How the /shoutout command works on Twitch in 2026 — and when to use a bot version instead

About the Twitch shoutout command

There are two completely separate things people mean when they say "the Twitch shoutout command." The first is /shoutout — Twitch's own native chat command that produces a UI pop-up with a follow button. The second is /so or !so — a chatbot command that just types a message into chat. The two work differently, have different requirements, and produce different results for viewers. Mixing them up is the most common cause of "my shoutout command isn't working" support tickets.

This guide covers both: what the native /shoutout does, when to use it instead of a bot command, the Affiliate-or-Partner requirement, the 2-minute rate limit, and how to set up an auto-shoutout using Streamlabs Cloudbot (which has true auto-detect of streamers entering your chat) or Nightbot (which doesn't, but still lets mods trigger manual shoutouts faster).

What the /shoutout command actually does

When a broadcaster or one of their mods types /shoutout in chat, three things happen at once on the Twitch platform side:

• A native UI pop-up appears at the top of chat for everyone watching the stream. The pop-up shows the shouted-out streamer's name, profile picture, and category (game) they're streaming.
• Viewers in your chat who do not already follow that streamer see a single-click Follow button inside the pop-up. Clicking it follows that streamer without leaving your chat.
• The shouted-out streamer gets a notification in their Twitch Activity Feed letting them know they were shouted out from your channel.

This is fundamentally different from typing a regular chat message that says "go check out this streamer" — the native /shoutout is rendered as a Twitch UI element, not a chat message. Your chat history will still show that you triggered a /shoutout, but the call-to-action your viewers see is the platform-native follow pop-up, not text.

The native /shoutout went live on September 28, 2022 after Twitch announced it the day before via the official @Twitch account on Twitter/X. It replaced the older /host command, which had been part of the platform since mid-2014 and which Twitch began winding down in a September 6, 2022 update to its Help Center. /host was retired on October 3, 2022.

For context — /host's life on Twitch ran almost exactly 8 years. The earliest known Twitch operational reference to /host is the official Twitch blog post on August 12, 2014, which announced broadcaster notifications for the existing /host feature — Twitch wrote at the time: "When you're broadcasting and someone begins to /host you, you'll get a notification of who is hosting you and how many viewers they are driving to your video," framed as a response to community feedback ("You all very clearly asked: 'How do I know who is hosting my channel and how many viewers are they driving to my video?'"). That same post implies /host was already shipped and in active use; the originating launch is generally placed in late July 2014. By contrast, /shoutout's full lifecycle so far is just over three years.

Twitch's full stated reason for retiring /host (from its September 6, 2022 announcement, redistributed by Kotaku, GameSpot, Dexerto and others): "The experience it delivers to viewers doesn't match their expectations when they come to Twitch. Viewers want to interact with a streamer when they're live and host mode blocks this from happening. Preventing viewers from interacting with the streamer they're watching also limits a streamer's growth potential because they're not able to build meaningful connections with those new viewers."

Streamers who had used Auto-host (the older feature that automatically rebroadcast partner channels when offline) saw their list converted to "Suggested Channels" in the dashboard at the same time. /shoutout took over the discoverability role with a follow-CTA model rather than the auto-restream model that /host and Auto-host had used for the eight years before that.

Native /shoutout vs bot /so or !so — the real difference

The two systems coexist on most channels. Many streamers use /shoutout for the native pop-up and ALSO have a bot command !so that types a custom shoutout message into chat. Each serves a different purpose:

• Native /shoutout: produces the Twitch follow pop-up with profile picture and one-click Follow CTA. Requires Affiliate or Partner status. Rate-limited to once every 2 minutes per broadcaster. Cannot be customized in tone, language, or formatting — Twitch controls the layout.
• Bot /so or !so (Nightbot, Streamlabs Cloudbot, StreamElements, custom bot): produces a plain chat message that you wrote. The standard pattern is something like "Go check out [twitch.tv/username]! They're streaming [game]." Has no Affiliate-or-Partner requirement, no platform rate limit (only the bot's own configurable cooldown), and is fully customizable.
• Bot commands can also pull dynamic data — last game streamed, last clip from that channel, current follower count — using API variables. The native /shoutout shows current category and profile picture but is not user-customizable.

The practical 2026 setup most active streamers run: /shoutout for the immediate follow CTA, plus a !so bot command that pulls a recent clip URL and a custom message. Both commands can be triggered together (one /shoutout + one !so back-to-back), giving viewers both the native pop-up and a clip preview in chat.

Who can use the /shoutout command (requirements)

• The broadcaster issuing the shoutout must be a Twitch Affiliate or Partner. Brand-new accounts that haven't reached Affiliate yet cannot trigger /shoutout — the command will return an error in chat.
• The streamer being shouted out does NOT need to be Affiliate or Partner. You can /shoutout any Twitch channel, including non-monetized ones.
• Only the broadcaster (channel owner) and channel moderators can issue the command. Regular viewers and VIPs cannot use /shoutout. To grant a user mod status so they can run /shoutout for you, type /mod in your chat.
• Rate limit: a broadcaster's channel can issue one Shoutout every 2 minutes per Twitch's official Help documentation on Shoutouts. If you try to /shoutout twice within 2 minutes, the second call returns a rate-limit error and is not delivered.
• There is no daily cap on Shoutouts beyond the per-2-minute interval. A long-form raid-train host running a channel could issue 30+ Shoutouts in one stream as long as each is at least 2 minutes after the previous one.

If your account is not yet Affiliate, see our Twitch Affiliate Requirements guide for the full qualification path. Affiliate is the lower of the two monetization tiers — the criteria (50 followers, 500 minutes broadcast, 7 unique broadcast days, and an average of 3 concurrent viewers within a rolling 30-day window per Twitch's Affiliate program documentation) are achievable by most consistent streamers within their first month or two.

How to use /shoutout step by step

• Step 1. Make sure you are an Affiliate or Partner. Check by going to your Creator Dashboard. If you see Affiliate or Partner status under Achievements, you are eligible. If not, the command will return an error — see our Affiliate requirements guide for the path to qualify.
• Step 2. Be in the chat as broadcaster or as a moderator. The /shoutout command does not work from the streamer view alone — it has to be typed in chat by an account with broadcaster or mod permissions.
• Step 3. Type /shoutout followed by enter. Replace with the Twitch login name (not display name) of the streamer you want to shout out. Example: /shoutout xqc — not /shoutout xQc OW or /shoutout twitch.tv/xqc.
• Step 4. Confirm the pop-up appeared. The native UI element should show at the top of chat within 1-2 seconds for all viewers. If only your own chat shows the trigger and viewers do not see the pop-up, refresh the channel page once and re-issue the command.
• Step 5. Wait at least 2 minutes before issuing another /shoutout. Twitch will return a rate-limit error if you try to /shoutout again within the cooldown window. Bot-side !so commands have separate, configurable cooldowns and are not constrained by the native rate limit.

Mods can issue Shoutouts on behalf of the broadcaster, which is how most active channels handle Shoutouts during fast-paced raid trains — the broadcaster keeps streaming and a designated mod handles the /shoutout commands as raids come in.

Setting up an auto-shoutout with Streamlabs Cloudbot or Nightbot

The native /shoutout is manual by design — Twitch will not automatically trigger /shoutout based on chat events. Auto-shoutout features live in third-party bots and produce bot-message shoutouts (the !so kind), not native /shoutout pop-ups.

Streamlabs Cloudbot is the bot most often used for true auto-shoutout. Its built-in Shoutouts module recognizes when a fellow streamer enters your chat for the first time and automatically posts a customized shoutout message — without manual mod input. The trigger condition is configurable; you can set it to fire only for users who have a verified streaming account, or only for users you've added to a curated friends list.

Nightbot does not have true auto-shoutout. Per the official Nightbot community forum, the bot "cannot automatically know who streams and who doesn't," so the closest you can get is a custom !shoutout or !so command that mods trigger manually. Nightbot is therefore a manual-shoutout tool from the chat-side, not an auto-detect tool.

• Streamlabs Cloudbot: Settings > Cloudbot > Shoutouts > Enable. Configure the trigger (any streamer-account first message, or curated friend list). Configure the message template, e.g. "Welcome [user]! Go check them out at twitch.tv/[user] — they were last streaming [game]."
• Nightbot manual !so: Add a custom command via your bot dashboard. Set the response template to the message you want, e.g. !addcom !so $(touser) — Go check out twitch.tv/$(touser)! Mods can then type !so username to fire it.
• StreamElements bot: similar to Nightbot — manual !so command is the standard, no native auto-detect.
• For a hybrid: most active streamers run native /shoutout (manual) for the follow pop-up + Streamlabs Cloudbot auto-shoutout for the chat-message version when streamers enter chat. The two complement each other.

Common errors and rate-limit issues

• "You must be an Affiliate or Partner to use this command." Most common error. Self-explanatory — the broadcaster's account is not yet Affiliate. Fix: meet the Affiliate qualification thresholds (50 followers + 500 minutes broadcast + 7 unique broadcast days + average of 3 concurrent viewers within a rolling 30-day window, per Twitch Affiliate program documentation) and complete onboarding. Then /shoutout works. Full breakdown in our Affiliate requirements guide.
• "Slow down. Try again in X seconds." Rate limit hit. Wait the remaining time and retry. The default cooldown is 2 minutes between Shoutouts.
• Pop-up does not appear for viewers. Refresh the channel page once. If still not appearing, the streamer being shouted out may be banned or have their account suspended — Twitch will silently fail the /shoutout in that case.
• /shoutout works but the recipient says they didn't get an Activity Feed notification. The recipient must have Activity Feed notifications enabled in their Twitch settings. The notification is sent to their account; whether they see it depends on their personal notification preferences.
• Mods see "Insufficient permissions" when trying /shoutout. Mod status grants /shoutout permissions, but very newly modded accounts sometimes have permissions cache delay. Have the broadcaster /unmod and re-/mod the user, or wait 5-10 minutes for the permissions to fully propagate.

Frequently asked questions

Bottom line

Use /shoutout for the immediate native follow pop-up — it's the fastest discovery CTA Twitch gives you, and it's free as long as you're Affiliate or Partner. Pair it with a Streamlabs Cloudbot auto-shoutout or a Nightbot manual !so for a custom chat-message version that adds clip URLs and personality the native command can't deliver.

Track your /shoutout cooldown manually if you're new to the command — 2 minutes is the gap, and the rate-limit error is the most common stumble for first-time users. For a complete reference of every Twitch chat command (mod, viewer, broadcaster), see our full 2026 chat-command list.

Last fact-checked May 9, 2026. Primary-verified Tier-1 (operator's own publications): official @Twitch tweet announcing /shoutout (September 27, 2022) at twitter.com/twitch/status/1562884947928420353; official Twitch blog post about /host broadcaster notifications dated August 12, 2014 at blog.twitch.tv/en/2014/08/12/host-mode-broadcaster-notification-128f760964a1 (the verbatim community-feedback quote is from this URL). Strong secondary-triangulated (5+ outlets concurring): /host announcement September 6, 2022 + retirement October 3, 2022 + Twitch's full stated reason for /host removal + Auto-host → Suggested Channels rename — verified via Kotaku, Esports.gg, dotesports, dexerto, indiecator, GameSpot, Niche Gamer, Cogconnected, NME. Secondary-triangulated (primary help.twitch.tv blocked from automated fetch; multi-source concurrence): 2-minute rate limit, Affiliate-or-Partner requirement, Streamlabs Cloudbot true auto-shoutout, Nightbot's lack of native auto-detect, Twitch developer forum Shoutouts API beta. Acknowledged unverified at primary level: exact wording of help.twitch.tv/s/article/shoutouts page (permanently blocked from automated fetch on the verification date).

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