If you have ever watched someone’s Twitch channel, you might have been aware of people floating around in the chat that are called mods.
These are users that help to moderate the chat, usually according to rules that are set by the Twitch streamer or by Twitch guidelines.
This might also come down to flagging inappropriate content and they even have the power of banning users. Given how important a mod is to a chat and given the fact that a streamer gets paid, you might be wondering whether or not mods get a cut of the money.
Well, sadly this is not the case, for reasons we will go into later in the article. We’ll also answer other questions you have, such as: is there any way moderators make money? How can you get a moderating gig in the first place?
Mods And Their Pay – Everything You Need To Know
Unfortunately, being a mod isn’t an official job title. Therefore, you will not get paid for doing it. Being a mod is a voluntary activity that people do to get involved in the chat.
Some people like doing it just to have the title of mod.
However, a mod can get paid if the streamer decides that it is worth paying them.
This is because sometimes a Twitch streamer might have thousands of viewers on the chat and it would require a lot of focus to play games and chat as well as make sure nothing inappropriate is being said and everyone is abiding by the guidelines.
This is why it would make sense for a streamer to remunerate a moderator for their services.
This will guarantee that the mod will do their job properly, staying in the chat and watching out for certain behaviors or comments that the streamer might not like.
There are other rewards that streamers can choose to give their mods. They can gift them with subs, merchandise, and gift cards.
If you are a big fan of the streamer, sometimes this can be rewarding enough and a great non-cash incentive.
It is worth stating again that paying or giving any kind of reward to your channel mods is not mandatory or automatically done.
Which Streamers Can Pay Their Mods?
If you are a smaller streamer, then the chances are that you will not make that much money from your channel. This will make it much harder to pay your moderators large amounts of money.
It will all depend on what you arrange with your mods beforehand. You could agree to pay your mods a very small amount before you start the stream.
However, this will not be a contract and you’ll have to abide by the community standards when it comes to paying your mods.
Larger streamers might make enough money to pay their mods, as it will require a lot more labor to keep track of the number of users in the chat.
But again, this is not a mandatory obligation and even larger streamers might not pay their moderators.
Can A Mod Get Other Freebies Like Subs And Bits?
In much the same way as actual payment, mods will not automatically get subs for their services. However, a lot of streamers will decide to gift subs to their streamers for moderating large chats.
They can also get gifted bits too. A mod should usually have to sub much like a regular channel user.
How Does Someone Become A Mod?
Mods are chosen by the streamer. There are certain criteria that a mod usually must abide by if they are going to join a person’s chat. Here are just some things that a streamer might be looking for from their mod:
- Active in the stream – if you are a mod then you’ll want to be active on the stream, joining in on the topics and keeping up to date with changes in the stream.
- Follow the stream guidelines – this will be very important, as to enforce the rules of Twitch and the streamer, you’ll need to abide by those rules themselves.
- Frequent donators – To contribute financially is not a requirement for becoming a mod, but it is a great way for a streamer to notice a viewer and perhaps offer them the moderator job.
- Subbed – a user will usually have to be a sub and have subbed for quite a while.
Trust is one of the most important things for a streamer and these criteria are one of the best methods of measuring someone’s trust.
If you are modding a person who is going to cause disruption, then this can really negatively affect your channel, as you might lose viewers and subscribers to your channel.
Is It Mandatory For A User To Be Subbed Before Becoming A Mod?
There are no real requirements for becoming a mod, you do not have to be subbed or make any donations. These are merely indicators of trust that might bring a streamer’s attention to you.
If you are a streamer and you are looking for mods, then you might be drawn toward someone who is appearing in the stream a lot.
Often people make friends on Twitch and this might be a good method of finding mods that you can trust.
If you have found a person that you would like to consider for a mod, then you can send them a whisper, which is basically a direct message and ask if they are interested in taking the mod job.
Mods rarely have caveats and only a very small select handful would demand to get paid for their services. However, modding does take up time and effort, so it would be a good gesture to remunerate someone for their services.
Conclusion
Hopefully, our guide to becoming a mod on Twitch has given you a basic idea of what to expect, either if you are going to be modding or looking for a mod for your Twitch channel.
It can be a very rewarding experience, especially if you are a fan of the streamer’s channel that you are modding.
