Twitch Achievements give streamers a roadmap to getting paid

Twitch today rolled out its Achievements feature to everyone. Now every Twitch streamer has a clear idea of what to do to start making money from their stream.

Twitch’s prestige classes — Affiliate and Partner — have always been shrouded in mystery. For all Twitch’s attempts to turn more of its users into moneymakers, it’s always seemed like a bit of coin toss who got into those ranks. And many streamers desire to make Partner or Affiliate, since that’s when they’re able to earn subscription money.

Now Twitch is making its requirements for status clear with “Achievements,” which streamers can find on their Twitch Dashboards. Jessica Messinger, Twitch’s Creator Growth Marketing Manager, describes the new feature:

Twitch has a creator first mentality and we constantly work to help our community be more successful … Achievements help answer the questions of what’s next? Showing creators how they are progressing toward major milestones like becoming an Affiliate or Partner, as well as other things to indicate progress like hours streamed.

Though Twitch has expanded from strictly game-streaming, this is clearly an homage to its gaming roots, as well as a clever way of encouraging progression. Though it seems some Achievements aren’t automatically unlocked. I’ve been streaming since 2015, but when I checked my Dashboard, my “Start your first stream” achievement wasn’t unlocked.

With Achievements, streamers can now clearly understand what’s expected of them, and work towards specific goals to get money from their streams. The feature is available for everyone now.