Intro

Live streaming requires two things: powerful hardware and a good internet upload speed.

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

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

A good upload speed allows you to stream the content you want to the platform of your choice without any major issues. It should likewise be capable of delivering your content at a quality that will not disadvantage yous 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 great answer, right? There are some generally accepted values for good upload speeds, which are worth knowing. Merely we'll too dig a flake deeper to detect a adept upload speed for your detail live stream needs.

🤓 Understanding download/upload speeds

What practice you think people practise the nigh online? We know that the nearly pop website in the world is Google. It's followed by YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and Wikipedia. So that's one search engine, an encyclopedia, two social networks, and a video platform/social network.

People swallow content online. They seek information technology out, place it, and then read, listen, or watch it. To exist able to practice that, their devices need to ingest data, which comes to them in the class of bits. Your internet connection's download rate shows yous how many $.25 of data your computer or device can accept in from the internet using that connectedness. Unremarkably, the rate (also referred to as bitrate) is expressed in millions of bits — or megabits — per second (Mbps).

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

When you create content and want to share it online, it's your connexion'southward upload rate that matters the most. Information technology'southward the same as the download rate; it but works the other way around, showing how many bits of data y'all can share per 2d. It's also expressed in Mbps. Information shows that, globally, upload rates are slower than download rates.

👀 What is a good upload speed for streaming?

Streaming live video can have upward a lot of bandwidth. Just how much volition depend on several factors. Encoding matters, merely then does the type of content you want to stream. Platforms play a part, as do the resolution (expressed in pixels, or p) and the frame rate (frames per second, or fps) of your stream.

Say yous want to live stream a video of yourself interviewing someone. You're choosing between Facebook Live, YouTube Alive, 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 1,500 and 4,000 kbps for video, plus 128 kbps for audio.
  • Twitch recommends a range between 2,500 and 4,000 kbps for video, plus upwards to 160 kbps for sound.

If you're streaming alive video at a resolution of 720p, at xxx frames per second, y'all volition upload upwards to 4,160 kilobits, or 4.16 Mbps, of data per second. So having an upload bandwidth of around iv Mbps should cover you, right?

Not quite. You lot volition demand to upload up to four,160 kilobits of data per second constantly. Considering these speeds fluctuate, it's a good idea to take a 35% to 40% buffer. That puts us at an upload charge per unit of around 5,700 kilobits per second, or 5.7 Mbps. Still, if y'all are sure your net connectedness is stable, such a buffer might non be needed. Think, a stable connexion is as important as 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 yous tin can accomplish with your connection can be very different. That'due south why you lot should always test your upload speed using online speed tests. The number yous get from these tests should exist up to five.7 Mbps if yous want to stream 720p video at 30 frames per 2d.

Read later: The only multistreaming guide you'll ever demand 📍

💁‍♂️ The many variables affecting upload speed requirements

The 5.vii Mbps upload speed for 720p video at thirty frames per 2d is the upper limit. You tin all the same alive stream 720p video with a lower upload speed. If the whole video is a single shot of you talking, iv,000 kbps might be besides high of a bitrate. You would probably be fine if you reduced it by half.

If, on the other hand, you want to stream video games or events with tons of visual information, four,000 kbps is necessary. The faster the pace of the visuals, the higher your bitrate should be. The blazon of content y'all stream affects what a good upload speed is for you.

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

Nonetheless, more frames per 2nd requires a college bitrate. For Twitch, it pushes the range for 720p video to between iii,500 and v,000 kbps. YouTube Live recommends two,250 to 6,000 Kbps. When you factor in these requirements, that's a 6.two Mbps upload speed for Twitch and 7.4 Mbps for YouTube Live if yous want to stream 720p video at sixty frames per second. Too, continue in mind that these are simply the highest optimal values.

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

On Facebook, outset streamers can merely stream up to 720p video, so there'southward no need to accept more than 5 Mbps. In order to live stream Full HD videos, you demand to apply for their Level Upwards affiliate program.

Twitch allows upwardly to 1080p video at 60 frames per second. You'll demand an upload speed of up to vii.four Mbps to support that.

YouTube Live supports 4k live streaming at sixty 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'southward just above 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 too, you cannot beget to autumn backside on video quality. Better quality requires higher upload speeds, and so the competition will eventually push you to increase your upload charge per unit.

🤩 What upload speeds should I be aiming for?

With all these variables in heed, you lot shouldn't ask what a "adept" upload speed is. Instead, it'southward improve to ask which speed y'all should aim for in your circumstances.

Which bitrates and respective upload rates do the three major streaming platforms suggest streamers to employ? We'll segment by platform, resolution, and frames per 2d, where applicative.

Facebook Alive:

  • Recommended max bitrate of iv,000 kbps for video.
  • Recommended audio bitrate is upwardly to 128 kbps.
  • Maximum resolution is 1080p, with threescore 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 sixty frames per 2nd, aim for an upload speed of roughly three to 4 Mbps.

Twitch:

  • For 720p video at 30 frames per second, bitrate should be betwixt 2,500 and iv,000 kbps. That requires upload speeds betwixt iii.ii Mbps and 5 Mbps.
  • For 720p video at 60 frames per second, the bitrate should be between 3,500 and 5,000 kbps. Required upload speeds are between 4.4 Mbps and vi.2 Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at 30 frames per 2nd, the bitrate should be three,500 to 5,000 kbps – aforementioned as for 720p video at 60 fps. The required upload speeds are the same as well, betwixt 4.4 Mbps and 6.2 Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at 60 frames per second, the recommended bitrate is betwixt 4500 and 6000 kbps. The required upload speeds are between v.half dozen Mbps and 7.iv Mbps.

YouTube:

  • For 720p video at 30 frames per second, the range is 1,500 to 4,000 kbps. That's an upload speed between roughly ii Mbps and five Mbps.
  • For 720p video at lx frames per 2nd, the range is 2,250 to 6,000 kbps. Required upload speeds are between two.9 Mbps and 7.4 Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at 30 frames per second, the bitrate range is three,000 to half dozen,000 kbps. Required upload speeds are between 3.8 Mbps and 7.4 Mbps.
  • For 1080p video at 60 frames per second, the bitrate range is 4,500 to ix,000 kbps. In upload speeds, that ways between 5.vi Mbps and eleven Mbps.
  • For 1440p video at 30 frames per 2nd, the bitrate range is 6,000 to 13,000 kbps. That's between 7.4 Mbps and 15.eight Mbps in recommended upload speeds.
  • For 1440p video at 60 frames per 2nd, the range is 9,000 to eighteen,000 kbps. In upload speeds, that'south between 11 Mbps and 21.viii Mbps.
  • If you really want to alive stream 4k video, doing information technology at 30 frames per second will crave a bitrate between 13,000 and 34,000 kbps. In terms of upload speed, that's 15.8 Mbps and 41 Mbps.
  • To stream 4k video at threescore frames per second, the recommended bitrate range is 20,000 to 51,000 kbps. You'll need an upload speed between 24.2 Mbps and 61.5 Mbps.

As y'all can run across, YouTube offers the highest-quality live streaming. Facebook is the most attainable, while Twitch is even so the gamer'due south 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 one thing, merely getting admission to that speed is something completely different.

The upload speed you can achieve depends on the service packages your Internet service provider offers. For residential users, the download speed will always exist college than the upload speed. The all-time mode to get symmetry between the two is to sign up for a business concern-level service if possible. It volition guarantee y'all the Isp's declared upload speed at any time. This, in plough, provides stability and reliability to ensure smooth live streams.

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

So, the first step in obtaining a good upload speed for streaming is to switch to an ISP that offers the speed you demand. Be prepared to pay more for more speed, though. Also, brand sure yous enquire around about the quality of their service.

If you lot're stuck with a provider that offers suboptimal speeds, yous can however practice a couple of things to amend your situation:

  • Become a wired connexion. 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 amend. It gives you less interference and more stability, which leads to better stream quality.
  • Remove excess devices from your network. You lot don't want your cyberspace connexion to be crowded when y'all start streaming. Don't allow any other device hog your upload speed, and disconnect them from your network or turn off their WiFi capabilities during your stream.
  • Close backlog programs and apps on your reckoner. The just 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 wait until you're off the air.
  • Employ cloud-based multistreaming. Multistreaming, or streaming live to several platforms at the same fourth dimension, is incredibly useful for content creators. Information technology helps reach new audiences, saves fourth dimension, and offers great tools from various platforms. Unfortunately, it can also be demanding on your CPU and bandwidth. To deal with it, employ a cloud-based multistreaming service to bear some of that load.
  • Remove malware; employ ad blockers and privacy tools. Malware, ads, and online tracking can use upwards some of your upload bandwidth. Remove, stop, or block any of these speed-leeching undesired programs.
  • Use up-to-appointment software and hardware. Former drivers can slow your computer down, and old modems tin can bottleneck 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, y'all can bypass the upload speed inconveniences. How? Our feature allows you lot to upload your pre-recorded videos, schedule them, and set them to get alive later as 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 fourth dimension automatically, so y'all don't even take to be online.

Learn more 👉 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 top platforms, similar 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 volition depend on the quality of your broadcast. That's a fact. You tin have the best skills in the near popular games, or the all-time banter, or the greatest sense of humor. Merely if people can't encounter and hear you well, they're non going to stick around to sentry your stream.

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

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