Live video is a new way to reach your audience from the Substack app. We’ve designed it to be simple, fun, and seamlessly integrated with your Substack. Going live from the Substack app will immediately notify your subscribers, allowing you to break news as it happens, share behind-the-scenes footage, bring your audience into exclusive events, or host interactive AMAs. You can even paywall a live video to make it available only for your paid subscribers, creating an intimate viewing event.
In this guide
How to go live
1. Get the Substack iOS or Android app and open the app.
2. Tap the orange “+” button on Home and select “Live”. Make sure to allow camera and microphone access.
3. Add a title to your live video– subscribers will see this when they’re notified about the event via email or push notification.
4. Select who can access your live video: everyone, all subscribers, or paid subscribers only.
- Everyone: Any Substack app user can access your stream and comment in the live video chat.
- All subscribers: Any of your free and paid subscribers can access your stream.
- Paid subscribers only: Only monthly, annual, and founding member paid subscribers can access your stream. If you don’t have payments enabled on your Substack, you will not see this option.
5. Choose whether to email your subscribers when you go live on Substack. We recommend leaving the “Email my subscribers” toggle on so subscribers who don’t have the Substack app will be prompted to download it and join your live video.
Once you’re live, iOS users can invite another creator, up to three, who’s on Substack to stream alongside them. Android users can join a collaborative live video if they are invited by an iOS user but Android users cannot invite a second streamer just yet. This feature will be coming to Android soon.
- Click on the invite button.
- Search for the user you want to invite to your stream. A Substack account is required for your guest before your stream goes live. If you don’t see a specific user, try searching via their full name. If that doesn’t work, try searching via their Substack handle. The Substack handle can be found in a user’s profile.
3. If you still don’t see a user after searching by full name and handle, they may have disabled notifications and you should reach out to them via DMs (or off-platform) to make sure they turn on their live video notifications.
4. Select your guest and tap the add button.
5. Once they accept the invite, they'll enter a preview room where you can make sure everyone is prepared to start the livestream.
Tips for a successful stream
Tease your live video in advance
Live video on Substack is new to your subscribers so it’s important that you share the details about your first live video in advance so your subscribers know when the event is happening and how to join.
We recommend sending a dedicated post or chat (or both!) to your subscribers a couple of days before your first live video. Make sure to share the date and time of your live video along with directions for joining the stream.
Subscribers will need to get the app to tune into your live video and should turn on push notifications so they receive a notification when you go live. Gabe Fleisher’s announcement post is a good example of how to give your audience a heads-up about an upcoming livestream.
Strong wifi connection
To ensure high quality audio and video, make sure you have a strong Wifi connection. Any location where you take FaceTime or Zoom calls is best. If you’re unsure about the quality of Wifi connection at a particular location, try FaceTiming a friend first. If the video is clear on FaceTime, you’re good to go.
Share the recording as a post
After you finish your live video, Substack automatically saves the recording as a draft post so you can send it to subscribers who weren’t able to join.
- On desktop, head to your Substack’s Posts tab.
- Select “Drafts” and click on your latest draft.
- Edit the post and publish it just like any other video post.
Ken Klippenstein hosts a live video with Taylor Lorenz and publishes it as a post to his Substack
FAQs
If my Substack app crashes how can I rejoin my live video?
If your app crashes, re-open the Substack app. Your live video will exist in your reading queue on Home for up to two minutes. From there, you can re-join your live video and continue streaming to your viewers.
How can I set my live video chat to All, Paid or Founding subscribers only?
If you would like to set the live chat so that Paid or Founding subscribers are the only subscribers that can chat, you may do so by going to your Substack Account Settings page. Scroll down to Notifications and under Allow live chats from, click on the drop-down menu. Select "Paid subscribers" or "Founding subscribers".
How do subscribers tune into my live video?
Once you go live, viewers can join to view the stream via:
- Push or email notification: Most subscribers will join your live video via the push or email notification Substack sends immediately after you start your live video.
- Reading queue: Your live video will automatically be inserted in your subscribers reading queues on the Substack app. In one tap, they can join your stream.
- Other entry points: Subscribers can also join your live video from your publication. Soon, they’ll be able to join from your profile page and, if applicable, chat.
Does Substack show a preview of my live video?
Yes, Substack shows the first ten seconds of your live video in the reading queue to let your audience get a taste of what’s happening and to join the stream.
How will I know when subscribers join my live video?
When anyone joins your stream, a brief message is sent in the chat of the live video. Additionally, the viewer counts updates when someone new joins your stream.
Is there a delay between my video and what subscribers see?
There are a few seconds of brief delay between your video and audio and what your viewers see, hear, and comment. This is standard for live video on social media platforms.
Can I leave the app in the middle of my live video?
If you leave the Substack app while your live video is running, participants will see a paused sign with no video. If you leave the stream for more than two minutes, the livestream will end.