# Raid or host? Kick's pages use both words
If you came from Twitch, you expect the word raid. If you learned from a 2025 guide, you expect host. Kick's own documentation currently uses both, depending on which page you open.
| Source | Date shown on the page | Name it uses | How it says to start one |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kick: KICK chat commands | July 9, 2026 | Raid | /raid, Channel Owners only |
| Kick: Collaborating with other Streamers | July 9, 2026 | Raid | The raid option in Channel Actions, or /raid |
| Kick: Understanding your Creator Dashboard | July 13, 2026 | Host | The Host button in Channel Actions. No command given |
| A third-party guide | September 18, 2026, from the page metadata | Host | /host |
The dashboard page is the most recently dated of Kick's three, yet it still uses the older word for the button, while the command reference has moved to /raid. The same dashboard page also lists "Hosts" in the Activity Feed.[2] This guide is based on the help pages, not on a live dashboard, so look for either word on the button.
# How to raid on Kick, step by step
Kick describes the process in three short steps. Here they are with the conditions from its other pages added in the order you will meet them.
- Stay live. Kick says "A raid happens when you end your stream by sending your community to another Streamer's live channel."[4] Start the raid before you stop your encoder.
- Pick a channel that is live right now. Kick's advice is to raid someone who "Is currently live (you cannot raid an offline channel)".[4]
- Tell your chat. Kick's own tip: "Announce the raid clearly to your audience so they know what is happening."[4]
- Start it. Open Channel Actions in your Streamer Dashboard and use the raid option (the dashboard page calls it Host), or use /raid in your own chat.[4][2] If you are not sure of the exact format, Kick says "You can easily access the list of commands by typing / (forward slash) into chat."[1]
- Confirm. Kick's last step is "Confirm and your community is sent to their stream".[4] The dashboard page adds that once you choose a live Streamer, "your Viewers will automatically be redirected to their channel."[2]
# Why your raid will not start
Every documented reason a Kick raid fails is in the table below. Each one comes from a Kick help page. None of them is a guess.
| What you see | Documented reason | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Raid or Host button greyed out | Your stream has fewer than 5 viewers | No setting changes this. Kick says the button becomes active at 5 viewers |
| /raid does nothing and you are a moderator | /raid is listed for Channel Owners only | Ask the channel owner to start the raid |
| The channel you picked will not take the raid | You cannot raid an offline channel | Choose a channel that is live now |
| Raiding worked earlier today but not now | Kick limits raids to 2 per 24 hours | Wait. Kick does not say when the 24 hours start |
| /host does nothing | /host is not in Kick's current command list | Use /raid or the dashboard button |
| The command still fails | Spelling, permission or channel state | Refresh chat, or log out and back in |
The last row comes from the troubleshooting section of Kick's command page. It asks you to check "Spelling and exact format (commands are case-sensitive in some cases)", "Whether you have permission to use that command" and "Whether the channel state allows it (e.g., /raid requires 5+ Viewers)". If that does not help, Kick says to "Try refreshing your chat or logging out and back in if a command keeps failing."[1]
# The 5-viewer rule and small channels
The 5-viewer rule appears on all three Kick pages that describe the feature.[4][1][2] None of them explains it, and none says how the 5 is counted. It could be the number shown on your stream, the people in chat, or an average over time. Nothing in the sources for this guide settles it.
The rule is hardest on the smallest channels. A streamer with three people watching cannot send them anywhere with the raid button, and Kick's pages give no other route. Twitch works differently here. Its help page says any creator can raid "(regardless of Affiliate or Partner status)", and it sets no platform-wide minimum viewer count for starting one, although the channel receiving a raid can choose a viewer range it accepts.[5]
Below 5 viewers you can still do by hand what a raid does. Name the live channel you are heading to, tell your chat to follow you there, and then end. Kick's collaboration page lists shoutouts and cross-promotion as lighter ways to support other streamers,[4] and those work at any size.
One line from Kick's rules is worth knowing before you think about viewer numbers at all: "The use of bots, engagement manipulation, or third-party tools to artificially inflate views, followers, or interactions is prohibited."[6]
Raids move an audience you already have
Building that audience is the slower part. Streamrise delivers Kick viewers spread across a session rather than dropped in a spike. No supplier can tell you how Kick grades traffic, and Kick's Community Guidelines prohibit using bots or third-party tools to artificially inflate views and followers. Read them and decide for yourself.
- 60-day drop refund
- Cancel anytime
# What Twitch documents that Kick does not
If you raided on Twitch, most of what you are used to is written down in Twitch's help page. Much of it has no match in Kick's documentation. That does not prove Kick lacks these things. It means Kick has not described them in its help pages, so you cannot rely on them.
| Question | Twitch help page | Kick help pages |
|---|---|---|
| Who can start a raid | Any creator, regardless of Affiliate or Partner status | Channel Owners, using /raid |
| Minimum viewers | None stated | At least 5 for the button to become active |
| Daily limit | None stated | 2 raids per 24 hours |
| Countdown and cancel | Raid Now after 10 seconds, or Cancel, before the countdown bar runs out | Not described |
| Viewers can opt out | Yes, before the raid begins | Not described |
| Filters on incoming raids | Viewer count range, account age and optional groups | Not described |
| Pause incoming raids | Stop Raids for 1 Hour quick action | Not described |
| Starting a raid on mobile | Supported | Not described |
| Raiding a channel that blocked you | Not allowed, an error is shown | Not described |
| Ads when raiders arrive | No pre-roll ads for raiders | Not described |
The Twitch lines behind that table, word for word: "Viewers will be able to opt out of joining before the raid begins." "After 10 seconds (or when everyone's ready to go), click Raid Now". "You can temporarily deny all incoming raids for up to an hour." "Raids can be started from mobile." "You may not attempt to raid a channel that has blocked yours." And when a raid begins, "neither the raiding creator nor their audience sees pre-roll ads upon arrival at the raided channel".[5]
For the Twitch side in full, see the guide on how to raid on Twitch. For the wider platform differences, Kick vs Twitch in 2026 covers payouts, discovery and tools.
# When someone raids you
Kick's help pages describe no setting for refusing or filtering incoming raids. What you do have are the chat modes. They work on raiders the same way they work on anyone else, and Kick lists most of them for moderators as well as Channel Owners.[1]
- Followers-only. Kick's moderation guide suggests it during harassment attacks, because "newly created accounts cannot bypass a 30+ day follow requirement".[7] The commands are /followonly on and /followonly off.[1]
- Emote-only. Kick describes it as "a fast way to shut down text-based harassment without locking everyone out".[7] Use /emoteonly on, then /emoteonly off.[1]
- Slow mode. /slow on followed by a number of seconds sets a gap between each person's messages.[1]
- Account age restriction. Set in Channel Actions. Kick recommends it "To filter out new throwaway accounts created for spam or harassment".[7]
Kick's mass harassment guide does not mention raids by name, but it covers the same situation, a group flooding your chat at once. It opens with a clear line: "KICK does not permit coordinated harassment, hate speech, or content designed to harm individuals or groups." It recommends followers-only mode with a follow-time requirement and says this "is particularly effective against attacker accounts, which are usually newly created."[8]
# What the Kick raid blocker actually is
Kick raid blocker is one of the searches that comes up next to this topic. The top search result for it, when this guide was researched, was not a Kick setting. It was a third-party Chrome extension whose listing describes it in one line: "Block raid (host) auto-redirects on Kick.com."[9] It runs in a viewer's browser and stops that viewer being moved when a channel they watch raids out. The listing, which is mostly in Japanese, says it is not an official Kick extension.[9]
So it does nothing for a streamer who wants to stop raids from arriving. For that, the chat modes in the previous section are what Kick documents. Notice the listing's wording too. Updated in August 2026, it still calls the feature raid (host), which shows how mixed the vocabulary around this feature still is.
# The bottom line
To raid on Kick, stay live, pick a live channel, and use /raid or the raid option in Channel Actions, which Kick's dashboard page calls Host.[4][2] If it does not work, check the four documented rules in order: owner only, live target, at least 5 viewers, and no more than 2 raids in 24 hours.[1][4]
Much of what Twitch writes down about raids, such as countdowns, opt-outs and filters on incoming raids, is not in Kick's documentation.[5] Until Kick publishes it, treat any guide that describes those details for Kick as unconfirmed, including the ones that tell you to type /host.
# FAQ
How do you raid on Kick?
Stay live, pick a channel that is live right now, and either use the raid option in Channel Actions on your Streamer Dashboard or use the /raid command in your chat. Then confirm. Kick says your viewers are then sent to the other stream.
Can you raid on Kick?
Yes. Kick describes a raid as ending your stream by sending your community to another streamer's live channel. Older guides and one Kick help page call the same thing hosting.
What is the raid command on Kick?
/raid. Kick's chat command reference lists /raid for Channel Owners and does not list /host, even though some guides still recommend /host. Type / in your chat to see the commands available to you.
Why can't I raid on Kick?
Kick documents four reasons. Your stream has fewer than 5 viewers, you are not the Channel Owner, the channel you picked is offline, or you have already used your 2 raids in the last 24 hours. If none of those applies, Kick suggests checking the spelling, then refreshing chat or logging out and back in.
How many viewers do you need to raid on Kick?
At least 5. Kick says the raid button becomes active at 5 viewers. It does not say how those 5 are counted.
How many times can you raid on Kick per day?
Kick's command reference says the feature is limited to 2 raids per 24 hours. It does not say whether the 24 hours run from your first raid.
Can a moderator raid on Kick?
Kick's command reference lists /raid for Channel Owners only, so moderators are not covered. Twitch's raid page mentions editors as well as streamers, so do not assume a Twitch habit carries over.
Is hosting the same as raiding on Kick?
On Kick's own pages, yes. The dashboard page calls the Channel Actions button Host and says your viewers are redirected to the channel you choose. The collaboration and command pages call the same thing a raid.
Can I stop people from raiding my Kick channel?
Not with any setting described in Kick's help pages. You can use followers-only, emote-only, slow mode and an account age restriction to control what raiders can do in your chat. The Kick raid blocker extension works in a viewer's browser, not on your channel.