Streaming on Twitch: Viewer Count With Muted Audio Explained

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Understand Twitch viewer count rules during streams

Co-authored by Rain Kengly Reviewed by Stan Kats

Last Updated: January 17, 2025 Fact Checked

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• Can you earn Twitch Drops on mute?
|
• Viewer Count Meaning
|
• Users in Chat Meaning
|
• Frequently Asked Questions

|Show more |Show less

Are you curious about Viewer Count versus Users in Chat on Twitch? While these two are similar, they actually mean different things. To count as a viewer on Twitch and earn Twitch Drops, just make sure the live video is playing. It can be muted or left playing in the background. Here's everything you need to know about Twitch's Viewer Count and muted audio.

Do Twitch Views Count If Muted?

As long as you have the live video stream playing on Twitch, you will count as a viewer. You will also still earn Twitch Drops even if the stream is muted. Viewer Count will drop and Twitch Drops will pause when you stop the live video.

Steps

Section 1 of 4:

Can you earn Twitch Drops on mute?

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1. 
   Yes, you can earn Twitch Drops while the stream is muted. To start building progress towards a Twitch Drop reward, you just need to have the stream open and playing live. The stream tab can be minimized and muted; you will still earn rewards.

   • To check your Twitch Drop progress, click your profile picture and select Drops & Rewards. You'll see a meter underneath the In Progress header.
   • Keep in mind that watching VODs won't count for Twitch Drops; it must be a live stream.
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Section 2 of 4:

Viewer Count Meaning

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1. 
   Viewer Count refers to anyone watching the stream. This doesn't necessarily mean they're connected to the chat. Anyone watching the live video, whether logged in or viewing as a guest, will count towards this number. When this viewer stops the stream or closes it, the number will drop and reflect this.

   • You will count as a viewer even if the stream is muted, if you have a different tab in focus, or if the Twitch app is minimized.

Section 3 of 4:

Users in Chat Meaning

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1. 
   Users in Chat refers to users connected to the stream's chat. This is separate from the Viewer Count because, while users need to be logged into their Twitch account, they don't need to be watching the stream to interact with the chat. They could have the chat popped out of the video interface or the video paused.

   • Chat bots do not count towards Viewer Count since they don't actively watch the stream.
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Section 4 of 4:

Frequently Asked Questions

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1. 1
   Do I count as a viewer if the stream is open in another tab? As long as the stream is playing live, you will continue to count as a viewer until you close the tab.
2. 2
   Will I count as a viewer if the stream is in the background (mobile)? If you have the stream's live audio playing, you will count as a viewer even if the video itself is playing in the background.
3. 3
   Can I mute the stream and still count as a viewer? You can count as a viewer if you mute the stream as long as you have the live video actively playing. The tab can be active or in the background.
4. 4
   How soon does the Viewer Count update? Viewer Count will typically update within a few minutes.
5. 5
   How soon does Users in Chat update? Users in Chat will also update within a few minutes, similar to Viewer Count.
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