8 Ways To Fix Twitch Buffering, Freezing & Lag - 2021 Guide

Quick Answer: How to Stop Twitch Buffering (Fast)

If Twitch keeps buffering, try these fixes in order:

1. Switch stream quality to 720p (or turn off “Source”)
2. Refresh the player (or fully restart your browser/app)
3. Turn off VPN / Proxy
4. Close background downloads (Steam, Epic, Windows updates, cloud sync)
5. Clear Twitch site data (cache + cookies)
6. Disable browser extensions (especially ad blockers and “video helper” tools)
7. Restart your modem/router and switch to Ethernet if possible
8. If it’s only one channel buffering, it may be the streamer’s bitrate (not you)

If you’re buffering while streaming (not watching), jump to “Fix Twitch Buffering While You’re Live” below.

Why Twitch Buffers (And How to Tell What’s Actually Wrong)

Twitch buffering happens when the video player can’t download video data fast enough to stay ahead of playback. That can be caused by:

• Your internet dipping (Wi-Fi congestion, unstable ISP, packet loss)
• Your device/browser struggling (extensions, hardware acceleration, low memory)
• Twitch or the streamer having issues (server load, unstable bitrate, ingest problems)

Quick test (saves a lot of time)

• Try 2–3 different channels.
  • If every channel buffers → it’s likely your connection/device.
  • If one channel buffers → it’s often the streamer’s bitrate/instabili

How to Fix Twitch Buffering (Viewer Fixes That Work)

There are several things you can do to fix buffering issues on Twitch, including:

1) Lower the Stream Quality (Most Reliable Fix)

Click the gear icon in the Twitch player → Quality → switch from Source to 720p / 480p.

This reduces the amount of data your device needs per second, which helps instantly on unstable internet.

If you’re watching on mobile data, you’ll also want our guide on how much mobile data Twitch uses so you don’t get surprise throttling.

2) Turn Off Low Latency Mode (If Your Internet Is Unstable)

Low Latency is great when your connection is strong, but it gives the player less “buffer room” when your internet spikes.

On the player settings (gear icon), disable low latency (if available), or try a different browser/app.

3) Disable Your VPN or Proxy

VPNs can cause Twitch buffering because they reroute traffic through slower or overloaded nodes.

Turn off the VPN completely and reload Twitch. If the buffering disappears, either whitelist Twitch in your VPN or switch providers. 

4) Change Your DNS

Many Twitch users have been able to fix their buffering issues by changing their DNS to Google’s DNS. Here is what they do:

1. Step 1

   

   From your control panel, click “Network and Internet” from the sidebar.

2. Step 2

   Click “View network status and tasks” under the Network and Sharing Center.

3. Step 3

   

   Click on “Change adapter settings” from your sidebar.

4. Step 4

   

   A box with your network connections will pop up. Find your network connection, right-click on it, and choose “Properties” from the drop-down menu.

5. Step 5

   

   Click on “Internet Protocol Version 4” from the available list, then click the “Properties” button underneath the options.

6. Step 6

   

   On the pop-up box, click “Use the following DNS server address:” then input the following code:

   • In preferred DNS server: 8.8.8.8
   • In alternate DNS server: 8.8.4.4

7. Step 7

   Click “Okay” at the bottom of the box.

5) Close Background Applications (Check Steam)

Buffering is often your bandwidth being eaten by something else.

Close or pause:

• Steam downloads / updates
• Epic Games updates
• Windows updates
• Cloud sync (Google Drive / Dropbox)
• Any “auto backup” apps

If you’re streaming and your upload is being used up, it can also tank your viewer experience on your end.

6) Clear Your Browser Cache (Twitch Site Data)

If Twitch used to work fine and suddenly started buffering, clear the site data:

• Chrome: Settings → Privacy & Security → Clear browsing data
• Make sure cached images/files are included
• Restart the browser after clearing

If you want a deeper “Twitch-specific” fix path, pair this with our guide on Twitch Network Error 2000 since the root causes overlap heavily.

Another simple thing you can do to fix any Twitch buffering is to clear your cache. Cached web content may be slowing down your stream viewing experience. While the process of clearing your cache will vary depending on your browser, here is how you can do it on Google Chrome:

1. Step 1

   

   From the browser menu in the top right-hand side of the screen, click “Settings” from the drop-down menu.

2. Step 2

   

   Scroll down to “Clear browsing data,” listed under “Privacy and Security.” Click on the option.

3. Step 3

   

   On the pop-up box that appears, make sure that you select “all time” from the time range, then click “clear data.”

7) Disable Browser Extensions (Ad Blockers Often Break Video Players)

Even “good” extensions can mess with Twitch playback, especially:

• Ad blockers
• Script blockers
• Video resizers
• Performance “optimizers”
• Twitch helper extensions

Test Twitch in an Incognito/Private window with extensions off. If buffering disappears, re-enable extensions one at a time until you find the culprit.

You can view a full list of extensions by clicking on your browser’s menu icon in the top right-hand corner. Click on “More tools” from the drop-down menu, then “Extensions.” You can deactivate or remove extensions straight from this list.

8) Disable Hardware Acceleration (Chrome/Edge Fix)

Hardware acceleration can cause stutters or playback issues on some PCs, especially after driver updates.

Chrome/Edge:Settings → System → Turn off “Use hardware acceleration when available” → restart browser

This is one of those fixes that sounds unrelated, but it can instantly stabilize Twitch playback for some setups.

If you have enabled your hardware acceleration (to process data through your GPU), you may be experiencing Twitch buffering issues. To disable this feature, you will need to do the following:

1. Step 1

   

   From the browser menu in the top right-hand side of the screen, click “Settings” from the drop-down menu.

2. Step 2

   

   Scroll to the bottom of the screen and click the “Advanced” option.

3. Step 3

   

   Find the “System” box and disable the “Use hardware acceleration when available” option.

4. Step 4

   Restart your browser.

9) Try Channel Bonding Technology

If nothing else seems to work, you can try a bonding VPN app such as Speedify. Speedify comes with channel bonding technology that allows you to unlock the bandwidth from all of your devices, allowing you to use multiple connections to the internet at the same time.

Even without multiple connections at your fingertips, a bonding VPN can help by minimizing packet loss and increasing your available bandwidth to allow you to watch your Twitch streams without lag hopefully.

10) Fix Your Wi-Fi (Or Just Use Ethernet)

Twitch is extremely sensitive to inconsistent Wi-Fi.

Best improvements:

• Switch to 5GHz Wi-Fi
• Move closer to the router
• Restart modem/router
• Use Ethernet if possible

If you stream from Wi-Fi a lot, this guide helps too: best settings for streaming on Twitch using Wi-Fi.

11) Check If Twitch Is Having Issues (Not You)

Sometimes it’s not your internet at all.

If buffering happens on every device in your home, or only on Twitch (not YouTube), it may be a Twitch-side issue. In those cases:

• Try a different browser/app
• Try again in 10–20 minutes
• Lower quality temporarily

Fix Twitch Buffering While You’re Live (Streamer Fixes)

If you’re the streamer and your viewers are complaining about buffering, this is usually caused by unstable bitrate, dropped frames, or upload speed problems.

1) Reduce Bitrate or Enable Dynamic Bitrate

A stable bitrate is better than a high bitrate. If your upload is inconsistent, your stream will buffer for viewers even if your PC is fine.

Start with these:

• Drop bitrate slightly
• Lower resolution (ex: 1080p → 936p or 720p)
• Use OBS dynamic bitrate if you can

For a full setup guide: How to stream on Twitch with OBS and what is a good bitrate for Twitch.

2) Test Your Stream Health

Use Twitch’s tools to check if the issue is bitrate stability, ingest, or dropped frames.

Also worth reading: How to use Twitch Inspector (it’s one of the fastest ways to diagnose stream stability problems).

3) Check Your Upload Speed (Not Download)

Download speed doesn’t matter much for streaming. Upload speed does.

If you’re on Wi-Fi and buffering complaints happen randomly, it’s often Wi-Fi interference. Ethernet is the fix that saves the most time.

What Twitch Buffering Looks Like (Common Symptoms)

Twitch stream keeps freezing

The video pauses, audio cuts out, then “catches up” suddenly.

Twitch VODs are laggy

Even recorded videos stutter if your browser cache/extensions/DNS are causing issues.

Low resolution or pixelation

Auto quality drops the stream to keep it playing without buffering.

FAQ: Twitch Buffering Questions People Actually Search

Why does Twitch buffer but YouTube doesn’t?Twitch is live video, so it has less time to “preload” and hide internet dips. YouTube often masks small connection drops better.

Why does Twitch buffer only on one streamer?That streamer may be pushing unstable bitrate or having ingest issues. Try another channel to confirm.

Why does Twitch buffer on mobile?Mobile networks can throttle video or fluctuate a lot. Try Wi-Fi, reduce quality, and check how much mobile data Twitch uses.

Conclusion

Twitch buffering is usually caused by unstable internet, VPNs, browser extensions, or your stream quality being too high for your connection. Start by lowering quality, closing background downloads, and disabling extensions. If you’re streaming and viewers are buffering, focus on bitrate stability, upload speed, and using the right OBS settings.

If you’re trying to improve your overall stream experience (not just buffering), you’ll also want to check out how to get more viewers on Twitch and how to make money on Twitch once your stream runs smoothly.internet plan or your device. 

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