In December 2024, Twitch viewers watched a total of 1.58 billion hours of livestreamed content. While that may sound impressive at first, it actually marks the platform's lowest monthly total in four years, as the last time Twitch hit such a low number was back in July 2020. But before jumping to conclusions, it’s important to note that other key metrics for both viewer and streamer activity remain strong.
The past December saw a decrease of 11% in total watch time compared to the average December performance on the platform over the past four years. December has traditionally been a slower month for Twitch, with the exception of 2023, when it unexpectedly became the second most active month of the year. While many top streamers host festive streams leading up to Christmas and New Year, overall audience engagement tends to decrease during the holiday season.
What's interesting is that despite the decline in viewership, streamer activity actually increased. The total number of streamers grew, and the average number of concurrent channels broadcasting also saw an uptick compared to November.
A positive takeaway from December was the variety of content on offer. Streamers broadcasted in 43,200 different categories, the highest figure of the year, second only to March.
Unlike November, which saw the top categories filled with older, super-popular titles, December saw a refreshing change with two newcomers making it into the top ten. Leading the charge was Path of Exile 2, the highly anticipated sequel to Grinding Gear Games’ action RPG series. The game barely edged out Just Chatting and Grand Theft Auto V for a top spot. What made its debut interesting was the spike in viewership it achieved on release day: over a million concurrent viewers. However, this wasn't due to the excitement of playing: the servers couldn’t handle the surge of players, which led many to Twitch to watch the game instead.
The second major game release in December was Marvel Rivals, a third-person hero shooter by NetEase Games. The game quickly captured the attention of content creators, especially in North America, where Marvel products have the largest fanbase. The combination of top streamers' focus on the game and the added incentive of in-game rewards for viewers boosted engagement on Twitch. As a result, Marvel Rivals became one of the best-performing new games released in 2024.
In December, Kai Cenat finally stepped back, giving other streamers a chance to rise (after dominating November with his record-setting Mafiathon 2). Four Japanese channels broke into the top 10, with Chikara “fps_shaka” Kawakami taking the lead, racking up the bulk of his viewership in GTA, where he stands as one of the game’s most popular streamers worldwide.
Quintin “Quin69” Crawford saw results nearly identical to those of the Japanese streamer, thanks to his non-stop PoE 2 streams since launch. His viewership was further boosted by a highly successful subathon.
Even though December was packed with esports, including the Counter-Strike Major, only one organizational channel cracked the top 10: and it wasn’t esports-focused. The top performer was RTAinJapan, streaming the latest edition of RTA, Japan’s most popular and largest speedrun event, and one of the biggest globally.
Billal "RebeuDeter" Hakkar, also known as just Billy, emerged as the clear leader in peak concurrent viewership, with his DTF Fight event becoming a defining moment in his livestreaming career. Held at one of the largest indoor arenas globally, the event captivated over a million viewers online, making it the biggest French stream of 2024 and solidifying its place in streaming history.
Read more: DTR Fight becomes top French livestream event of 2024 and one of Twitch’s biggest
December also featured several high-profile streamer and esports awards, sparking substantial viewer engagement. The Game Awards, with its record-breaking annual ceremony, secured second place, while Russian-speaking streamer Vyacheslav “Buster” Leontyev took third for hosting the Slay 2024 awards, celebrating the top talent from the Russian-speaking community. Interestingly, Blaire “QTCinderella” with her Streamer Awards came within just a few thousand viewers of breaking into the top 10 by Peak Viewers in December.
Top female streamers of December 2024 (by Peak Viewers and Hours Watched)
QTCinderella had no competition among female streamers when it came to peak concurrent viewers, outperforming her closest rival, Antonia “RevedTV” Staab, by more than 100%. In terms of total watch time, she placed third. Notably, two VTubers, ironmouse and Zentreya, followed closely behind her in the top 10 for this metric.
