How to Add Twitch Chat to OBS in 2024 (Fast Method)

As a small business owner who has experience with live streaming, I know that interacting with your audience in real time is critical for building engagement and loyalty. Having your Twitch chat directly visible in OBS Studio makes it much easier to see and respond to messages from viewers.

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In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll provide step-by-step instructions to quickly add a Twitch chat overlay in OBS Studio on Windows or Mac. I‘ll also explain the significant benefits of displaying chat in OBS based on my experience as an entrepreneurial live streamer.

Why You Should Display Twitch Chat in OBS

Integrating your Twitch chat directly into your OBS workflow provides some major advantages:

  • Improved viewer interaction: See new messages instantly without looking away. This allows you to have natural conversations with your audience.
  • Simplified streaming setup: Keep all your tools conveniently in one place instead of toggling between apps and windows.
  • Customizable appearance: Tailor the visual style of the chat overlay to match your brand colors and aesthetics.
  • Flexible positioning: Move, resize, and place the chat feed anywhere on your scene that works best.
  • Easy visibility toggling: Toggle the chat overlay on or off with a click when needed.

According to StreamElements, active engagement with your Twitch chat can increase follows and viewership by up to 30%.

Step 1: Get Your Twitch Chat URL

To add Twitch chat into OBS, you first need to retrieve the unique URL for your channel‘s popout chat feed:

  1. Go to your Twitch channel page while logged in.
  2. Click the gear icon in the bottom right of chat to open Chat Settings.
  3. Select Popout Chat. This opens the feed in a separate browser window.
  4. Copy the URL from the address bar. It will begin with "www.twitch.tv/popout/…"

[Here is a screenshot of where to find the Popout Chat option]

Be sure to copy the full URL from your own channel‘s popout chat, not a generic example. This URL connects the OBS source directly to your live chat.

Step 2: Set Up Chat Source in OBS Studio

With the URL in hand, it‘s time to add your Twitch chat into OBS Studio:

  1. Open OBS Studio and access the Scene you want the chat overlay in.
  2. Click the + button to add a new Source. Select Browser.
  3. Name it something like "Twitch Chat" for easy recognition.
  4. Paste your copied Popout Chat URL into the URL field.
  5. Set Width and Height values suitable for your chat box size. I recommend at least 600x400px.
  6. Click OK to add the Browser source. Your Twitch chat will now appear!

Step 3: Customize the Chat Overlay

A major benefit of using Browser Source is that you can customize the appearance and behavior of your Twitch chat feed:

  • Resize, drag, and position the chat box anywhere on your scene. I put mine in the upper right corner.
  • Right-click > Interact to change transparency, text size, scroll speed, and scrollback amount.
  • Add a Color Key filter to make the background transparent.
  • Add custom CSS for customized appearance.

Don‘t be afraid to tweak the chat visuals until they integrate nicely into your stream layout. This extra polish makes your stream look professional.

And that‘s all it takes to get your Twitch live chat showing directly in OBS Studio! Let me know if you have any other questions. I‘m always happy to help fellow small business live streamers.

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