon Prime member gets one free channel sub per month, bundled into their existing Prime membership. It always counts as a Tier 1 sub. From the streamer's side, a Prime sub pays exactly what a self-bought Tier 1 sub pays - Amazon settles the underlying cost with Twitch separately, so the viewer's $0 out-of-pocket doesn't translate into a smaller payout for you.

How many subs to hit a monthly number

Assuming an all-Tier-1 sub base (the realistic majority case for most channels), here's roughly what it takes to clear a few common monthly targets:

• $500/month: ~200 subs at 50% · ~167 at 60% · ~143 at 70%
• $1,000/month: ~400 subs at 50% · ~335 at 60% · ~285 at 70%
• $2,500/month: ~1,000 subs at 50% · ~835 at 60% · ~715 at 70%

Mixing in Tier 2 and Tier 3 subs lowers all of these, since each Tier 3 sub is worth roughly five Tier 1 subs. Most channels' sub base skews heavily Tier 1, so these all-Tier-1 numbers are a reasonable starting estimate rather than a floor.

Subs are one piece, not the whole picture

Subs are typically 40-60% of a mid-tier streamer's total income - bits, ads, and sponsorships fill the rest, and sponsorships start dominating well before a channel reaches the top tier of the platform. For the full income picture across all four revenue paths and how it scales with average viewership, see our broader how much do Twitch streamers make breakdown. If you're still working toward Affiliate, the Affiliate requirements guide covers the threshold; the split difference between the two statuses is covered in Affiliate vs Partner.

Since sub conversion tracks with how established a channel looks to a first-time viewer, some channels build their concurrent-viewer base with Twitch viewers ahead of a push, while the actual sub growth still comes from content people choose to support.

TL;DR

• A Tier 1 sub ($4.99) pays the streamer roughly $2.50-3.49 depending on split; Tier 2 roughly $5.00-7.00; Tier 3 roughly $12.50-17.50.
• Gift subs pay identically to self-bought subs at the same tier.
• Prime subs always count as Tier 1 and pay the same as a self-bought Tier 1 sub - the viewer's free ride doesn't reduce your payout.
• Roughly 400 all-Tier-1 subs clears $1,000/month at the standard 50% split; fewer are needed at a better Partner split or with higher tiers mixed in.

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