Intro

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

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

Before you start calling your Internet access provider to inquire almost more bandwidth, you demand to know what a good upload speed for streaming is. Unfortunately, there's no straightforward answer to this question.

A proficient upload speed allows you lot to stream the content you lot want to the platform of your choice without any major problems. It should too exist capable of delivering your content at a quality that will not disadvantage you or make your stream less appealing than others.

Basically, annihilation 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 great respond, right? There are some more often than not accepted values for good upload speeds, which are worth knowing. But we'll also dig a chip deeper to find a expert upload speed for your particular live stream needs.

🤓 Understanding download/upload speeds

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

People consume content online. They seek information technology out, identify it, and so read, listen, or lookout man it. To exist able to do that, their devices need to ingest data, which comes to them in the form of bits. Your cyberspace connection'south download rate shows you lot how many bits of data your estimator or device can take in from the internet using that connexion. Unremarkably, the rate (also referred to equally bitrate) is expressed in millions of bits — or megabits — per second (Mbps).

It's your connectedness'south upload charge per unit that matters the nigh.

When you create content and desire to share it online, it's your connection'southward upload charge per unit that matters the almost. It's the same as the download rate; it just works the other way around, showing how many bits of data you tin 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 live video can take upward a lot of bandwidth. Just how much will depend on several factors. Encoding matters, but so does the blazon of content you lot desire to stream. Platforms play a office, as do the resolution (expressed in pixels, or p) and the frame rate (frames per 2nd, or fps) of your stream.

Say you lot want to live 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, we'll use the bitrate recommendations from each platform:

  • Facebook Live recommends a max bitrate of 4,000 kbps, plus a max audio bitrate of 128 kbps.
  • YouTube Live recommends a range betwixt i,500 and iv,000 kbps for video, plus 128 kbps for sound.
  • Twitch recommends a range between 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 data per 2d. So having an upload bandwidth of around 4 Mbps should cover you, right?

Not quite. You will demand to upload upwardly to 4,160 kilobits of information per second constantly. Because these speeds fluctuate, it'due south a proficient idea to accept a 35% to 40% buffer. That puts u.s. at an upload rate of effectually 5,700 kilobits per 2d, or v.7 Mbps. Still, if you are sure your cyberspace connectedness is stable, such a buffer might not exist needed. Remember, a stable connectedness is every bit of import every bit upload speed!

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

For various reasons, your ISP's declared upload bandwidth and the actual upload speed you tin achieve with your connection can be very dissimilar. That'southward why you should ever examination your upload speed using online speed tests. The number y'all get from these tests should exist up to 5.7 Mbps if you lot desire to stream 720p video at thirty frames per second.

Read later: The but multistreaming guide you'll ever need 📍

💁‍♂️ The many variables affecting upload speed requirements

The 5.7 Mbps upload speed for 720p video at 30 frames per second is the upper limit. You can still live stream 720p video with a lower upload speed. If the whole video is a unmarried shot of you lot talking, 4,000 kbps might be besides high of a bitrate. You would probably exist fine if yous reduced it by one-half.

If, on the other paw, you desire to stream video games or events with tons of visual data, 4,000 kbps is necessary. The faster the pace of the visuals, the higher your bitrate should exist. The type of content you lot stream affects what a good upload speed is for you.

Let'due south stay with video games. If yous're streaming games with fast-paced activeness, you should ensure that your viewers come across what'south going on every bit conspicuously equally possible. You might desire to stream at more than 30 frames per 2d.

Nevertheless, more than frames per second requires a college bitrate. For Twitch, information technology pushes the range for 720p video to between iii,500 and v,000 kbps. YouTube Live recommends 2,250 to half dozen,000 Kbps. When you factor in these requirements, that'south a 6.two Mbps upload speed for Twitch and 7.four Mbps for YouTube Alive if you want to stream 720p video at sixty frames per 2nd. Also, keep in heed that these are just the highest optimal values.

A skillful upload speed for your alive streaming will vary from one platform to another.

On Facebook, starting time streamers tin can only stream up to 720p video, so in that location's no need to accept more than 5 Mbps. In lodge to alive stream Full Hard disk videos, you need to apply for their Level Up affiliate program.

Twitch allows upwardly to 1080p video at 60 frames per 2nd. You'll need an upload speed of up to 7.iv Mbps to support that.

YouTube Live supports 4k live streaming at 60 frames per second. Information technology recommends a bitrate in the range of 20,000 to 51,000 kbps. You'd demand an upload speed of 68.eight Mbps to pull that off. That's just in a higher place the boilerplate upload speed in the Commune of Columbia, the area with the highest median upload speed in the United States.

Finally, your competitors might touch on 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. Better quality requires higher upload speeds, so the competition will eventually push button you to increment your upload charge per unit.

🤩 What upload speeds should I be aiming for?

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

Which bitrates and corresponding upload rates do the iii major streaming platforms advise streamers to utilise? We'll segment by platform, resolution, and frames per 2d, where applicable.

Facebook Alive:

  • Recommended max bitrate of 4,000 kbps for video.
  • Recommended audio bitrate is upwards 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 most accounts to 720p resolution).
  • For 720p video at 30 or sixty frames per second, aim for an upload speed of roughly 3 to 4 Mbps.

Twitch:

  • For 720p video at 30 frames per second, bitrate should be betwixt 2,500 and 4,000 kbps. That requires upload speeds betwixt 3.2 Mbps and 5 Mbps.
  • For 720p video at 60 frames per second, the bitrate should be between 3,500 and five,000 kbps. Required upload speeds are betwixt 4.4 Mbps and 6.two Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at 30 frames per second, the bitrate should be 3,500 to five,000 kbps – aforementioned every bit for 720p video at threescore fps. The required upload speeds are the aforementioned too, between 4.4 Mbps and 6.2 Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at threescore frames per second, the recommended bitrate is between 4500 and 6000 kbps. The required upload speeds are between v.half dozen Mbps and 7.4 Mbps.

YouTube:

  • For 720p video at 30 frames per second, the range is ane,500 to four,000 kbps. That'southward an upload speed betwixt roughly 2 Mbps and 5 Mbps.
  • For 720p video at sixty frames per 2nd, the range is ii,250 to 6,000 kbps. Required upload speeds are between 2.nine Mbps and seven.4 Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at 30 frames per second, the bitrate range is three,000 to 6,000 kbps. Required upload speeds are betwixt 3.viii Mbps and 7.4 Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at 60 frames per second, the bitrate range is 4,500 to 9,000 kbps. In upload speeds, that means between 5.6 Mbps and 11 Mbps.
  • For 1440p video at 30 frames per 2d, the bitrate range is half dozen,000 to 13,000 kbps. That'south between 7.4 Mbps and 15.8 Mbps in recommended upload speeds.
  • For 1440p video at 60 frames per 2d, the range is 9,000 to xviii,000 kbps. In upload speeds, that's betwixt xi Mbps and 21.8 Mbps.
  • If you really desire to live stream 4k video, doing it at 30 frames per second will require a bitrate betwixt 13,000 and 34,000 kbps. In terms of upload speed, that'southward 15.8 Mbps and 41 Mbps.
  • To stream 4k video at 60 frames per second, the recommended bitrate range is twenty,000 to 51,000 kbps. Yous'll need an upload speed between 24.ii Mbps and 61.5 Mbps.

As you tin can see, YouTube offers the highest-quality live streaming. Facebook is the nigh accessible, while Twitch is still the gamer'due south haven.

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

👉 How to get a skilful upload speed for streaming

Computing your desired upload speed is one affair, only getting access to that speed is something completely different.

The upload speed you can achieve 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 between the two is to sign up for a business-level service if possible. It will guarantee you the Isp's declared upload speed at whatever fourth dimension. This, in turn, provides stability and reliability to ensure smooth live streams.

In terms of sheer speed, the good news is that cyberspace connections are condign 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 so, the kickoff step 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 speed, though. Also, make certain yous ask around about the quality of their service.

If you're stuck with a provider that offers suboptimal speeds, you tin still do a couple of things to meliorate your state of affairs:

  • Go a wired connexion. Your WiFi might exist groovy when information technology comes to watching YouTube videos on your smartphone or checking social media. But when alive streaming, a wired connexion with an ethernet cablevision is meliorate. Information technology gives y'all less interference and more than stability, which leads to meliorate stream quality.
  • Remove excess devices from your network. You don't desire your internet connection to exist crowded when you kickoff 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.
  • Close excess programs and apps on your computer. The only thing that should be uploading when yous stream is your encoder. Peer-to-peer networking has probably ruined its fair share of live streams, so await until you're off the air.
  • Use cloud-based multistreaming. Multistreaming, or streaming live to several platforms at the same time, is incredibly useful for content creators. Information technology helps reach new audiences, saves time, and offers great tools from diverse platforms. Unfortunately, it can also exist enervating on your CPU and bandwidth. To bargain with it, use a cloud-based multistreaming service to bear some of that load.
  • Remove malware; use ad blockers and privacy tools. Malware, ads, and online tracking tin use upward some of your upload bandwidth. Remove, stop, or block any of these speed-leeching undesired programs.
  • Use up-to-date software and hardware. Erstwhile drivers can tedious your computer down, and old modems can bottleneck your upload speed. Brand certain your hardware and software are upwards to the job of streaming live video.

🔥 How to stream with a low upload speed

With Restream Events, you tin featherbed the upload speed inconveniences. How? Our feature allows you lot to upload your pre-recorded videos, schedule them, and set them to become live subsequently as if they were regular streams. With this method, your upload speed doesn't matter. Subsequently you upload your video, Restream will broadcast it at the scheduled time automatically, and then y'all don't fifty-fifty take to exist online.

Larn more 👉 Restream Events: Everything you need to know

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Conclusion

Equally a live video streamer, the quality of your content will depend on the quality of your broadcast. That's a fact. Yous can have the all-time skills in the most pop games, or the all-time banter, or the greatest sense of humour. But if people tin't encounter and hear you lot well, they're not going to stick around to watch your stream.

Upload speeds can significantly bear upon the quality of your broadcasts. Use a connexion with plenty upload speed for the type of content you broadcast.

Remember, you shouldn't become for the highest possible upload speed by default. You simply need it if you're planning to stream at a very loftier bitrate. A good upload speed is the one that'south advisable for your goals.