A 24/7 YouTube gaming livestream uses about 129.6 GB of upload data per day at a sustained 12 Mbps video bitrate, or about 3.9 TB over 30 days, before audio and network overhead. Add YouTube’s recommended 128 kbps stereo audio and the estimate becomes about 131 GB per day and 3.93 TB per 30 days. These are decimal-unit calculations for the creator’s outgoing stream—not viewer downloads.
Here, “VOD stream” means prerecorded gaming video kept live around the clock. If you mean watching a saved video, its data use depends on the playback quality and viewing time instead.
How to calculate 24/7 stream data use
Multiply the stream’s sustained bitrate by the time it is online. The result estimates the creator’s upload for one feed.
Decimal GB = bitrate in Mbps × seconds × 1,000,000 ÷ 8 ÷ 1,000,000,000
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For a continuous 24-hour stream, this works out to 10.8 decimal GB per day for each sustained Mbps. Multiply the daily figure by 30 for a 30-day estimate. For an estimate that includes audio, add the audio bitrate to the video bitrate before calculating.
These calculations use decimal units: 1 GB = 1,000,000,000 bytes and 1 TB = 1,000 GB. Binary GiB and TiB figures are numerically lower.
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Estimated data use at YouTube’s recommended settings
YouTube’s current encoder guidance gives recommended bitrates by resolution, frame rate, and codec. The figures below are video-only estimates calculated from those recommendations; audio and overhead are additional.
| Format and codec | Recommended video bitrate | Approx. upload per day | Approx. upload per 30 days |
|---|---|---|---|
| 720p60, H.264 | 8 Mbps | 86.4 GB | 2.59 TB |
| 1080p60, AV1 or H.265 | 12 Mbps | 129.6 GB | 3.89 TB |
| 1080p60, H.264 | 17 Mbps | 183.6 GB | 5.51 TB |
| 1440p60, H.264 | 34 Mbps | 367.2 GB | 11.02 TB |
| 2160p60, H.264 | 50 Mbps | 540 GB | 16.2 TB |
Source for recommended video bitrates: YouTube Help: Live encoder settings, bitrates, and resolutions. The 1080p60 recommendation differs by codec: YouTube lists 12 Mbps for AV1/H.265 and 17 Mbps for H.264. Use the bitrate your encoder actually sustains; a resolution label alone cannot determine data use.
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Including recommended audio
YouTube recommends 128 kbps stereo audio. Adding that to a 12 Mbps video bitrate gives 12.128 Mbps total and about 131 GB per day, or 3.93 TB over 30 days. For other settings, add 0.128 Mbps to the video bitrate before using the formula.
What these figures count—and what they do not
The estimates count the creator’s upload for one outgoing feed. They do not multiply by viewer count: YouTube receives the stream and distributes viewer versions separately. YouTube says it transcodes incoming live streams into multiple output formats for viewers, so that audience delivery is not additional creator upload data.
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Actual network-accounting totals can differ because of audio settings, transport overhead, retransmissions, variable bitrate, interruptions or restarts, and unrelated device traffic such as cloud sync, updates, monitoring, or remote production calls. There is no universal exact overhead percentage to add. If your connection has a strict cap, leave a margin and monitor actual usage. One published calculator example estimates about 5.68 GB for a two-hour broadcast at 6 Mbps video plus 128 kbps audio with a 3% protocol allowance; that allowance is specific to its example, not a general rule (Numbriva’s streaming data usage calculator).
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Settings and checks that affect a continuous stream
- Bitrate: Base the estimate on the configured bitrate that is actually sustained, not only the target resolution.
- Encoding mode: YouTube’s encoder guidance recommends constant bitrate (CBR).
- Keyframes: YouTube recommends a two-second keyframe frequency and says not to exceed four seconds.
- Audio: Its recommendation is stereo AAC at 128 kbps.
- Connection: YouTube recommends testing upload bitrate and checking stream health. Test with representative movement and sound, then watch for health warnings during the event.
YouTube’s Live API health diagnostics include issues such as low video bitrate and video ingestion starvation. These can help identify delivery trouble, but they are not a monthly data counter. See the YouTube Live API liveStreams documentation for stream status and health details.
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Keep a 24/7 gaming stream online without leaving a PC running
A do-it-yourself setup sends the encoded video from an always-on computer and internet connection to YouTube. For that approach, calculate the monthly allowance using the encoder’s sustained video-plus-audio bitrate and 720 hours for a 30-day month. YouTube recommends testing the encoder with representative content and monitoring stream health. A home setup also uses the household connection continuously, and failures or restarts affect the actual total.
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