The first half of the year has seen leading livestreaming creators continue to draw massive audiences across IRL, gaming, and other major content categories. Streams Charts ranked the top creators of H1 2026 based on Hours Watched and Peak Viewers.
The analysis includes a combined ranking of creators across Twitch, Kick, and YouTube Gaming, alongside separate top-10 lists for each platform. For YouTube, we focused specifically on gaming creators, as overall YouTube Live rankings by watch time are heavily influenced by organizational channels and continuous 24/7 broadcasts and VOD channels.
Most-watched and popular streamers in H1 2026
Multistreaming giant TheBurntPeanut has put together an astonishing 128.9 million Hours Watched (HW) to top this H1 2026 ranking. The American VTuber has endured his fair share of controversy, but he remains a massive draw thanks to his high-energy streams that incorporate collaborations alongside playing action games like ARC Raiders and Rust.
Hani "absi" Al-Qablan is the most-watched streamer for Kick in our analysis, racking up 65.20 million HW by mostly focusing on IRL content. He was joined in the top five by fellow Jordanian star Maher "Maherco" Sultaneh, who has become a much more regular streamer of the Slots & Casino genre after establishing himself as one of the Stake-backed platform's most popular gaming creators.
Readers must note that absi's channel had moments where the viewership showed irregular activity. While this does not mean an accusation of misconduct against the streamer, it is important to acknowledge the anomalies witnessed in his broadcasts.
Jynxzi came in second, having begun multistreaming across Twitch and YouTube this year. His combined watch time reads 66.14 million HW, and in 2026, he established himself as a popular influencer tournament host. Having decided to try out different games and liked the exercise a lot, he hosted events in League of Legends, Valorant and Counter-Strike, with their viewership even rivaling the numbers seen at lower-tier esports events.
Star British League of Legends caster Marc "Caedrel" Lamont is in the sixth spot, accruing almost 47 million watch hours in H1 2026. His focus remained on analysing and co-casting various events in the legendary PC MOBA, having disbanded his ambitious Los Ratones project early in the year.
In seventh is the last Kick representative here, a streamer looking to blaze a trail for the platform in one of its untapped markets: Japan. Shun "korekore_ch" Aoki generated just under 47 million Hours Watched as he continued to favor call-in streams and discussions centered on local internet incidents. He has also become more active on YouTube, although the content there is mostly related to entertainment streams and vlogs.
The lower half of this table is dominated by Twitch streamers who enjoy high popularity among their countrymen. Zack "zackrawrr" Hoyt and Hasan "HasanAbi" Piker remain among the most-followed American streamers, whose content on gaming and current affairs gains widespread traction not only at home but also across the globe.
Zackrawrr also now streams on Rumble under his alternate account's name, Asmongold. His debut stream was on July 12, and he has continued to use the template that made him famous, i.e., reacting to trending news and sharing his views on the same.
Junichi "加藤純一うん〇ちゃん" Kato is perhaps Japan's biggest Twitch streamer, and he regularly finds himself on such leaderboards. He also has a YouTube channel, but like korekore, he posts VODs of his travels and entertainment streams involving activities like cooking and playing sports.
Last but not least is Ivan "StRoGo" Shurpatov, who has accumulated 34.95 million HW in the first half of this year. The Russian streamer and Counter-Strike pro is well-known for his massive community stunts, and one such stream recently went viral. He detonated over 100,000 grenades simultaneously in the iconic Dust 2 map on a CS2 server, leading to the image disappearing and the transmission ending.
Most-watched streamers in H1 2026
| # | Streamer | Hours Watched | Platforms |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | TheBurntPeanut
| 128 912 478 HW
| Twitch, Kick, YouTube Gaming |
| 2 | Jynxzi
| 66 138 309 HW
| Twitch, YouTube Gaming |
| 3 | absi
| 65 201 574 HW
| Kick |
| 4 | zackrawrr
| 51 113 245 HW
| Twitch, Kick |
| 5 | maherco
| 50 561 940 HW
| Kick |
| 6 | Caedrel
| 46 988 722 HW
| Twitch |
| 7 | korekore_ch
| 46 903 440 HW
| Kick |
| 8 | HasanAbi
| 37 016 138 HW
| Twitch |
| 9 | Junichi "加藤純一うん〇ちゃん" Kato
| 35 898 331 HW
| Twitch |
| 10 | StRoGo
| 34 951 513 HW
| Twitch |
Among channels with the highest single moment peaks in H1 2026, Kick sensation westcol tops the Kick chart. His stream from March 27 reached 840,610 Peak Viewers (PV) as he interviewed the President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro. They discussed topics like artificial intelligence, quantum technology, and youth education, helping to especially engage younger audiences.
For multistreamers, the platform with the highest peak concurrent viewership was chosen.
Brazilian influencer Virginia Fonseca also makes the cut, having started streaming on Twitch recently. Rumored to be dating Real Madrid winger Vinicius Junior, her February 18 broadcast of the Rio Carnival Sambadrome Parades peaked at 663,302 viewers.
The rest of the list is filled with a who's who of the livestreaming world, including Kai Cenat, Ibai "ibai" Llanos and Mohamed Amine "aminematue" Mahmoud. However, German Twitch streamer Arda Saatçi deserves special mention, as his Red Bull-sponsored "Cyborg Season ‘26" endurance marathon peaked at 646,000 concurrent viewers, making it Red Bull's most-watched livestreaming event.
Most popular streamers in H1 2026
| # | Streamer
| Peak Viewers | Platforms
|
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | IShowSpeed
| 1 920 822 PV
| YouTube Gaming |
| 2 | westcol
| 840 610 PV
| Kick |
| 3 | VirginiaTV
| 663 302 PV
| Twitch |
| 4 | aminematue
| 654 822 PV
| Twitch
|
| 5 | ardasaatci1
| 646 012 PV
| Twitch
|
| 6 | CEOKOPAT ALTER EGO
| 635 634 PV
| YouTube Gaming |
| 7 | bakaprase
| 601 900 PV
| Kick |
| 8 | ibai
| 593 403 PV
| Twitch
|
| 9 | Adin Ross
| 484 122 PV
| Kick |
| 10 | Jynxzi
| 417 711 PV
| Twitch
|
Top Twitch streamers in H1 2026
Many of the top names here also made the overall list, but one thing to note is that most of the top ten saw improvements in their watch time compared to the previous timeframe. The likes of Jynxzi, TheBurntPeanut and StRoGo were especially busy, racking up much higher airtimes and watch hours this year.
Case "caseoh" Baker and Felix "xQc" Lengyel also saw minor spikes in their watch times. The former continued to experiment with different games during his live broadcasts, helping keep his content fresh for viewers. xQc also did something similar, alongside streaming his reaction to various trending topics and controversies happening around the world.
German star Elias "eliasn97" Nerlich came in the ninth spot, but his watch time fell as he was slightly less active. That was because the streamer also spent a lot of time promoting and traveling for the Icon League, a media football tournament he co-founded alongside national team legend Toni Kroos.
Most-watched Twitch streamers in H1 2026
| # | Streamer
| Hours Watched |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jynxzi
| 59 795 618 HW
|
| 2 | TheBurntPeanut
| 53 814 865 HW |
| 3 | Caedrel
| 46 988 722 HW |
| 4 | zackrawrr
| 42 606 162 HW
|
| 5 | HasanAbi
| 37 016 138 HW
|
| 6 | Junichi "加藤純一うん〇ちゃん" Kato
| 35 898 331 HW
|
| 7 | StRoGo
| 34 951 513 HW
|
| 8 | caseoh | 30 337 064 HW
|
| 9 | eliasn97
| 27 803 978 HW
|
| 10 | xQc
| 26 320 552 HW
|
The list of most popular Twitch creators in H1 2026 is not that different from the watch time table. As mentioned above, Virginia Fonseca and Arda Saatçi showed that content that is not usually seen as audience drivers can attract unusually high audience engagement if the streamer is popular and the genre is entertaining/exciting for viewers.
French Twitch star aminematue registered almost 655,000 PV on his channel during the third edition of his famous exhibition football match, The Eleven All Stars. This livestreaming spectacle emerged among the most popular sports events livestreamed in 2026 at that time, as France's influencers beat their English counterparts 4:3 at the Parc des Princes in Paris.
Most popular Twitch streamers in H1 2026
| # | Streamer | Peak Viewers |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | VirginiaTV
| 663 302 PV
|
| 2 | aminematue
| 654 822 PV
|
| 3 | ardasaatci1
| 646 012 PV
|
| 4 | ibai
| 593 403 PV
|
| 5 | Jynxzi
| 417 711 PV
|
| 6 | nasdas_off | 327 268 PV
|
| 7 | StRoGo
| 322 154 PV
|
| 8 | Caedrel | 313 788 PV
|
| 9 | Rubius | 283 662 PV
|
| 10 | yourragegaming | 264 495 PV
|
Top YouTube Gaming streamers in H1 2026
YouTube Gaming's ranking is dominated by Virtual YouTubers, with almost half the entries coming from this segment. Aside from TheBurntPeanut, Pekora Ch., Kuzuha Channel and Miko Ch. appear here, with their watch times tallying between 11 and 20 million HW.
These are some of the most popular and followed VTubers going around today, and they have set templates for what their content will be, which involves gaming, collaborations and influencer-led events. In terms of hosting on-stream events, audiences saw a singing contest and a Minecraft survival competition, among other activities.
Star esports community streamers Alexandre "Gaules" Borba, Ade "set1awanade" Pamungkas, Gustavo "Baiano" Gomes and Windah Basudara continued to attract high engagement thanks to their coverage of some of the biggest events. Aside from sticking to popular titles like Counter-Strike and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, they provided visibility to titles like Raft, Meccha Chameleon and Fears to Fathom: Scratch Creek via playthroughs.
Yash "LoLzZz Gaming" Thakker, one of India's biggest YouTubers, maintained his position as his country's top YouTube Gaming streamer by viewership. He has accrued 12.53 million HW in the first half of the year, mixing streams of his rank-grinding gameplay in BGMI with co-casting and watch party duties for esports tournaments like the Battlegrounds Mobile India Pro Series 2026.
Most-watched YouTube Gaming streamers in H1 2026
| # | Streamer
| Hours Watched |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | TheBurntPeanut
| 71 516 706 HW
|
| 2 | IShowSpeed
| 24 518 292 HW
|
| 3 | Gaules
| 23 806 222 HW
|
| 4 | Pekora Ch. 兎田ぺこら
| 19 327 316 HW |
| 5 | Kuzuha Channel
| 17 730 933 HW
|
| 6 | set1awanade
| 14 377 286 HW
|
| 7 | BaianoTV
| 13 540 900 HW |
| 8 | LoLzZz Gaming
| 12 528 180 HW
|
| 9 | Windah Basudara
| 11 471 855 HW
|
| 10 | Miko Ch. さくらみこ
| 11 389 971 HW
|
Thai world championship runner-up Alter Ego's CEO, Delwyn Sukamto, emerged as YouTube Gaming's most popular streamer for H1 2026. The streams of his MLBB side's run to the M7 World Championship final often clocked over 350,000 concurrent viewers, reaching a peak of 635,634 viewers during the side's Lower Bracket Final versus Malaysian powerhouse Selangor Red Giants.
A few other prominent co-casters also made the list, including another Mobile Legends: Bang Bang analyst, Zay Casting Channel. Zay "ZyZyy" Yar So was the favored destination for Burmese fans to catch their side, Yangon Galacticos, in action at the M7 World Championship, as it enjoyed a surprise run into the Knockout Stage.
One of the OG YouTube Gaming streamers, Andre "Typical Gamer" Rebelo, also finished among the year's most popular creators. Impressively, he made the list without covering any major event, instead banking on his in-game expertise to hit 264,000 PV during a stream where he challenged himself to play Fortnite without shotguns.
Most popular YouTube Gaming streamers in H1 2026
| # | Streamer | Peak Viewers |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | IShowSpeed
| 1 920 822 PV
|
| 2 | CEOKOPAT ALTER EGO
| 635 634 PV
|
| 3 | Typical Gamer
| 263 873 PV
|
| 4 | Zay Casting Channel
| 255 465 PV
|
| 5 | Gaules
| 252 835 PV
|
| 6 | BaianoTV
| 244 024 PV
|
| 7 | set1awanade
| 239 955 PV
|
| 8 | Killerqueen
| 236 723 PV
|
| 9 | Miko Ch. さくらみこ
| 209 936 PV
|
| 10 | TheBurntPeanut
| 204 631 PV
|
Top Kick streamers in H1 2026
Kick continues to find high engagement in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and Latin America (LATAM) regions, and that is reflected in this leaderboard. Seven of the ten entries come from here, with the other three also spanning different markets.
Amr "3mr" Diab has emerged recently as one of Egypt's standout streamers, using long-form GTA V roleplay sessions to drive significant viewership. He was joined by Saudi Arabian streamer NOUR "noorgamer", a popular gaming content creator with a significant online presence, especially within the PUBG Mobile community.
Polish streamer Artur "rybsonlol" Gębicz also maintained his status as one of Kick's new crop of stars, focusing on high-level competitive League of Legends gameplay, ranked grinding and challenge streams. Controversial American creator Rangesh "n3on" Mutama also continued to attract high engagement, thanks to his mix of vlogs and collaboration broadcasts.
They were joined by a cohort of South American regulars like westcol and David "davooxeneize" Quint. These creators put up more content related to the IRL genre, with the latter's unofficial coverage of the ongoing FIFA World Cup 2026 also gaining significant traction among sports fans.
Most-watched Kick streamers in H1 2026
| # | Streamer | Hours Watched |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | absi
| 65 201 574 HW
|
| 2 | maherco
| 50 561 940 HW
|
| 3 | korekore_ch
| 46 903 440 HW
|
| 4 | 3mr
| 28 409 622 HW
|
| 5 | westcol
| 27 522 108 HW
|
| 6 | davooxeneize
| 18 807 686 HW
|
| 7 | noorgamer
| 18 716 003 HW
|
| 8 | n3on
| 18 365 689 HW |
| 9 | rybsonlol
| 18 286 352 HW
|
| 10 | eray
| 18 136 422
|
A lot of Kick's most prominent names made the list of its most popular streamers in H1 2026. Bogdan "bakaprase" Ilić is another example of influencer sporting events doing extremely well in livestreaming, as the Serbian creator's regional fighting and boxing spectacle, BFC 1 (Baka Fighting Championship), attracted much higher audience interest than his streams would usually do.
This analysis is based on Streams Charts data. Our platform tracks more than 60 million channels across major global and regional livestreaming services, helping studios, organizations and agencies measure viewership performance, audience behavior and market trends. Contact us to explore how livestreaming data can support your next event or business decision.
Frank "theunitedstrand" Ilett also made the cut after going famous as the Manchester United 'haircut guy.' His livestreaming debut on Kick, where he watched his club play while hoping it would finally win its fifth game in a row to end his bet and get a haircut, peaked at a respectable 265,925 viewers.
Most popular Kick streamers in H1 2026
| # | Streamer | Peak Viewers |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | westcol
| 840 610 PV
|
| 2 | bakaprase
| 601 900 PV
|
| 3 | Adin Ross
| 484 122 PV
|
| 4 | davooxeneize
| 334 548 PV
|
| 5 | eray
| 296 956 PV
|
| 6 | theunitedstrand
| 265 925 PV
|
| 7 | wtcn
| 226 605 PV
|
| 8 | mouna_kna
| 185 867 PV
|
| 9 | lacobraaa
| 164 490 PV
|
| 10 | mokrysuchar
| 158 096 PV
|
Live broadcasting on the big three of Twitch, YouTube and Kick continues to be a lucrative exercise for most creators. The fact that multistreaming is now becoming the norm has helped these streamers choose their content more freely, leading to a lot of exposure to newer audiences.
