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Loyalty System: Troubleshooting (Points, Watchtime & Transfers)

Updated

Purpose:
Simple troubleshooting steps to resolve issues with Loyalty points and watch time — whether viewers aren't earning points, watchtime tracking seems off, points have hit a technical limit, or you need to move points after a viewer's username change.

Table of Contents

Enabling Watchtime

Q: How do I enable watchtime?
A: Watchtime requires the Loyalty system to be enabled. Once Loyalty is enabled, it will begin tracking viewers' watchtime.

  1. Log in to your StreamElements account.
  2. Click Loyalty > Loyalty settings.
  3. Enable Loyalty by setting the toggle to "Loyalty enabled".

Viewers Not Earning Points

Q: I enabled Loyalty but viewers are not earning points.
A: Make sure the "Hide gambling" option is disabled in your Twitch settings — you can adjust this here. Also note: points are only granted when the stream is live and to viewers who are visible in the viewers list.

Watchtime Is Inaccurate

Q: Why is watchtime inaccurate?
A: Watchtime only starts tracking from the moment Loyalty is enabled. It's also an estimate, not an exact representation of how much time viewers spend watching the stream.

If the steps above don't resolve the issue, please contact our support team for further assistance.

Points Cap

There's a limit to how many points a viewer can accumulate, for technical reasons.

Points Cap: viewers can accumulate a maximum of 2,147,483,647 points.

Potential Issues if this limit is exceeded:

  • Points not being saved correctly.
  • Incorrect display of points in the system.

Best Practices to Avoid Issues:

  • Moderate Point Grants: avoid manually granting excessively large amounts of points.
  • Adjust Settings Wisely: set limits in your Loyalty settings to prevent users from accumulating points beyond the cap.

Transferring Points After a Username Change

When a viewer changes their Twitch username, their points and watch time will automatically transfer the first time they type in chat with their new name. If that doesn't happen, you (or a moderator) can move them manually — using the dashboard or a chatbot command. Watch time adjustments can only be done through the dashboard, and you'll need dashboard access or moderator/super moderator permissions to use the chatbot command.

Dashboard Method

Navigate to Loyalty > Leaderboard:

  • In the "Current" tab, search for the old username and press Enter — the user's details (e.g., StreamElements with 60 points) will appear.

Transfer Points:

  • Close the user details pop-out and click "Give points".
  • Enter the new username, assign them the same amount of points, and press "Submit".
  • Repeat for the "All time" tab. In the "Watch time" tab, click "Give minutes" instead of "Give points".
  • Optional — Remove Old Username's Points: follow the same process to "give" points/minutes, but use the old username and a negative amount to subtract.

Chatbot Command Method

  • Enable the !addpoints command and ensure it has the correct user level permissions.
  • Add points to the new username: !addpoints <newusername> <points>
  • Remove points from the old username: !addpoints <oldusername> -<points>

Additional Resources

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