Twitch asks you to verify a phone number mostly because a channel you want to chat in requires it. You add the number under Settings → Security and Privacy and confirm it with a six-digit code by SMS. One number can verify up to five accounts, and those accounts then share consequences: a site-wide suspension of one reaches all of them.
Why Twitch asks for a phone number
Creators can switch on phone-verified chat in their moderation settings. It is off by default, and a channel can apply it to everyone or only to first-time chatters or new accounts. When you try to chat there, Twitch asks you to verify a number first.
Twitch introduced the setting in response to hate raids on creators. That is why it refuses numbers that are easy to create in bulk, like VoIP numbers.
Twitch at a glance
- Virtual numbers
- Depends on the number range
- Code sent by
- SMS
- Code length
- 6 digits
- Asks for the number again later
- No
- One number per account
- No
Twitch verify phone number: step by step
- Open Settings Click your avatar, then Settings, then the Security and Privacy tab.
- Find Phone Number In the Phone Number field, add your mobile number with the country code.
- Enter the code Twitch texts a six-digit code. Type it in to confirm.
- Go back to the chat The channel that asked now lets you write. To change the number later, edit it in the same place and confirm the new one.
Code not arriving
- Landline or VoIP number: Twitch will not send to it. Use a mobile number.
- Number already on five accounts: the limit is reached and the number is refused.
- Number tied to a suspended account: Twitch does not let you verify more accounts with a number linked to an actively suspended one.
- Filtered texts: check the folder for unknown senders on your phone, then request the code once more.
How many accounts per number
| What it means for you | |
|---|---|
| Up to five accounts per number | Your main account and, say, a chat bot account can share one number |
| Site-wide suspension | If one verified account on the number is suspended site-wide, all accounts on that number are |
| Channel ban | A ban in one channel also stops the other accounts on the number from chatting there |
Rules as Twitch announced them when phone-verified chat launched in September 2021.
If you only need to get past one verification and would rather not link your personal number, a temporary number can receive the code. If Twitch refuses it, switch to another one in the app instead of retrying.
Common questions
How many Twitch accounts can use one phone number?
Up to five. Twitch links them, so a site-wide suspension of one applies to all of them.
Why does Twitch say my number cannot be used?
It may be a landline or VoIP number, already verify five accounts, or be tied to a suspended account.
Do I have to verify a phone number to use Twitch?
Not to watch. You need it when a channel requires phone-verified chat, or when you want it for account security.
Can I verify with an e-mail instead?
Channels can require a verified e-mail, a verified phone, or both. If the channel accepts e-mail, that is enough.