Intro

Alive streaming requires two things: powerful hardware and a expert internet upload speed.

You can find hardware that handles encoding for live video (and playing video games simultaneously) in a smartphone or a decent computer. Getting a good upload speed for streaming is trickier.

Before you lot outset calling your ISP to ask well-nigh more bandwidth, you need to know what a good upload speed for streaming is. Unfortunately, at that place's no straightforward answer to this question.

A skillful upload speed allows you to stream the content you lot want to the platform of your pick without any major problems. It should also be capable of delivering your content at a quality that will not disadvantage you or brand your stream less appealing than others.

Basically, anything between 672 kbps and 61.5 Mbps is ideal.

A good upload speed for streaming is between 672 kbps and 61.5 Mbps

Not a bully reply, right? There are some more often than not accepted values for good upload speeds, which are worth knowing. Simply nosotros'll also dig a fleck deeper to find a skilful upload speed for your particular alive stream needs.

🤓 Understanding download/upload speeds

What do you call up people exercise the virtually online? We know that the most popular website in the world is Google. It'south followed by YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Wikipedia. And so that's 1 search engine, an encyclopedia, two social networks, and a video platform/social network.

People consume content online. They seek it out, place information technology, and and then read, listen, or scout it. To be able to practise that, their devices demand to ingest data, which comes to them in the grade of bits. Your internet connection'south download rate shows you how many bits of data your computer or device tin can take in from the internet using that connection. Unremarkably, the charge per unit (also referred to equally bitrate) is expressed in millions of bits — or megabits — per second (Mbps).

It'due south your connectedness'southward upload rate that matters the most.

When you create content and desire to share it online, it's your connection's upload rate that matters the most. It's the same equally the download rate; it just works the other way around, showing how many bits of data yous can share per second. It'due south also expressed in Mbps. Data shows that, globally, upload rates are slower than download rates.

👀 What is a good upload speed for streaming?

Streaming live video tin can take up a lot of bandwidth. Simply how much will depend on several factors. Encoding matters, but and then does the type of content you desire to stream. Platforms play a role, as exercise the resolution (expressed in pixels, or p) and the frame rate (frames per second, or fps) of your stream.

Say yous desire to alive stream a video of yourself interviewing someone. You're choosing between Facebook Live, YouTube Live, and Twitch. Since all these platforms support live streaming video resolution of 720p, nosotros'll use the bitrate recommendations from each platform:

  • Facebook Live recommends a max bitrate of iv,000 kbps, plus a max sound bitrate of 128 kbps.
  • YouTube Alive recommends a range between 1,500 and 4,000 kbps for video, plus 128 kbps for audio.
  • Twitch recommends a range betwixt 2,500 and 4,000 kbps for video, plus up to 160 kbps for audio.

If y'all're streaming live video at a resolution of 720p, at 30 frames per second, you will upload up to four,160 kilobits, or 4.sixteen Mbps, of data per second. Then having an upload bandwidth of around 4 Mbps should encompass yous, right?

Not quite. You volition demand to upload up to 4,160 kilobits of information per second constantly. Because these speeds fluctuate, it'southward a good idea to take a 35% to 40% buffer. That puts us at an upload rate of effectually v,700 kilobits per second, or 5.7 Mbps. However, if you are sure your internet connection is stable, such a buffer might not be needed. Remember, a stable connexion is as of import as upload speed!

It's generally a good idea to have a 35% to 40% buffer

For various reasons, your Internet service provider'southward declared upload bandwidth and the actual upload speed yous can reach with your connection tin exist very unlike. That'south why you should e'er examination your upload speed using online speed tests. The number you get from these tests should be up to 5.seven Mbps if you want to stream 720p video at 30 frames per second.

Read later: The only multistreaming guide you'll e'er need 📍

💁‍♂️ The many variables affecting upload speed requirements

The v.7 Mbps upload speed for 720p video at xxx frames per second is the upper limit. Yous tin can still live stream 720p video with a lower upload speed. If the whole video is a single shot of y'all talking, 4,000 kbps might be too loftier of a bitrate. You would probably be fine if you reduced it by half.

If, on the other paw, you lot desire to stream video games or events with tons of visual information, iv,000 kbps is necessary. The faster the pace of the visuals, the higher your bitrate should be. The type of content you stream affects what a proficient upload speed is for y'all.

Let'south stay with video games. If you're streaming games with fast-paced activeness, you should ensure that your viewers encounter what's going on as clearly as possible. You might want to stream at more than 30 frames per second.

Yet, more frames per 2nd requires a higher bitrate. For Twitch, it pushes the range for 720p video to between three,500 and 5,000 kbps. YouTube Live recommends two,250 to 6,000 Kbps. When you cistron in these requirements, that's a 6.ii Mbps upload speed for Twitch and vii.4 Mbps for YouTube Live if y'all want to stream 720p video at 60 frames per second. Also, keep in mind that these are only the highest optimal values.

A good upload speed for your live streaming will vary from i platform to another.

On Facebook, beginning streamers can only stream up to 720p video, so at that place's no demand to have more than v Mbps. In order to live stream Full HD videos, you need to apply for their Level Up affiliate program.

Twitch allows up to 1080p video at 60 frames per 2nd. You'll demand an upload speed of up to 7.4 Mbps to support that.

YouTube Live supports 4k live streaming at 60 frames per second. It recommends a bitrate in the range of 20,000 to 51,000 kbps. Yous'd need an upload speed of 68.8 Mbps to pull that off. That'southward just above the boilerplate upload speed in the District of Columbia, the area with the highest median upload speed in the U.s.a..

Finally, your competitors might affect your upload speed requirements. Twitch and YouTube are crowded with streamers trying to use the platforms to generate income. If you're streaming too, you cannot afford to fall behind on video quality. Meliorate quality requires higher upload speeds, and then the competition volition eventually push yous to increase your upload rate.

🤩 What upload speeds should I be aiming for?

With all these variables in heed, you shouldn't inquire what a "skillful" upload speed is. Instead, information technology'south better to enquire which speed you should aim for in your circumstances.

Which bitrates and corresponding upload rates do the three major streaming platforms suggest streamers to use? We'll segment by platform, resolution, and frames per second, where applicable.

Facebook Live:

  • Recommended max bitrate of 4,000 kbps for video.
  • Recommended sound bitrate is up to 128 kbps.
  • Maximum resolution is 1080p, with 60 frames reproduced per second. Aim for an upload speed of 6 to 7 Mbps (although Facebook limits most accounts to 720p resolution).
  • For 720p video at 30 or 60 frames per second, aim for an upload speed of roughly 3 to iv Mbps.

Twitch:

  • For 720p video at 30 frames per 2d, bitrate should be between 2,500 and 4,000 kbps. That requires upload speeds between three.ii Mbps and v Mbps.
  • For 720p video at 60 frames per 2nd, the bitrate should be betwixt 3,500 and 5,000 kbps. Required upload speeds are between 4.4 Mbps and vi.two Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at 30 frames per second, the bitrate should be 3,500 to v,000 kbps – same every bit for 720p video at sixty fps. The required upload speeds are the same too, between 4.four Mbps and six.2 Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at 60 frames per 2d, the recommended bitrate is between 4500 and 6000 kbps. The required upload speeds are between 5.half-dozen Mbps and 7.4 Mbps.

YouTube:

  • For 720p video at 30 frames per 2d, the range is ane,500 to 4,000 kbps. That's an upload speed between roughly 2 Mbps and 5 Mbps.
  • For 720p video at threescore frames per second, the range is 2,250 to 6,000 kbps. Required upload speeds are between ii.nine Mbps and seven.4 Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at thirty frames per 2d, the bitrate range is 3,000 to 6,000 kbps. Required upload speeds are between iii.eight Mbps and 7.four Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at threescore frames per second, the bitrate range is 4,500 to 9,000 kbps. In upload speeds, that means betwixt v.6 Mbps and xi Mbps.
  • For 1440p video at 30 frames per second, the bitrate range is half dozen,000 to thirteen,000 kbps. That's between vii.iv Mbps and 15.8 Mbps in recommended upload speeds.
  • For 1440p video at lx frames per 2nd, the range is 9,000 to 18,000 kbps. In upload speeds, that's between 11 Mbps and 21.8 Mbps.
  • If you actually want to live stream 4k video, doing it at 30 frames per 2nd will require a bitrate between 13,000 and 34,000 kbps. In terms of upload speed, that'due south fifteen.viii Mbps and 41 Mbps.
  • To stream 4k video at 60 frames per second, the recommended bitrate range is xx,000 to 51,000 kbps. Yous'll need an upload speed between 24.2 Mbps and 61.5 Mbps.

Equally yous tin run across, YouTube offers the highest-quality live streaming. Facebook is the virtually accessible, while Twitch is still the gamer's haven.

What is a good upload speed for streaming on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitch?

👉 How to get a proficient upload speed for streaming

Calculating your desired upload speed is i thing, merely getting access to that speed is something completely different.

The upload speed you lot tin attain depends on the service packages your Internet access provider offers. For residential users, the download speed will ever be higher than the upload speed. The best way to get symmetry between the ii is to sign up for a business-level service if possible. It volition guarantee you the Internet access provider's declared upload speed at any time. This, in turn, provides stability and reliability to ensure smooth live streams.

In terms of sheer speed, the expert news is that cyberspace connections are becoming faster across the lath. Technologies such equally fiber-optic internet are bringing college speeds to your workplace or home — if fiber is offered in your area, that is.

And so, the first pace in obtaining a good upload speed for streaming is to switch to an ISP that offers the speed you need. Be prepared to pay more for more than speed, though. Also, brand certain yous inquire around about the quality of their service.

If y'all're stuck with a provider that offers suboptimal speeds, you lot can still do a couple of things to ameliorate your situation:

  • Get a wired connectedness. Your WiFi might be great when it comes to watching YouTube videos on your smartphone or checking social media. But when alive streaming, a wired connection with an ethernet cable is ameliorate. Information technology gives y'all less interference and more stability, which leads to meliorate stream quality.
  • Remove excess devices from your network. You don't want your internet connection to exist crowded when you starting time streaming. Don't allow any other device grunter your upload speed, and disconnect them from your network or plow off their WiFi capabilities during your stream.
  • Shut excess programs and apps on your reckoner. The only affair that should be uploading when you stream is your encoder. Peer-to-peer networking has probably ruined its fair share of live streams, so expect until you're off the air.
  • Utilize cloud-based multistreaming. Multistreaming, or streaming live to several platforms at the same time, is incredibly useful for content creators. It helps achieve new audiences, saves time, and offers great tools from various platforms. Unfortunately, it can as well exist enervating on your CPU and bandwidth. To deal with information technology, apply a cloud-based multistreaming service to acquit some of that load.
  • Remove malware; utilise ad blockers and privacy tools. Malware, ads, and online tracking can utilise up some of your upload bandwidth. Remove, cease, or block any of these speed-leeching undesired programs.
  • Apply upwardly-to-appointment software and hardware. Old drivers can slow your figurer down, and sometime modems can clogging your upload speed. Make sure your hardware and software are up to the task of streaming live video.

🔥 How to stream with a depression upload speed

With Restream Events, yous can bypass the upload speed inconveniences. How? Our feature allows y'all to upload your pre-recorded videos, schedule them, and set them to go live later every bit if they were regular streams. With this method, your upload speed doesn't matter. Afterwards y'all upload your video, Restream volition broadcast it at the scheduled time automatically, and then you don't even have to exist online.

Learn more than 👉 Restream Events: Everything you lot need to know

Bonus tip: Thanks to our multistreaming technology, you can schedule and live stream your pre-recorded content to peak platforms, like YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Twitch, and more, all at the same time.

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Conclusion

Every bit a live video streamer, the quality of your content will depend on the quality of your broadcast. That's a fact. You tin can have the best skills in the most popular games, or the all-time banter, or the greatest sense of humour. But if people can't see and hear y'all well, they're non going to stick around to watch your stream.

Upload speeds tin significantly bear upon the quality of your broadcasts. Use a connectedness with enough upload speed for the blazon of content you circulate.

Call back, you shouldn't become for the highest possible upload speed by default. Yous but demand it if you're planning to stream at a very loftier bitrate. A good upload speed is the i that'due south appropriate for your goals.