How do I save a Twitch stream? This is one of the most common questions people ask. After all, who doesn’t want to watch their favorite broadcasters when they’re online? Luckily for you, we have put together this guide on how to save streams on Twitch. For complete relaxation, you can watch the broadcast of your favorite game and enjoy the massage with foot spas.
So, we’ll answer some frequently asked questions and give you strategies for saving your favorite channels so you can watch them offline or share them with your friends and family!
Table of Contents
Why is Twitch so popular?
Twitch is a live streaming video platform that allows gamers to broadcast their gameplay in real-time. It launched in June 2011 and has grown exponentially since its inception. As of January 2018, Twitch had 45 million unique viewers who watched over 15 billion minutes of content produced by more than one million broadcasters. This makes it the fourth largest source of Internet traffic during peak times in the United States.
Viewers flock to Twitch to watch their favorite gamers play everything from action games like League of Legends and Call of Duty to strategy games like DOTA and Civilization. It’s also common for players who are streaming themselves playing multiplayer matches with other people around the world through platforms like Xbox Live.
Viewers watch streams for a variety of reasons, but most tend to lean toward one of these three categories: the player’s personality (streamer), game-used, or level achieved during play. Regardless of what draws viewers in though, they all share an appreciation for how entertaining watching someone else play video games can be.
It’s not only the viewers who benefit from Twitch though. Many broadcasters use it as a platform to grow their brand and promote themselves and their other endeavors.
Do Twitch streams automatically save?
Twitch streams do not automatically save. Once you start streaming, the content is deleted after some time or when storage space runs out on your device depending on which has run out first. At this point, there are no official Twitch apps that offer stream-saving functionality but there are some workarounds to achieve similar results with third-party tools.
These tools primarily consist of apps that record the stream on your device before it gets deleted, these are primarily rooted Android devices. Some others work with PC-only games like World of Warcraft and Minecraft.
When using third-party apps with rooted devices, you can usually just use the app and stream normally and it will record and save your past content in a “.mp4 file”.
How to save your streams on Twitch
There are two main ways to save your favorite Twitch streams on the platform.
The first way is by using third-party apps that allow you to download and store videos of live broadcasts, but there are some caveats with this method. A majority of these third-party tools require a subscription fee while others have limited storage capacity which means they can only store a certain number of videos.
Another way is to use Twitch’s video-on-demand feature. This allows you to save streams and watch them at a later time, but it only works with certain devices such as PlayStation consoles or for content saved more than 14 days ago.
Where can I find the best third-party apps?
In this section, we will be looking at some of the best third-party tools that allow you to download and save Twitch streams. However, we must note here that none of these apps are officially supported by Twitch so there is always a risk when downloading them as they may stop working at any given time.
Twitch Save
Twitch Save, as the name suggests, is a third-party tool that allows you to download and save Twitch videos. Before downloading this app, it’s important to note that all saved content can only be accessed from its official website so there are no offline viewing options available. The platform also offers limited storage capacity which means you can only store a certain number of videos at any given time.
The best thing about Twitch Save is that it offers the ability to download different qualities such as 240p, 360p, and 720p depending on your internet connection speed or storage capacity constraints. It also allows you to add specific channels so that their latest streams show up in their search results.
Twitch Save is currently available on Windows and Mac computers for a monthly subscription fee of $0.99 while there are plans to bring the service to mobile platforms in the future.
Stream Offline
A free alternative to Twitch Save is Stream Offline. As you can tell from the name, this service lets you download and save any video on Twitch with a few simple clicks by accessing it through its official website or Chrome extension. It’s also compatible with mobile devices but limits storage capacity at around 150-200 videos which means that if your channel grows in popularity, you might need to upgrade your plan.
Stream Offline also has its proprietary search engine that automatically downloads videos from the channels on which they are being streamed while giving users access to a limited number of video quality settings such as 360p and 480p only. The best thing about this service is that it’s free of charge and can be used on any device.
However, there are some caveats. The first one is that it appears to have a lot of bugs which means you might encounter errors or other problems while attempting to save something. Another thing worth mentioning is that the service offers many options for archiving Twitch videos but few ways to use them in a meaningful manner due to restrictions placed on its premium subscription.
How to find your saved VODs on Twitch
To find your saved VODs (Video on Demand) on Twitch, you will need to visit the channel from which you wish to view said content. Once there, click “View Channel” at the top of your screen and then select “Videos” under the heading titled “Library.” This selection will allow you to see your saved VODs and watch them in the future.
If this option is not available, it likely means that the channel does not offer any form of video content or has removed all videos from its library. If so, then there would be no way for an individual to access said content.
Can you find deleted VODs on Twitch?
Twitch caches videos in a “recordings” section for each channel. This is where Twitch stores past broadcasts that have been saved, and you can find deleted VODs here by doing the following: Login to Twitch > go to your dashboard by clicking on your name at the top right corner of any page > click Dashboard from dropdown menu > click the Activity Feed link > under your recent activity stream, you’ll see a “Recording” header with video game icon.
- If you don’t find any videos here that are not on the VODs section of your channel, then it’s possible that they were deleted by Twitch staff because the account violated their terms of service or community guidelines.
Videos that are flagged as inappropriate by Community Guidelines strikes, national holidays, or special events can be deleted without warning from the VODs section of a channel.
- If the recording is still there but you don’t see it in your main video list, then try looking for a “Recently Added” playlist on Twitch instead.
This page lists all the new videos to your channel so it’s possible that the video was uploaded recently and not added to the VODs section yet.
