Live Set Up and Overview

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Patreon Live is currently available to creators who meet the following criteria:

While Patreon Live is not yet available to creators in the Adult/18+ category, we’re working to responsibly expand access for more creators and ensure the product meets our community's needs.

What is Live?

Live is another way creators can offer shared experiences to their members, right on Patreon. It lets you connect with your true fans in real time and is integrated with everything you do on Patreon.

Going Live from Patreon will immediately notify your members, whether it’s time to hang out and chat, give your biggest fans a behind-the-scenes experience, teach your members something new, or discuss upcoming releases. Each Live also has a Chat, letting you connect with your fans and letting them chat with one another – no more switching between apps.

Ticketed Livestreams (Beta)

We’re launching a new way for creators to host ticketed live events directly on Patreon, all within their creator page. We’re excited to help you bring these experiences to life with our new Ticketed Livestreams feature.

With Ticketed Livestreams, you’ll be able to:

  • Host paid or free live events for your fans
  • Sell tickets or include access as part of your membership
  • Stream natively on Patreon, with replay options for attendees
  • Keep your audience and earnings in one place

👉 Interested in joining the beta? Creators can indicate interest by filling out this form. We'll reach out directly if you're a good fit for the early access program and a spot becomes available. If you're already in the beta, check out our Ticketed Lives FAQ.

Quick start on how to go live

You can start a Live the same way you create any post.

  1. Click on Create from the left-side navigation (desktop) or from the bottom menu (app)
  2. Select Live

Once you're on the Live setup screen, you can customize everything from your title and audience to how you stream.

Keep reading below to learn how to set up your Live based on your device or preferred streaming method.

Setting up Live

You can use a desktop, the Patreon mobile app, or a third-party streaming software to go live. To host an audio-only Live, simply turn off your camera when setting up your stream.

  • You can go live directly from your computer using your webcam.

    Here's how to get started:

    1. Click on Create from the left-side navigation
    2. Select Live

    3. In the right side panel, find the Camera source section and select Computer webcam

      • When you select it for the first time, your browser will prompt you to grant camera and microphone permissions. Click Always Allow
    4. Adjust your Live settings:
      • Audience: You can go live to All Members (free and paid) or to any Paid members tier. For eligible creators, it's also possible to sell one-time access to a Live. Note: Ticketed access is currently in beta. Creators can share interest by filling out this form
      • About: Set your title and description. Your audience will see the title you created when they're notified about the event
      • Thumbnail: Upload an image in JPG, JPEG, PNG, or GIF, up to 2 GB. Recommended size 1024x1024px
      • Enable chat replay (On by default): If you keep chat replay enabled, viewers will be able to rewatch the recording with chat messages appearing in sync with the video timeline — just like during the original Live
      • More settings: Check other settings, such as Email and push notifications to alert members when you schedule or start a Live, and Auto-moderation to filter spam in chat
    5. Take a look at your Live preview before you go Live. Make sure you've allowed access to your camera and microphone and test your video and audio
      • Camera turned on, but your preview is not showing up? You may not have granted permission for Patreon to use your webcam's inputs. Head to your browser settings to change your permissions
    6. Want to host an audio-only live? In the live preview, select Computer webcam as the camera source, then go to the bottom of the preview screen to turn off the camera
    7. Ready to go? You can Go live now or Schedule a live for a specific day. Scheduling gives your members time to plan ahead — we'll also send them email and push notifications when your Live is coming up. You can enter your scheduled Live up to 5 minutes early to test your setup. Learn more about notifications we send for Live
    8. To finish your live, click End in the center of the Live viewer: Your recording is automatically saved to Drafts, where you can publish it as a post or download it for editing. After your Live ends, you'll return to your Library and see a summary of how many members joined and how active the chat was. If Chat Replay was enabled during setup, chat messages will appear in sync when viewers watch the recording later

  • You can go live directly from your phone using the phone's camera.

    Here's how to get started:

    1. Tap Create from the bottom menu
    2. Select Live
      • When you select it for the first time, your phone will ask for camera and microphone permissions. Tap Allow
    3. Set your audience, title, and description
    4. Select Settings to adjust advanced preferences
      • Display chat replay: Let viewers rewatch the stream with chat messages in sync
      • Auto-moderation: Filter spam or disruptive messages in chat
      • Notify members: Send email and app notifications when you schedule or start a Live

    5. Want to host an audio-only live? In the live preview, navigate to the top right and tap the camera icon to turn off the camera

    6. Ready to Go? You can Start live, or Schedule live for a specific day. Scheduling gives your members time to plan ahead — we'll also send them email and push notifications when your Live is coming up. You can enter your scheduled Live up to 5 minutes early to test your setup. Learn more about the notifications we send for Live
    7. To finish your live, tap End in the top-right corner: Your recording is automatically saved to Drafts, where you can publish it as a post or download it for editing. After your Live ends, you'll return to your Library and see a summary of how many members joined and how active the chat was. If Chat Replay was enabled during setup, chat messages will appear in sync when viewers watch the recording later

  • RTMPS streaming software is supported on Patreon Live. Using streaming software lets you manage an advanced or existing production setup (such as a few cameras and microphones) or share your screen or broadcast your gameplay.

    Here's how to get started:

    1. Click on Create from the left-side navigation
    2. Select Live

    3. In the right side panel, find the Camera source section and select Other streaming source — the preview panel will load with the Server URL and Stream Key

    4. Adjust your Live settings:
      • Audience: You can go live to All Members (free and paid) or to any Paid members tier. For eligible creators, it's also possible to sell one-time access to a Live. Note: Ticketed access is currently in beta. Creators can share interest by filling out this form
      • About: Set your title and description. Your audience will see the title you created when they're notified about the event
      • Thumbnail: Upload an image in JPG, JPEG, PNG, or GIF, up to 2 GB. Recommended size 1024x1024px
      • Enable chat replay (On by default): If you keep chat replay enabled, viewers will be able to rewatch the recording with chat messages appearing in sync with the video timeline — just like during the original Live
      • More settings: Check other settings, such as Email and push notifications to alert members when you schedule or start a Live, and Auto-moderation to filter spam in chat
    5. In your streaming software of choice, add the server URL and stream key from your Live preview on Patreon. Some streaming software, like Zoom, may also ask for a stream URL. In this case, paste the browser link to your Live (the https://www.patreon… link at the top of your web browser)
      • Click Start Streaming in your streaming software when complete

    6. Navigate back to your Live preview on Patreon. Clicking Start Streaming in your streaming software should now successfully bring your stream over to Patreon

    7. Ready to go? You can Go live now or Schedule a live for a specific day. Scheduling gives your members time to plan ahead — we'll also send them email and push notifications when your Live is coming up. If you schedule a live with a streaming setup, you'll be able to head in and check the setup 5 minutes before your Live begins
    8. To finish your live, click End in the center of the Live viewer: Your recording is automatically saved to Drafts, where you can publish it as a post or download it for editing. After your Live ends, you'll return to your Library and see a summary of how many members joined and how active the chat was. If Chat Replay was enabled during setup, chat messages will appear in sync when viewers watch the recording later

    Supported streaming software

    The stream key and server URL for each live you create are different: You'll need to use a new stream key and server URL every time you plan to stream to Patreon.

Sharing your Live

Once your Live is scheduled, you’ll be taken to a countdown page where you can share or download a promo card or copy your Live link to share it manually. This makes it easy to promote your stream across your social media and let fans know when to tune in.

Anyone who clicks your link will see the countdown page until your stream begins.

After a Live

After your live ends, a recording will automatically be saved as a draft in your Library. Sharing a recording with other members keeps lives working even after they're over.

Here’s how to access your recordings:

  •  
    1. After you end your Live, you’ll be notified via email and push notification that your recording is being processed. For longer lives, expect to wait a few minutes before your live recording is ready
    2. Once ready, you can find it under Library → Drafts
    3. From here, you can:
      • Post the recording directly to your page — Posted recordings of a live are subject to video content and volume guidelines

      • Download the recording if you'd like to edit further in a video editor

  •  
    1. After you end your Live, you’ll be notified via email and push notification that your recording is being processed. For longer lives, expect to wait a few minutes before your live recording is ready
    2. Once ready, you can find it under the Profile tab → Manage posts
    3. Post the recording directly to your page — Posted recordings of a live are subject to video content and volume guidelines

Chat Replay

Chat Replay lets members catch up on the conversation even if they missed your Live. Here's how it works:

  • If Chat Replay was enabled before your stream, the chat messages from your Live will appear in sync with the recording when members watch it later. 

  • This allows viewers to experience the conversation as it happened, even if they couldn’t join live. 

Live Hosting and Storage Limits

Resolution limits

Creators can currently livestream at 720p or 1080p resolutions. For members, Patreon automatically optimizes viewing resolution for both native video and live streaming content. By default, viewers will see content at 720p resolution, though this may be adjusted to 480p in cases where 720p provides no additional benefit. Viewers can manually toggle to higher resolutions when available.

Media storage and creation guidelines

  • Draft content: Any recorded live sessions in draft status will be automatically deleted after 6 months
  • Published content: Published native video content is stored indefinitely, maintaining our current policy
  • Monthly upload limits: To prevent abuse and ensure fair platform usage, creators are limited to 100 hours of media per month across both native video uploads and livestreaming. This limit applies monthly and is separate from any lifetime upload restrictions. Exceptions may be made for new creators with substantial existing content libraries
  • Upload limits with no paying members: To prevent abuse and ensure fair platform usage, creators with no paying members will have an upload limit of 100 hours total. This limit will increase to 100 hours monthly once a paying member joins
  • Single stream limitation: Creators cannot broadcast live on more than one post simultaneously to ensure optimal streaming quality
  • Maximum stream duration: Individual livestream sessions are limited to a maximum of 12 hours of continuous broadcasting. After this limit is reached, creators must start a new live

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