YouTube vs. Twitch: Which is Better for Streaming?

What platform to choose if you want to make revenue on streaming, Twitch or YouTube? What useful features do these platforms offer for streamers? Which one is more comfortable for streaming, and which offers the better quality of video? Does the registration process pose a challenge? What other pros and cons of the platforms should you pay attention to before registering an account? Let’s find answers to these questions in today’s brief YouTube vs Twitch comparison guide.

Twitch vs YouTube — What About the Audience?

While Twitch is the king in the world of streaming, YouTube Gaming is its best and closest competitor. Despite the fact that both streaming services are very popular, their core audience is different.

Twitch is a platform for cyber sportsmen and highly specialized streamers in a particular game. On the contrary, YouTube Gaming is sort of a simplified Twitch version which is still a good place for let’s players, beginners, amateurs, and bloggers of different kinds. Twitch is also believed to have more real users while YouTube has many bots.

Referring to the benefits of YouTube, it is the most suitable for creating tournaments and gaming conferences. Though both platforms allow you to increase your audience and meet all the requirements of advanced streamers.

Technical Aspect — Is YouTube Better than Twitch?

Both services support recording in 1080p at 60 frames per second, so there is not much difference between the picture quality. Also, Twitch seems to be more convenient for users of smartphones, tablets and laptops.

When it comes to YouTube Gaming, when streaming with a large audience, Full HD quality is broadcasted to the platform with a greater delay than a similar video on Twitch.

Speaking of other benefits of YouTube, Google has designed the platform specifically for streaming. Here is why YouTube Gaming allows streamers to stream in 360 degrees and use HDR technology for more detailed images and richer colors. The latter is available on the PS4 Pro game console.

In turn, Twitch has a turbo mode that allows you to save Twitch streams simultaneously on YouTube, collecting even more views. Moreover, this feature helps prolong the life of the content, because Twitch does not store records for more than 2 weeks. YouTube stores recorded broadcasts on its servers for as long as necessary.

YouTube and Twitch — Mobile Application

Speaking of mobile apps opportunities, Twitch is an obvious leader in this YouTube vs Twitch confrontation. At least because the mobile version of YouTube is not designed for watching streams. To do this, you must additionally download the service “Gaming”. But, even that has not yet been optimized at a sufficient level.

Twitch, on the contrary, has a special tab for the Pulse mobile application. Also, using the Twitch mobile app, you can watch the feed and stream in parallel. This is a distinctive feature of the streaming service.

Better Monetization Opportunities — Twitch or YouTube?

When it comes to monetization, both platforms offer many opportunities. Both YouTube and Twitch allow you to subscribe to pages for payment, promote your advertising, and conduct paid streams. On Twitch, you can advertise a game that is on sale, and after successful deals, you can receive up to five percent of the revenue.

YouTube vs Twitch — Pros and Cons

As we said, YouTube Gaming allows you to save streams on the service forever. So that anyone can watch it later and thus increase the number of views of the archived streams.

Moreover, other benefits of YouTube Gaming include:

• Familiar interface.
• Thanks to the DVR digital recorded feature, you can rewind the recorded live streams to the beginning — up to 4 hours.
• HDR technology — this allows you to make images as clear and detailed as possible.
• Filming panoramic videos.

The YouTube drawbacks are as follows:

• The mobile version of YouTube is not suitable for watching streams. Users must first download the “Gaming” additional service.
• YouTube Gaming is not optimized for gamers compared to Twitch.
• There is a significant amount of latency for complex streams and conferences.

So the benefits of Twitch look something like this:

• Great community of professional gamers.
• Software is optimized for gamers.
• Users and viewers are real people.

The Twitch drawbacks are as follows:

• Being a perfect place for cyber sportsmen, the audience is mostly limited to the gaming community.
• Strict rules and tough moderation to protect the platform’s community.

Registration — YouTube vs Twitch

To get access to YouTube Gaming, there is no need to create a new account since your current Google+ account is enough. Nonetheless, if you do not have one or if you simply prefer not to connect your gaming activity to your existing account, you will need to create a brand new profile.

Speaking of the Twitch registration process, it is not much different from signing up for any other modern services. After providing your personal info, you will have to verify your account via email or phone number optionally.

To sum up, to be able to stream on both Twitch or YouTube, in some situations, you will need to disclose a phone number.

If you want to create an anonymous account or your current phone number is busy, you can consider using a virtual phone number via an SMS-man provider as an alternative to buying a second SIM card. It is safe, effective and crazily affordable since registration in any service will cost you less than 1 dollar.

Virtual Phone Number for YouTube & Twitch

SMS-MAN’s virtual phone numbers are a cloud solution for receiving SMS messages. It does not require a SIM-card and is not linked to any physical devices. You can get a verification code right to your personal account or desktop version of the service.

The platform’s database contains virtual phone numbers from over 180 countries. Using a virtual phone you can get access to foreign services that are not available in your country as well as protecting your right to remain anonymous. With us, you can buy a one-off number for single registration or rent a temporary virtual phone for multiple usage for a month or longer.

How can I get a verification code for Twitch or YouTube with SMS-man? Let’s see:

1. Register at sms-man.com via email or social network account.
2. Top up your account balance with the required amount.
3. Open the “Receive SMS” tab from the menu on the left and select the country of the mobile operator.
4. Then select a service, in our case it’s “YouTube” or “Twitch”.
5. To buy a phone number, click the “Buy SMS” next to the service icon.
6. Now find the phone under “History” at the bottom of the screen and copy it.
7. Use your phone number to create a new YouTube or Twitch account.
8. Go back to the “History” section of your profile and click ” Receive SMS”.
9. Use the confirmation code to complete the registration.