Using Emotes extension can help streamers engage with the viewer. Because many viewers already use BTTV or FFZ, if the streamer doesn’t have emotes extension, they can’t interact with the viewer using the unofficial emojis/emote and the Twitch emotes will only be shown as text
How to Enable BTTV and FFZ Emotes
Streamer and the viewer need to install the emotes extensions on their web browser to use either BTTV or FFZ emotes. Because a web browser extension is needed, you can only install it on a popular web browser like Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Safari, Firefox, and Opera. Beware that because mobile web browsers can’t use an extension, you can’t use BTTV and FFZ on mobile apps
Emotes Extensions are free and can be used on any channel when you have already add the extension on your web browser. According to The Verge, BTTV and FFZ is used by most Twitch users, even it’s assumed that any Twitch users use emotes extension when they watch a stream on Twitch
How to Install BTTV on your Web Browser
- Head into BTTV Website on https://betterttv.com and click the “Download for Chrome” button
2. It will automatically detect your web browser, so it may appear different based on your current browser used. If the website failed to detect your web browser, you can click the drop-down menu and choose the browser you use
3. It will redirect to the extension browser website. Because I used chrome, I get redirected to the Chrome Web Store page of the BTTV extension
4. Click the “Add to Chrome” button at the right corner. A pop-up will appear to ask you to confirm the installation of the extension. Beware that emotes extension can read your data when you use open Twitch.tv
5. Confirm to add extension
6. Wait for few seconds to install the extension. After it finished, you can head into Twitch.tv and use BTTV on any Twitch channel
How to Install FFZ on your Web browser
- Open the FrankerFaceZ website on https://www.frankerfacez.com/.
2. Scroll down and click “Download for Google Chrome”. Just like on the BTTV website, it auto-detects your current web browser. You can click the other browser below the download button to change the browser you want to use
3. Your web browser will redirect you to the browser extension website, just like on BTTV
4. Click the “Add to Chrome” Button then “Click Add extension” on the pop-up that appears
You have already Install FFZ and you can use FFZ on any Twitch channel
How to enable BTTV on your Twitch Channel
BTTV is automatically enabled on your channel when you Install BTTV. But in case it’s not enabled, you can open the BTTV setting from the chat room
- In the chat room during the stream, click the gear image at the bottom corner of the chat room. If you are offline, you can head into your channel and click the chat room
2. Scroll down, to the bottom menu and click “BTTV Setting”
3. On the Setting menu, scroll down to check if your BTTV is enabled or not
4. Make sure BTTV emotes are left enabled by turning it on
How to add FFZ emotes on the BTTV extension
Without using FFZ, you can enable FFZ emotes on your channel after you Install the BTTV extension. It will allow BTTV to show FFZ emotes if any viewers use FFZ emotes instead of BTTV in the chat room
- Head up into BTTV setting from the guide above
2. From the Setting Menu, scroll down
3. On the “FrankerFaceZ Emotes” submenu, Turn it on to enable FFZ emotes on BTTV enabled channel
How to Enable FFZ on your Twitch Channel
Just like BTTV, FFZ is automatically enabled when you Install FFZ emotes extension. But if not enabled, it’s easier to change than BTTV
- At the top right corner beside your Twitch profile image and Get Bits button, click the FFZ button to open the “FrankerFaceZ Control Center”
2. Scroll down and On the Chat > Emotes Menu, Turn on the Use the FrankerFaceZ Menu to directly replace the inbuilt Twitch emotes menu
How to add BTTV emotes on FFZ extension
Just Like BTTV, you can use BTTV emotes on FrankerFaceZ emotes extension. After enabling the FFZ emotes extension, you can add BTTV emotes by using the add-on feature
- Open the “FrankerFaceZ Control Center” by clicking the FFZ button beside your profile picture
2. Scroll down and On the Add-on sub-menu, Find the” BetterTTV emotes” and click Enable button to add global BTTV emotes on FFZ extension
3. It’s better to enable BTTV emotes add-on because most people use BTTV, so you don’t need to install both extensions if you prefer FFZ more than BTTV
Why You Should Enable Emotes Extension on your Channel?
Many Twitch Users use Emotes Extension on their web browser. This Allow them to view and send emotes that non-emotes extension user can’t see in your channel chat room. By enabling it, it can add new ways on how your viewer can interact with each other and you as the streamer.
Enabling the emotes extension is a popular choice among many streamers. Because it’s easy and you only need to just install emotes extension on your web browser
Of course, there is a requirement that your viewer must also install the emotes extension to view and use the emotes. This is easy to solve because emotes extensions are already popular among veteran Twitch Users. Streamers don’t need to ask their viewer to install emotes extension
Many Twitch users only send emotes that accepted by BBTV or FFZ. So, if not enabled, it can reduce engagement in the chat room.
So In most cases, it’s better to enable the emotes extension
BTTV Vs FFZ, What Emotes Extension You should choose?
BTTV is the better choice because it has the biggest userbase on Twitch. Because BTTV has the biggest community, there will more support and help in case you need it. BTTV is also easier to use and the emotes are more clear than FFZ in my opinion
FFZ was last updated in 2019 based on the Chrome Web Store. Even though the modules are separately updated using Twitch React, you still need to be careful when you use FFZ
Not only that BTTV can also show FFZ emotes even if you don’t Install FFZ emotes extension. So in most cases, BTTV is a better choice than FFZ
You don’t need to install both extensions because each extension can use both emote. And if both enabled you can get this warning notification on your Twitch account to disable one of them
So you must only use 1 emote extension on your channel. It’s better to only use BTTV extension while using FFZ emotes because BTTV is more used and have a bigger community base
The fact that both extensions can use each other emotes is proof of healthy competition,
Why I can’t see BTTV or FFZ emotes on Twitch?
If you can’t see BTTV or FFZ emotes on Twitch, make sure your extension is updated on your web browser.
If it doesn’t fix the problem, disable and re-install the extension to reset the setting
You can also fix the bug by clearing the cache and cookies. To know more about how to fix emotes bugs, head into my article on Why Twitch emotes are not showing and How to Fix It