Kick

A live-streaming platform launched in late 2022 with the most creator-favorable revenue split in the industry (95/5 on subs) and close ties to crypto casino Stake.

Overview

Kick is a live-streaming platform launched in late 2022, backed by co-founders of crypto casino Stake. It positioned itself as the creator-favorable alternative to Twitch — offering a 95/5 subscription split (vs. Twitch’s 50/50 baseline) and more permissive content rules, particularly around gambling and IRL content.

Kick’s viewership grew ~131% year-over-year to 4.5 billion hours watched in 2025, making it the fastest-growing major platform, though it remains a distant third behind Twitch and YouTube Gaming.

Notable deals

• xQc — signed a non-exclusive multi-year deal reported at up to $100M in 2023.
• Adin Ross — moved to Kick after his 2023 Twitch ban.
• Amouranth — signed non-exclusive in 2023.
• Trainwrecks — co-founder involvement; long-time Kick advocate.

Criticisms

Kick has faced scrutiny over:

• Close financial ties to Stake and the prominence of gambling streams.
• Looser moderation compared to Twitch, particularly around IRL streams.
• Ownership opacity.

Culture

Kick chat culture leans heavier on gambling, IRL, and crossover personalities from Twitch. The simulcasting lift on Twitch in 2024 reshaped the competitive dynamic — creators no longer need to choose.