Twitch Drops: How They Work, How to Claim Them and What to Do When They Don't
By Alex Reed··9 min read
Twitch Drops are free rewards you earn by watching live streams (or buying a new sub) in a participating channel during a game or partner campaign. Link your game account in the Drops Inventory, watch a channel with the Drops Enabled tag, then click Claim when the requirement is met. You can earn on one channel at a time, VODs and clips do not count, and Twitch's own help page says the game developer, not Twitch, delivers the item to your game. Everything below is from Twitch's How Drops Work page (last modified November 6, 2026) and its Drops Troubleshooting page.
- The whole process in five steps
- 1Link your game account first. Open your Drops Inventory, pick the campaign, click Connect next to the game name and sign in on the developer's site. Both Twitch and the game site should then show the connection.
- 2Watch a Drops Enabled live stream. Find a channel with the Drops Enabled tag, or a Drops banner or icon in chat. It must be a live stream; VODs, reruns and clips earn nothing.
- 3Track progress. Open the Drops & More panel in chat for the current channel, or the Drops Inventory for every campaign. Progress counts on one channel at a time.
- 4Claim the Drop. When the requirement is met, click Claim in chat or in the Drops Inventory. Unclaimed Drops can be claimed from the Inventory for up to 7 days after a campaign ends.
- 5Wait for delivery. Most in-game rewards appear within 24-48 hours, some instantly, a few take up to 7 days. Code-based rewards are redeemed on the partner's website.
What Drops Are and Who Is Responsible for What
A campaign is set up by a game developer or promotional partner, who also sets the requirement: usually minutes of watch time, sometimes a new subscription. Rewards come in three forms: automatically delivered in-game items, codes you redeem on a partner's website, and Twitch extras like emotes or chat badges. If a channel takes part you see a banner at the top of chat and a Drops icon at the bottom.
Twitch splits the flow into three steps with three owners: earning on Twitch, claiming on Twitch, and delivery to the game. Twitch Support covers the first two; the third is the game developer's, which decides who you should email when something goes missing. Twitch's TwitchCon post says 49 million viewers have earned Drops across more than 7,500 campaigns, up 31% in viewer participation year over year (Twitch's own figures).
For a sense of how big a campaign gets, see our write-ups of the Twitch Summer Drops Fest 2026 and the Winter Drops Fest 2025. The current list of live campaigns is on Twitch's Drops campaigns page.
How to Link Your Account for Twitch Drops
Open the Drops Inventory, click the campaign, and press Connect next to the game name. You are sent to the developer's site to sign in. Check that the link shows on both sides. You can claim and link afterwards, but Twitch recommends linking first to avoid problems.
- You can connect as many different game accounts as you like, but only one account per developer.
- Most developers deliver the reward if you link within 14 days after the campaign ends; limited-use rewards (such as a beta) can have stricter deadlines.
- Not every reward needs a game account: Twitch says its Pokémon chat badge Drops, for example, can be earned without connecting one.
What Counts Toward Drops and What Does Not
Progress is saved while the campaign is active, so you can take breaks and switch channels. Some campaigns want several separate days; Twitch counts a “day” as a rolling 24-hour window that starts when you begin accruing time, not a calendar day, and minutes from a window that closes unfinished are discarded.
| What you do | Counts? | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Watching a live stream in a Drops Enabled channel | Yes | Progress goes to one channel at a time. |
| Switching between participating channels | Yes | Progress carries across channels in the same campaign. |
| Watching several streams at once | No speed-up | Twitch: watching more than one channel at the same time will not let you claim faster. |
| VODs, reruns and clips | No | Only live streams are eligible. |
| Prime subscription (sub-based Drops) | No | Prime, renewals and Sub Tokens do not count. |
| New paid or gifted sub, any Tier (sub-based Drops) | Yes | Must be bought while the channel is live in the right category during the campaign. |
| Streaming the game yourself | No | Streamers cannot earn viewer Drops from their own channel. |
| Twitch on a console or smart TV app | Not supported | Drops work on the web (PC/Mac) and in the Twitch Android and iOS apps. |
Tabbed out, muted or minimized: what Twitch does not say
Twitch documents that you must watch a live Drops Enabled stream, that poor internet can interrupt tracking, and that ad blockers can block progress. It does not document what happens in a background tab, with the audio muted or with the window minimized, so we will not claim either way. The safe approach is a visible, playing stream, and a check of the Drops Inventory after 10 to 15 minutes to see whether the number actually moved.
Watching several streams in a multiview does not stack progress either: Twitch counts one channel at a time. If you do multiview for other reasons, our multiple-streams guide covers the tools; just keep the Drops channel as the one in focus.
Subscription Drops and Event Drops
Some campaigns replace or add to watch time with a sub. Only a new paid subscription counts: a new 1-, 3- or 6-month recurring sub at any Tier, or a new gift sub. Prime, renewals and Sub Tokens do not, and the sub has to be bought while the channel is live in the correct category during the campaign. Revenue from these subs is paid out at the streamer's usual revenue share. Requirements like these are why the affiliate path matters to small streamers even when a campaign sends viewers their way.
Event Drops reward being there for a live moment, such as an in-stream win. There is no notice beforehand, you must have watched a participating channel for at least 1 minute and still be watching in the 5 minutes before the moment, and a missed one cannot be granted later. Streamers cannot opt in to Event Drops themselves; the developer or organizer picks the channels. Our GTA VI code drops write-up covers the surprise-style giveaway running around the game's launch.
Drops on Mobile, Console and TV
You can earn and claim in a PC or Mac browser and in the Twitch apps for Android and iOS. Twitch apps on game consoles, smart TVs and other TV apps do not support Drops at this time. One iOS exception: Drops that grant rewards for iOS apps and games cannot be claimed in the Twitch iOS app. Claim them in a browser instead, where the Drops Inventory is the place to look.
Twitch Drops Not Working: Fixes
| Problem | What to do |
|---|---|
| Progress bar not moving | Confirm the channel has the Drops Enabled tag or a Drops banner, the campaign is still running, and you are watching live. Turn off ad blockers, refresh the page, check your connection, and make sure only one Drops stream is open. |
| Twitch says link account but you already linked it | Both Twitch (Drops Inventory shows Connected) and the game's website (shows your Twitch username) must show the link. If not: unlink on the developer's site, wait 5 minutes, link again from the Drops Inventory, wait 15 minutes, refresh both pages. |
| Claimed on Twitch, nothing in the game | Check the Inventory says Claimed and that the linked game account is the one you are checking. Give it 24-48 hours, look in the in-game mailbox, inventory and cosmetics. After 48 hours contact the game developer, not Twitch. |
| Cannot link a managed or under-age game account | Some publishers (Twitch names Epic Games' managed accounts) block linking for accounts flagged as under-age. Twitch cannot override that; the platform's own support has to change the account status. |
| Event Drop missed | Event Drops need at least 1 minute watched and you still watching in the 5 minutes before the moment. There is no advance notice, and a missed one cannot be recovered later. |
| Campaign ended before you finished | Progress is lost, even at 80%. Unclaimed completed Drops can still be claimed from the Inventory for up to 7 days (168 hours) after the end. |
Who to contact: Twitch Support if you cannot earn progress, cannot claim a reward from the Inventory, or did not get a code. The game developer or partner for everything after the claim. Twitch also says a claimed Drop usually has 7 to 30 days to redeem depending on the campaign, and that earned Drops disappear from the Drops Inventory after 6 months.
For Streamers: Enabling Drops on Your Channel
Developers decide which channels may offer Drops, often every channel broadcasting their game. Your side is short:
- Open the Creator Dashboard, then Viewer Rewards → Drops (dashboard.twitch.tv/drops) and switch Drops on. You can also opt out of individual campaigns while staying in others.
- Set your stream category to the game that has an active campaign.
- Go live. Twitch applies the Drops Enabled tag automatically; you do not add it. See how to go live on Twitch if you are setting up from scratch.
Why channels opt in: Twitch says Drops give viewers a reason to tune in, discover games and support streamers, and sub-based campaigns pay at your normal revenue share. You can compare subs before, during and after a campaign in Channel Analytics, but Twitch does not show how many subs came from Drops. Two limits: viewers earn nothing on your reruns or VODs, and you cannot earn viewer Drops from your own channel while streaming. Turning Drops off in the dashboard stops viewers earning on your channel without disconnecting your game account.
Next Up: Winter Drops Fest
Twitch's November 13, 2026 TwitchCon post says Winter Drops Fest returns “next month”, with Drops from games including Arc Raiders, Marvel Rivals, World of Warcraft and Warframe. It had not published exact dates when we checked. The 2025 edition ran December 3 to 20; see our Winter Drops Fest 2025 guide for what that looked like, and our TwitchCon 2026 roundup for the rest of the announcements.
Twitch Drops vs Kick Drops
KICK also runs Drops, but its help center has no general Drops explainer comparable to Twitch's; rules are set campaign by campaign. The table uses KICK's GTA VI Sunset Reward Case help page as the one documented example, so treat the Kick column as that campaign, not a universal rule.
| Twitch | Kick | |
|---|---|---|
| Where you claim | Drops Inventory and the Drops & More panel in chat | Drops and Rewards page |
| How rewards are earned | Watch time or an eligible new sub, set per campaign by the game developer or partner | Campaign-specific; in the GTA VI case, 180 minutes of any live KICK content unlocks a Sunset Reward Case |
| Account linking | Link the game account in the Drops Inventory | KICK account; PlayStation prizes need your PSN account's country |
| Rules document | Twitch Help: How Drops Work | Campaign terms plus the KICK Drops Terms & Conditions |
For an earlier KICK campaign see the March 2026 KICKS drop; for the platform comparison as a whole, our Kick vs Twitch guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are Twitch Drops?
Drops are rewards for watching or supporting channels during a campaign run by a game developer or promotional partner. A reward can be an in-game item delivered to a linked account, a code to redeem on a partner's website, or a Twitch extra such as an emote or chat badge. You earn one by meeting the requirement, usually watch time on live streams or a new subscription.
How do I claim Twitch Drops?
When you meet the requirement, Twitch shows a Claim button in the Drops & More panel in chat and a notification; you can also open the Drops Inventory and claim there. Link your game account first so the item can be delivered. If you miss the notification you can still claim from the Inventory, for up to 7 days (168 hours) after the campaign ends.
How do I link my account for Twitch Drops?
Go to the Drops Inventory, click the campaign, then Connect next to the game name. You are sent to the game developer's website to sign in, and the connection should show on both sides. Twitch says you can connect as many different game accounts as you like, but only one account per developer. Developers usually fulfil rewards if you link within 14 days after the campaign ends.
Do Twitch Drops count if you are tabbed out, muted or minimized?
Twitch's help pages do not say. They require that you are watching a live stream on a Drops Enabled channel, that the stream plays smoothly, and that you are not running ad blockers, but they say nothing about background tabs, muted audio or minimized windows. Treat progress as unconfirmed in those states: keep the stream tab open and playing, then check the Drops Inventory to see what actually counted.
Why are my Twitch Drops not working?
The usual causes, from Twitch's troubleshooting page: the channel is not Drops Enabled, the campaign has ended, you are watching a VOD or a clip, an ad blocker is active, more than one Drops stream is open, or the connection is poor. Refresh and check the Drops Inventory. If progress still will not count, contact Twitch Support; for a claimed Drop missing in-game, contact the game developer.
Can I earn Drops on mobile or console?
On mobile, yes: Twitch says you can earn and claim Drops in a PC/Mac web browser or the Twitch app for Android and iOS. Twitch apps on game consoles, smart TVs and other TV apps do not support Drops. Drops that grant rewards for iOS apps and games cannot be claimed through the Twitch iOS app at this time.
Can I earn Drops from two streams at once?
No. You can earn progress toward a Drop on only one channel at a time, and watching more than one channel at the same time will not make you claim it faster. You can switch between participating channels and keep your progress within the same campaign.
How do I turn Drops on as a streamer?
Open your Creator Dashboard, go to Viewer Rewards then Drops (dashboard.twitch.tv/drops), and make sure the toggle is on. The game developer decides which channels can offer Drops, so you also need to stream the game's category while a campaign is active. Twitch applies the Drops Enabled tag automatically; you do not add it yourself.
Does Kick have Drops?
Yes, KICK runs Drops campaigns with a Drops and Rewards page and its own KICK Drops Terms & Conditions. Mechanics differ per campaign; in its GTA VI promotion, watching 180 minutes of any live KICK content unlocked a reward case, with the requirement resetting daily. Always read the specific campaign's terms.