How To Pop Out Twitch Chat

One of the best features that Twitch offers is the ability to chat with other users.

Even if you aren’t a particularly communicative person, watching the chat and observing what others say can make the entire viewing experience far more rewarding.

In addition, Twitch often hosts events that require you to be active in the chat to get a reward. For example, entering the “!drops” command in chat makes you eligible to receive in-game loot during many promotional events.

To enjoy a stream in full-screen while still being able to keep track of the chat, you will need to use the Pop-Out feature. This guide explains that process in detail.  

Method 1: Pop-Out Using The Cogwheel Setting

Twitch allows users to easily pop-out the chat. If you’re already viewing the stream, it will only need a few extra clicks.

If you’re unsure how to do this, follow the steps below. We have also included images to make it all much clearer.

1. Open Twitch in your preferred browser and log into your account. You don’t need to sign in if you only plan to keep track of the chat and not participate in it yourself.
2. Find the stream you want to watch and click on it. Wait a few seconds until it fully loads.
3. In the bottom-right corner of the screen, you will see a cogwheel icon, which you can click to access the Chat Settings menu. Don’t confuse this button with the Stream Settings one.
   
4. Select Pop-out Chat from the list of options. It should be the last one in the menu.
   

The chat is now in a different window. If you have a multiple-monitor setup, you can drag and expand (maximize) that window on a different screen for a better viewing experience.

If this approach doesn’t work for you, there’s another one you can try.  

Method 2: Pop-Out By Entering A URL In The Search Bar

If you’re already an experienced Twitch user and you know the exact channel name of the broadcaster you want to watch, you can use this slightly faster method to access the chat in a popped-out version quickly.  

This method was suggested by a Twitch Dev Ambassador in a comment on a Reddit thread, which you can find here.  

Follow the steps below to learn how to perform a Twitch chat pop-out via your browser’s URL search box.

1. Open your chosen browser and click on the URL search box to start typing.
2. Type in https://www.twitch.tv/CHANNELNAME/chat but replace “CHANNELNAME” with the exact name of the Streamer’s channel.

Note: For example, if you want to open Shroud’s chat, you need to type in the URL bar: https://www.twitch.tv/shroud/chat. You can always open Twitch and visit the channel to see if the name has been changed or to check exactly how you need to type it in. 

• When you’re done typing, double-check that everything is correct and press Enter on your keyboard.

You can use this method to load multiple Twitch chats at the same time. Sometimes, Twitch users like to keep track of the chat without even watching the stream. This method is the fastest way to accomplish that.

Reasons To Pop Out Twitch Chat

The Twitch pop-out chat option is quite self-explanatory, but here’s an example of why you might consider doing it and how it can enhance your overall viewing experience.

If you have a multi-screen setup or a laptop connected to a TV as your second screen, you can watch the stream in full screen while keeping your laptop close to make it easier to interact in the chat. You can keep the popped-out chat window on your laptop and drag the full-size stream window onto your larger monitor or TV.

Doing this also allows you to resize all windows however you want them to appear.

Another reason to pop out Twitch chats is to make moderating easier. If you are the moderator of multiple Twitch channels, you might need to keep track of them all at once.

This is rather challenging if you are using the full-sized Twitch windows instead of the popped-out chats. You would need a lot of screen space, and it simply isn’t feasible.

If you are a streamer yourself, it’s much easier to have your chat on one monitor, your preview on another, and the game you’re playing on your main screen.

Conclusion

Now that you know how to pop out a Twitch chat, you should feel free to get creative with your layouts and resizing to ensure the best possible viewing and streaming experience.

Remember that you can always reload the stream using F5 on your keyboard, and the chat will return to its original location if you no longer want it to be in pop-out mode.