Guide

How Much Storage Do Twitch VODs Need?

By NONSTOPVOD · Updated 2026-10-06

Estimate VOD storage from total bitrate and duration: gigabytes are approximately megabits per second multiplied by hours multiplied by 0.45. At a total bitrate of 6 Mbps, one hour is about 2.7 GB and a four-hour stream is about 10.8 GB. Use a completed file to check the estimate before choosing how much archive space to buy.

Start with the recording you will actually keep

A Twitch download, a local high-quality recording and an edited export can have very different sizes even when all three show the same stream. Resolution alone does not determine file size. Bitrate describes how much data the video and audio use each second; duration describes how many seconds you need to store.

For an existing collection, sample several files instead of guessing from your encoder's preset. Record each file's size and duration, divide size by hours and compare the results. Include a busy game session as well as a quieter one if your recordings use a variable bitrate. The largest realistic sample is useful when you want room for an especially active month.

The storage calculation

For decimal units, 1 GB is 1,000,000,000 bytes and 1 Mbps is 1,000,000 bits per second. Divide by eight to convert bits to bytes, then multiply by 3,600 seconds per hour. That gives this planning formula:

Size in GB = total bitrate in Mbps x duration in hours x 0.45

Use total bitrate, including audio. For example, 6 Mbps video plus 0.16 Mbps audio is 6.16 Mbps in total. A four-hour recording at that rate is about 11.1 GB before container overhead. Actual files vary because of bitrate variation, container data and the format that was saved. A measured file size is a better final answer than an estimate.

These rows are arithmetic examples, not Twitch encoding recommendations. Choose stream settings using Twitch's broadcast guidance and your actual setup. Storage planning should follow the recording you produced.

Turn a weekly schedule into an archive budget

Suppose you stream four hours per session, five sessions per week. That is 20 hours of new recordings each week. At 6.16 Mbps total, you add about 55.4 GB per week, or 221.8 GB over four weeks. Keeping twelve four-week periods would require about 2.66 TB of payload, before overhead and other files.

Next add any collection you already have. A new archive with 600 GB of older recordings and roughly 222 GB of new content every four weeks will pass a 1 TB allowance during its second four-week period. Buying a capacity that fits today's library does not account for tomorrow's streams.

Decide whether you want a rolling archive or a collection that grows indefinitely. A rolling three-month library reaches a fairly stable size when older files leave at the same rate new files arrive. An archive that keeps everything continues growing. Write down this choice before estimating how long a plan will last.

How many hours fit in 1 TB?

In decimal units, divide 1,000 GB by the size per hour. At a total rate of 6 Mbps, the result is about 370 hours before overhead. At 6.16 Mbps it is about 361 hours. At 8 Mbps it is about 278 hours. There is no single accurate hours-per-terabyte number without a bitrate and a saved format.

Some operating systems display capacity in binary units while labeling it with familiar GB or TB wording. A decimal terabyte is about 931 GiB. That difference in units does not mean files disappeared. Compare the archive's meter and the billing allowance in the units that the service uses.

Leave space for transfers and additional files

A drive may hold finished recordings plus downloads in progress, editor caches, rendered clips and duplicate copies. Budget those separately rather than assuming every free byte can become a completed VOD. An interrupted transfer can also leave a partial file you should identify before deleting anything.

For a paid archive, check both used space and space reserved for incoming files. A low used number can be misleading if a large transfer is already committed. Review the dashboard meter after the transfer completes, and compare a few actual recordings with your estimate.

Reducing storage while preserving the right source

Removing unwanted recordings reduces capacity directly. Re-encoding at a lower bitrate can also reduce size, but it changes the video and takes processing time. Renaming a file or changing its container does not by itself reduce the amount of encoded video. Keep an original copy of an important session before experimenting with conversion.

If your goal is editing, retain the version that contains the quality and audio tracks you need. If your goal is a replay library, review which sessions you actually want viewers to watch again. A smaller selected collection can be easier to manage than a large collection of duplicates and incomplete files.

Planning NONSTOPVOD capacity

The current Creator plan includes 1 TB for EUR 60 per month. Additional capacity is purchased in 250 GB steps at EUR 8 per month. Capacity is shared by the workspace, so consider all material stored there. Verify current pricing and the dashboard's quoted total before purchasing more.

NONSTOPVOD copies archived Twitch video without re-encoding, so do not assume the archive will shrink your source material. Review new recordings, the available space and your keep-or-remove policy regularly. Our guides to downloading VODs and saving recordings before expiry explain the rest of that workflow.