Twitch just wrapped up its strongest month of 2026. The platform pulled in more than 1.56 billion Hours Watched in August, with Average Viewers exceeding 2.14 million. Both numbers were up 6% from July, according to the platform’s latest viewership data.
The growth was driven by major esports events, big game updates, and creator marathons from popular streamers like Darren “IShowSpeed” Watkins Jr. and Brittany “Cinna” Watts. August marked the third consecutive month of growth for the number of active channels and games streamed on the platform.
The International and Esports World Cup led the charge
The Dota 2 category more than doubled its Hours Watched in August. The main driver was The International 2026, the game’s biggest esports tournament of the season. Counter-Strike also grew by 38%, boosted primarily by the Counter-Strike tournament at Esports World Cup 2026.
Minecraft gained 54% thanks to the marathon hosted by IShowSpeed and Kai Cenat. League of Legends was the only top-10 category to record a decline. The game’s two biggest summer tournaments, the 2026 Mid-Season Invitational and Esports World Cup 2026, both took place in July, leaving the category without a comparable tentpole event in August.
Escape from Tarkov made the biggest leap in the category rankings. The game generated 51.2 million Hours Watched in August, up 525% from July. The surge was driven by the release of Patch 1.1.0, the launch of the Kord Breach season, and extensive coverage from popular VTuber TheBurntPeanut.
Simulator viewership surged while IRL slipped
The Simulator genre recorded a 45% month-over-month increase in both Hours Watched and Average Viewers. It climbed to eighth place in the genre rankings, overtaking MMO and Survival, which also grew but at a slower pace. The surge was largely driven by a major Escape from Tarkov update and the large-scale Minecraft marathon hosted by IShowSpeed and Kai Cenat.
IRL was the only genre to decline in August, losing 12% of its Hours Watched and falling below RPG and Open World in the rankings. The drop reflects a return to more typical levels following the boost from Streamer University and similar events held in July.
The number of active channels and games streamed on Twitch increased for the third consecutive month.
Peak Viewers fell, but for a good reason
Peak Viewers was the only metric to decline in August, falling 10% from July to 4,173,855. That drop reflects a return to more typical levels following July’s exceptional spike, driven by Spanish streamer Ibai “Ibai” Llanos’ boxing show La Velada del Año VI.
August was Twitch’s strongest month of 2026 by both Hours Watched and Average Viewers.
Nix topped the channel rankings
Several The International 2026 broadcasters ranked among Twitch’s most-watched channels of the month. Russian streamer Aleksandr “Nix” Levin led the way, topping the rankings by both Hours Watched and Peak Viewers.
Nicholas “Jynxzi” Stewart and TheBurntPeanut secured places in the top five after increasing their Hours Watched by around 20–25% compared with July. Throughout the month, Jynxzi streamed a wide range of games, hosted several show tournaments featuring fellow creators, and ran major marathons for The Last of Us and Chained Together. TheBurntPeanut dedicated his content almost entirely to the new Escape from Tarkov patch.
Japanese streamer Junichi “kato_junichi0817” Kato ended the summer on a high note, increasing his Hours Watched by 51%. He streamed much more frequently in August, spending most of his airtime on a Rust server alongside other popular Japanese creators.
August was Twitch’s strongest month of 2026 by both Hours Watched and Average Viewers.
Cinna set a milestone for female streamers
Brittany “Cinna” Watts also stood out, finishing August among Twitch’s ten most-watched channels and as the only woman in the top. During the month, she hosted a major subathon, surpassed 75,000 Twitch subscribers, and became the platform’s most-subscribed female streamer.
Spanish streamer Juan “IlloJuan” García came closest to the Dota 2 creators in August, reaching 233,500 Peak Viewers during his restream of the Grand Theft Auto VI gameplay presentation. The broadcast set a new all-time viewership record for his channel. Fellow Spaniard Rubén “Rubius” Doblas also streamed the upcoming Rockstar title’s presentation, earning a place in the top 10 despite attracting a smaller peak audience.
Samantha “rivers_gg” Rivera retained her position as the leading female streamer, despite her Average Viewers falling by 22% compared with July. Katie “RealKatieB” recorded the strongest growth in this metric, gaining 37% and climbing five places in the overall ranking. Her rise was driven by Minecraft streams and coverage of Ludwig’s Streamer Games.
Gingy entered the top 10 after beginning coverage of the new Escape from Tarkov patch, which brought a major influx of viewers to her channel. She became the game’s most-popular female streamer in August.
The month’s results show a platform firing on multiple fronts: esports tournaments, major game releases, and creator-led events all contributed to the strong viewership. Whether Twitch can sustain this pace through the fall remains to be seen. For now, the platform is riding high on its strongest month of the year.
Source: streamscharts.com