Mixer is rapidly gaining ground after Ninja has left Twitch and moved to Mixer. While Twitch is a huge live-streaming platform with 80% of all broadcast hours, the Microsoft-owned mixer leaves no cornerstone to dethrone the giant. On paper, Mixer may seem insignificant to Twitch, but you can’t deny that Mixer holds great promise with its modern technologies and unique features. That is why we bring you an in-depth analysis of the pros and cons of both streaming platforms. If you are having trouble moving or staying, this article will help you make a decision. So without further ado, let’s start the battle royale of Twitch vs Mixer.
Twitch vs Mixer: An In-Depth Analysis
Here, we’ve categorized the sections in terms of performance, audience, monetization, ease of use, and unique features and issues. We have researched both platforms extensively and have highlighted many key factors that can help you choose your next live streaming platform. Having said that, let’s start with performance.
Twitch is one of the oldest live streaming platforms, so it took advantage of proven protocols that allowed for stable performance. Twitch uses a ten-year-old RTMP (Real-Time Messaging Protocol) to send and receive audio, video, and data over the Internet in real time. However, Mixer uses the promising FTL (Faster than light) protocol which is touted as one of the best live video streaming protocols. FTL has something called sub-second latency, which means there is virtually no lag or jitter during the live stream. It also brings instant interaction between streamer and audience.
From a technology perspective, it is clear that Mixer is equipped with the latest technology and is much better for real-time streaming. But RTMP is not left out either. It has undergone many revisions and bug fixes over the past ten years, so that its performance is relatively stable and reliable. Coming to my personal experience, I have found Mixer’s streaming much faster and more instant than Twitch. Now, which one to choose? One gives you reliable performance and the other the latest technology and the promise of real-time interaction.
In terms of audience, there is simply no competition between Twitch and Mixer. Twitch has been around for almost a decade and has amassed over 1.5 million streamers and has 140 million monthly active users. Compare that to Mixer and you have a measly 69,000 streamers and 10 million monthly active users. . Put simply, Mixer is nowhere near Twitch and if you are an aspiring streamer, Twitch is a better platform to grow your audience. Except that things change fast enough for Mixer.
According to a recent report from Streamlabs , Mixer has grown 357% since last quarter and is expanding steadily. A few days ago, Twitch’s biggest star Ninja, who numbered 14 million people, joined Twitch after an exclusive partnership with Microsoft. This then shows that Mixer will be the next big platform with a solid following. So if you are someone who wants to be a top streamer, now is a good time to join Mixer. In addition, given that Mixer is not oversaturated like Twitch , you have a better chance of developing your audience and getting them to appear on the front page.
All in all, Twitch is unquestionably the king for attracting more users, but you also have to count in the recent wave of Mixer. It will be a difficult choice for you, but if I had to choose one, I would choose Mixer.
1. Twitch
To come to the elephant in the room, monetization is a key factor for the streamers to choose a platform. As Twitch is a fairly old platform, it has a long list of sources from which streamers can generate income. For starters, Twitch offers a program called the Partner Program that allows you to earn money from affiliates, channel subscriptions, ads , products and user donations using Twitch’s virtual currency, Bits. However, before you become a Twitch Partner, you need to set certain criteria and create a sizable audience.
Those are the following criteria that you must fulfill : You must at least broadcast at least 25 hours and 12 days per month and keep at least 75 viewers on average per month. If you haven’t yet met the criteria, you can make money on Twitch in another way. You can link your PayPal account to your dashboard and get user donations without Twitch being listed.
2. Mix
As for now how you can monetize on Mixer, you have a similar partner program that allows you to make money from your feeds. Just like Twitch, you must meet certain conditions and only you can become a partner. Here are the requirements: the age of your account must be over 2 months ; you should have more than 2000 followers; you should stream for more than 12 unique days and 25 hours per month. It looks like Mixer is pretty strict with its partnership requirement compared to Twitch’s. For a new streaming platform, it would have been better if the criteria were a bit flexible for budding gamers.
However, as a subscriber you can also earn rewards on Mixer just by watching streams . It has something called Blender Loot which you can earn by watching and interacting with various in-game activities. You can use these rewards to tip your favorite streamer, purchase merchandise, and more. Likewise, Twitch has something called Cheers for subscribers, but it’s not a reward system and you’ll have to pay real money on Amazon to buy Cheers.
So here’s how to monetize your streams on Twitch or on Mixer. I would say that in terms of monetization, Twitch is much better with its flexible criteria. But, considering other points, which would you choose?
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Ease of use
In terms of ease of use, Twitch has a great user interface and dashboard. The platform is well optimized for all major browsers and you can start streaming hassle-free. Twitch is known for its compatibility with third party programs such as OBS , XSplit, Streamlabs, etc. So, as a streamer, you have several options to choose from. Additionally, Twitch has something called Extensions which allows you to display interactive overlays on your screen. Simply put, extensions are one of Twitch’s greatest strengths and allow you to engage with your audience in ways never before imagined.
Coming to Mixer, the platform is quite modern with all the features you would need to get started. But there is something that makes Mixer a unique platform among live streaming platforms. Since Mixer is owned by Microsoft, there is native Mixer support on Windows 10 and Xbox One computers . You can easily stream your game with just a few clicks. No need to tie main streams and advanced configurations.
On top of that, you have standalone apps like MixPlay that let you interact with streamers in an immersive way. You can easily install MixPlay from Microsoft Store. In addition, you can easily stream your game to mobile using the Mixer Create app . The app is available on Android and iOS.
All in all, both streaming platforms are awesome in their respective ways. Twitch’s dashboard is pretty advanced and you won’t find it anywhere else. But Mixer’s deep integration with the Windows operating system is a huge plus. Anyway, it all depends on your preferences. Which one would you choose?
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Unique characteristics and issues
When Mixer launched its platform two years ago, it offered a co-streaming feature that no other streaming platform had, not even Twitch. The co-broadcast feature is designed for multi-player games where broadcasters can play with multiple people and the public can interact with all broadcasters in a single window. It’s a great tool for interactive games that helps the audience see each other’s perspective and participate in the activity.
After the popularity of Mixer’s co-streaming feature, Twitch also announced that Squad Steam is built on the same principle. . Squad Steam is very similar to Mixer’s co-streaming functionality with multi-player interaction and one-window viewing. However, I appreciate that Mixer has managed to effortlessly co-stream thanks to its FTL support. It feels a lot smoother and in real time. Simply put, the co-streaming experience is much more immersive on Mixer than it is on Twitch.
Also, when it comes to issues, the Twitch community complains about too many ads during live streams. There are a lot of affiliate banners that ruin the immersive experience during the reading. In contrast, Mixer is a new platform that doesn’t bombard you with ads. In my experience, I haven’t come across a lot of ads on the live streaming page.
Another issue that many have raised about Twitch is that comments section is hijacked by toxic public during the live broadcast of hateful comments. Due to Twitch’s huge user base, automatic moderation doesn’t seem to work at all. In comparison, Mixer doesn’t have such issues right now, but it should be seen as a Mixer that can scale to a million in the future.
Which would you choose: Twitch or Mixer?
So that’s our deep dive into the battle of two live streaming giants: Twitch vs Mixer. It’s obvious that Twitch is the go-to live streaming platform with a huge audience, various monetization programs, and a great overall platform for streamers. But we cannot ignore the promising future of Mixer, which is gradually improving its playing in all segments. To conclude, you can only choose the best live streaming platform that matches your preferences. So that’s all of us. If the article helped you make a decision, please let us know in the comment section below and state the reasons. We will be happy to hear your valuable ideas.
