It’s hard for me to think of a social media platform that holds more of a community than Twitch. The ability for viewers to interact with a streamer one-on-one and to other viewers in real-time is very fascinating.
One of the most interesting aspects of Twitch streams are the Twitch emotes. The ability for users to be able to create Twitch emotes and to share emoticons in chat as a form of communication is mind-blowing. It almost seems as if the Twitch community has created a new universal language between each other with graphics.
Twitch emotes are always changing based on new trends, memes, and cultural events. Since followers are allowed to create their own emoticons, we get questions all the time about free Twitch emote makers and the best Twitch emote sizes.
I’ve created a full guide on Twitch offline banners, panel sizes, cover photos, but have yet to discuss Twitch emoticons. Here is a full guide on everything you need to know about Twitch emoticons and the proper Twitch emote dimensions so you can get started on your own!
What is a Twitch Emoticon?
A Twitch emoticon is used in a real-time chat by viewers of a Twitch livestream. Twitch emotes are used as a way to communicate or react to something that is happening in the livestream.
Twitch emotes are created by the host of a livestream so that stream viewers can use to interact with the live video. Emoticons are typically created based off of trends, memes, and images that are relevant to a specific Twitch stream.
Polygon says it perfectly, as they state, “[an] emote’s meaning in one community can be totally different in another.”
What is the best Twitch Emote Size?
The best Twitch emote sizes are 28 x 28 pixels for web, 56 x 56 pixels for Retina display, and 112 x 112 for larger platforms. These dimensions have an aspect ratio of 1:1 and Twitch requires that you submit your emotes in all three sizes.
Remember, your Twitch emote file size cannot be larger than 25kb, have a transparent background, and must be saved as a PNG. file format in order to be approved.
Twitch Emote Guidelines
Before you’re able to use your Twitch emoticons, you’ll have to make sure that your design follows the Twitch emote guidelines set out by the platform. Once your emoji is submitted, it will go through a Twitch emote approval process.
Twitch outlines the full requirements clearly on their website. However, there is a ton of unnecessary information, so I will outline the main Twitch emote guidelines down below:
- You must submit the Twitch emotes in three dimensions (28 x 28, 56 x 56, 112 x 112)
- The images must be a PNG. file format
- The emote must have a transparent background
- File size cannot exceed 25kb
- No copyrighted images, names, or logos
The Twitch emote approval time depends on your account standing. If you are in good standing, you’ll be able to have your emoticons & badges approved quicker. If your account isn’t in great standing, Twitch will need to manually approve emotes and badges.
Free Twitch Emote Maker
Now that you have all the information needed to create an emoticon, you’re probably wondering how exactly can you create a Twitch emote. To keep it simple, you can create Twitch emotes in less than 5 minutes with Snappa.
First off, you want to create a design with the proper Twitch emote size that we discussed. We’ll start with the largest dimensions (112 x 112 pixels) and we will be able to easily resize the design later.
Next, you’ll want to pick an image/icon to use for your emoji. You can search our free stock photo & icon library or you can alternatively upload your own image into Snappa.
With the Twitch guidelines in mind, you’ll want to make sure that you remove the background in your images. So if your photo has a background, I would recommend using a tool called remove.bg before uploading the image into Snappa.
Once you have your image and your Twitch emote is created, you will need to export the image with the right settings so that it is approved by Twitch. You’ll need to make sure that the “Transparent Background” setting is checked and that you’re exporting the image as a PNG.
Once you have the first emote size, you will need to resize the design with the dimensions 56 x 56 pixels and 28 x 28 pixels and export them with the exact same settings as above. You should have all three of your Twitch emotes once all three of them are exported into your downloads!
If you’re looking to optimize and compress the image even more so that it fulfills the 25kb file size requirement. You can use a tool like TinyPNG.com to reduce the file size without really losing any photo quality.
Custom Twitch Emote List
If you’re not looking to create a custom Twitch emote yourself, there are plenty of different resources that you can use to purchase, commission, or retrieve free Twitch emotes. I’ve listed some of the best sources to get Twitch emoticons below:
BetterTTV
Known as Better Twitch TV, BetterTTV is a browser extension that enhances your Twitch experience. Using this free extension, you have access to more Twitch emoticons and are able to see and use some of the most popular Twitch emotes.
Twitch Emote List
If you’re looking for emoji inspiration or to see what emoticons your favorite streamers are using, I would use TwitchEmotes.com. You can use emotes found on the site, but you will need to obtain permission from the emote owner to use for your Twitch channel.
Twitch Subreddits
Just like Twitch, Reddit holds some great communities and you can find some Twitch communities within certain subreddits. If you’re looking for some professional custom Twitch emotes to be designed, I would recommend these two Twitch subreddits to commission artists from.
By posting and going through old posts within these subreddits and mega threads, you should be able to find some reputable designers to commission your custom Twitch emotes.
Commission Emote Artists on Twitch
Twitch hosts several artists who livestream on the platform. You can support another Twitch streamer by finding artists on Twitch to commission your custom quotes to.
You can navigate through the art channels and contact artists that suit your emoticon needs and get a quote!
Fiverr for Twitch TV
Another way to get customizable Twitch emojis at an affordable price is to use Fiverr. If you’re not the most creative person and would rather have someone else design the graphics for you, then Fiverr is a great place to start.
You can look for someone with great reviews and set a budget for the Twitch emotes that you will need. Remember to be clear and to state the exact type of designs that you’re looking for. It will help if you provide emote examples and ideas for the designer to reference.
Examples of Twitch Emote Ideas
There’s so many different ways that you can approach Twitch emoticons. The more relevant and creative your emotes are, the more likely a viewer will subscribe to your Twitch channel. Here are some Twitch emote ideas from some of the most popular Twitch streamers!
The first emote example is from streamer Amournanth who uses a simple approach with stock images. The addition of some added text onto the image makes it easy to understand and adds an element of creativity to the custom emotes. You can easily add text onto your emotes with Snappa.
The second example is from Faker who uses many custom Twitch emotes. He most likely commissioned his emojis and his approach with using images with icons stacked onto the photo is interesting!
The last example is from streamer NickEh30 who has Twitch emotes which are zoomed screenshots of his own face. He then adds a simple colored border around them. This is a simple emoticon that is super relevant because it’s his own stream and can easily be achieved by cropping an image and adding a border.
Final Thoughts
Being able to create and customize your own Twitch emotes is a great way to build a community with your audience. By creating a relevant emoticon list and encouraging your viewers to use them, you’ll have a lot more success with your live stream.
Especially as you’re trying to make money with Twitch, having strong emotes will encourage fans to subscribe to your channel and create more revenue for your page.
Have you designed Twitch emotes for your own live stream? Share some tips and tricks in the comments below!
