Intro

Live streaming requires two things: powerful hardware and a proficient net upload speed.

Yous tin can discover hardware that handles encoding for live video (and playing video games simultaneously) in a smartphone or a decent computer. Getting a skillful upload speed for streaming is trickier.

Before yous kickoff calling your ISP to ask near more bandwidth, yous need to know what a good upload speed for streaming is. Unfortunately, there'southward no straightforward answer to this question.

A good upload speed allows y'all to stream the content you desire to the platform of your choice without whatsoever major issues. It should also be capable of delivering your content at a quality that will not disadvantage you or make your stream less appealing than others.

Basically, anything between 672 kbps and 61.five Mbps is ideal.

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

Not a dandy answer, right? There are some by and large accepted values for skilful upload speeds, which are worth knowing. But we'll as well dig a flake deeper to discover a expert upload speed for your particular live stream needs.

🤓 Understanding download/upload speeds

What practise you think people do the almost online? We know that the most popular website in the world is Google. It'south followed by YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Wikipedia. Then that'due south one search engine, an encyclopedia, two social networks, and a video platform/social network.

People consume content online. They seek it out, place it, and and so read, listen, or sentry it. To be able to practice that, their devices need to ingest data, which comes to them in the form of $.25. Your internet connection'due south download rate shows you how many bits of data your estimator or device can take in from the cyberspace using that connection. Usually, the rate (besides referred to equally bitrate) is expressed in millions of bits — or megabits — per second (Mbps).

It's your connectedness'southward upload rate that matters the nigh.

When you create content and want to share it online, it's your connection'southward upload rate that matters the most. Information technology's the same as the download charge per unit; it simply works the other way effectually, showing how many bits of information you can share per second. It's also expressed in Mbps. Data shows that, globally, upload rates are slower than download rates.

👀 What is a practiced upload speed for streaming?

Streaming alive video can accept up a lot of bandwidth. Just how much will depend on several factors. Encoding matters, but so does the type of content y'all desire to stream. Platforms play a part, as do the resolution (expressed in pixels, or p) and the frame charge per unit (frames per 2d, or fps) of your stream.

Say you lot want to alive stream a video of yourself interviewing someone. You're choosing between Facebook Live, YouTube Live, and Twitch. Since all these platforms back up alive streaming video resolution of 720p, we'll utilize the bitrate recommendations from each platform:

  • Facebook Live recommends a max bitrate of four,000 kbps, plus a max audio bitrate of 128 kbps.
  • YouTube Live recommends a range betwixt 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 upwards to 160 kbps for audio.

If you're streaming live video at a resolution of 720p, at 30 frames per second, you will upload upward to four,160 kilobits, or 4.16 Mbps, of information per second. Then having an upload bandwidth of effectually iv Mbps should cover you, right?

Not quite. You will need to upload up to iv,160 kilobits of data per 2nd constantly. Because these speeds fluctuate, it'due south a skilful thought to accept a 35% to twoscore% buffer. That puts the states at an upload charge per unit of effectually 5,700 kilobits per second, or v.7 Mbps. However, if yous are sure your internet connection is stable, such a buffer might not be needed. Call up, a stable connection is as important every bit upload speed!

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

For diverse reasons, your Isp'due south declared upload bandwidth and the bodily upload speed you can achieve with your connection can exist very unlike. That'south why you should always test your upload speed using online speed tests. The number you get from these tests should be up to 5.7 Mbps if you desire to stream 720p video at 30 frames per second.

Read after: The merely multistreaming guide you'll ever need 📍

💁‍♂️ The many variables affecting upload speed requirements

The 5.vii Mbps upload speed for 720p video at 30 frames per 2d is the upper limit. You tin can still live stream 720p video with a lower upload speed. If the whole video is a single shot of you talking, 4,000 kbps might be too high of a bitrate. Yous would probably be fine if you reduced information technology past one-half.

If, on the other hand, you lot want to stream video games or events with tons of visual information, four,000 kbps is necessary. The faster the step of the visuals, the college your bitrate should be. The type of content you stream affects what a good upload speed is for yous.

Let's stay with video games. If you're streaming games with fast-paced activity, yous should ensure that your viewers see what's going on equally clearly as possible. Yous might want to stream at more than 30 frames per 2d.

However, more than frames per 2d requires a higher bitrate. For Twitch, information technology pushes the range for 720p video to between 3,500 and 5,000 kbps. YouTube Alive recommends ii,250 to six,000 Kbps. When you cistron in these requirements, that's a vi.2 Mbps upload speed for Twitch and 7.4 Mbps for YouTube Live if you want to stream 720p video at sixty frames per second. Also, keep in heed that these are just the highest optimal values.

A good upload speed for your live streaming volition vary from one platform to some other.

On Facebook, commencement streamers tin can simply stream upward to 720p video, and then there'south no need to have more than five Mbps. In club to live stream Full Hd videos, you need to utilise for their Level Upwardly affiliate programme.

Twitch allows up to 1080p video at 60 frames per second. Y'all'll need 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's only to a higher place the average upload speed in the District of Columbia, the area with the highest median upload speed in the United States.

Finally, your competitors might impact your upload speed requirements. Twitch and YouTube are crowded with streamers trying to use the platforms to generate income. If you're streaming as well, yous cannot beget to autumn backside on video quality. Ameliorate quality requires college upload speeds, so the competition will somewhen push you to increase your upload rate.

🤩 What upload speeds should I be aiming for?

With all these variables in mind, yous shouldn't inquire what a "good" upload speed is. Instead, information technology's better to ask which speed you should aim for in your circumstances.

Which bitrates and respective upload rates do the three major streaming platforms advise 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 2d. Aim for an upload speed of 6 to 7 Mbps (although Facebook limits almost accounts to 720p resolution).
  • For 720p video at 30 or 60 frames per second, aim for an upload speed of roughly three to 4 Mbps.

Twitch:

  • For 720p video at thirty frames per second, bitrate should be between two,500 and four,000 kbps. That requires upload speeds between 3.2 Mbps and 5 Mbps.
  • For 720p video at lx frames per second, the bitrate should be between three,500 and 5,000 kbps. Required upload speeds are betwixt 4.4 Mbps and 6.2 Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at thirty frames per second, the bitrate should be 3,500 to 5,000 kbps – same as for 720p video at 60 fps. The required upload speeds are the same likewise, between 4.four Mbps and vi.2 Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at 60 frames per second, the recommended bitrate is between 4500 and 6000 kbps. The required upload speeds are between v.half dozen Mbps and 7.four Mbps.

YouTube:

  • For 720p video at xxx frames per second, the range is 1,500 to 4,000 kbps. That's an upload speed between roughly two Mbps and 5 Mbps.
  • For 720p video at 60 frames per second, the range is two,250 to vi,000 kbps. Required upload speeds are between 2.9 Mbps and 7.4 Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at 30 frames per 2nd, the bitrate range is 3,000 to vi,000 kbps. Required upload speeds are between 3.viii Mbps and 7.4 Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at threescore frames per 2nd, the bitrate range is iv,500 to 9,000 kbps. In upload speeds, that means between v.6 Mbps and 11 Mbps.
  • For 1440p video at thirty frames per 2nd, the bitrate range is six,000 to 13,000 kbps. That'south between 7.4 Mbps and 15.8 Mbps in recommended upload speeds.
  • For 1440p video at sixty frames per second, the range is 9,000 to 18,000 kbps. In upload speeds, that'south between eleven Mbps and 21.8 Mbps.
  • If you really want to live stream 4k video, doing it at 30 frames per second volition crave a bitrate between thirteen,000 and 34,000 kbps. In terms of upload speed, that'southward xv.8 Mbps and 41 Mbps.
  • To stream 4k video at threescore frames per second, the recommended bitrate range is xx,000 to 51,000 kbps. You'll need an upload speed between 24.2 Mbps and 61.five Mbps.

As you tin come across, YouTube offers the highest-quality live streaming. Facebook is the most accessible, while Twitch is nonetheless the gamer's haven.

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

👉 How to get a good upload speed for streaming

Computing your desired upload speed is ane thing, but getting admission to that speed is something completely dissimilar.

The upload speed you lot can attain depends on the service packages your ISP offers. For residential users, the download speed will always be higher than the upload speed. The best way to get symmetry betwixt the two is to sign up for a business organization-level service if possible. It volition guarantee you the ISP's declared upload speed at whatever time. This, in turn, provides stability and reliability to ensure smooth alive streams.

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

And then, the first step in obtaining a expert upload speed for streaming is to switch to an Internet access provider that offers the speed y'all need. Exist prepared to pay more for more speed, though. Likewise, brand sure yous inquire around about the quality of their service.

If you're stuck with a provider that offers suboptimal speeds, y'all can withal practise a couple of things to improve your situation:

  • Get a wired connection. Your WiFi might be great when it comes to watching YouTube videos on your smartphone or checking social media. But when live streaming, a wired connection with an ethernet cable is better. Information technology gives you less interference and more stability, which leads to better stream quality.
  • Remove backlog devices from your network. You lot don't want your internet connection to be crowded when you start streaming. Don't let any other device hog your upload speed, and disconnect them from your network or turn off their WiFi capabilities during your stream.
  • Shut excess programs and apps on your reckoner. The merely thing that should be uploading when you stream is your encoder. Peer-to-peer networking has probably ruined its fair share of alive streams, and so wait until you're off the air.
  • Use deject-based multistreaming. Multistreaming, or streaming alive to several platforms at the same time, is incredibly useful for content creators. It helps reach new audiences, saves fourth dimension, and offers great tools from various platforms. Unfortunately, it can also exist demanding on your CPU and bandwidth. To deal with information technology, use a deject-based multistreaming service to behave some of that load.
  • Remove malware; utilise advert blockers and privacy tools. Malware, ads, and online tracking can apply upward some of your upload bandwidth. Remove, stop, or cake whatsoever of these speed-leeching undesired programs.
  • Employ upward-to-date software and hardware. Old drivers can boring your figurer down, and old modems can bottleneck your upload speed. Make sure your hardware and software are upward to the task of streaming live video.

🔥 How to stream with a low upload speed

With Restream Events, you can featherbed the upload speed inconveniences. How? Our feature allows you lot to upload your pre-recorded videos, schedule them, and prepare them to go live later every bit if they were regular streams. With this method, your upload speed doesn't matter. After you upload your video, Restream volition broadcast it at the scheduled time automatically, so you don't even take to be online.

Acquire more 👉 Restream Events: Everything you need to know

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

restream

Multiply your views and engagement

Reach a wider audience past streaming to multiple platforms simultaneously.

Go Started

Determination

As a alive video streamer, the quality of your content will depend on the quality of your broadcast. That'south a fact. You can have the best skills in the nigh popular games, or the best banter, or the greatest sense of humor. But if people can't run into and hear you well, they're not going to stick around to watch your stream.

Upload speeds can significantly affect the quality of your broadcasts. Use a connection with plenty upload speed for the type of content you lot broadcast.

Remember, you shouldn't go for the highest possible upload speed by default. You only need it if you're planning to stream at a very high bitrate. A good upload speed is the one that'due south appropriate for your goals.