Twitch Panel Maker: Build a Full Panel Set in 20 Minutes
A Twitch panel maker solves the two problems that make most streamers put panels off for months: getting the dimensions right, and making six or more images look like they belong to the same channel. The design part was never actually the hard part. The fiddly setup was.
This is the practical walkthrough: what a panel maker needs to do, how the free Pulz Panel Creator works step by step, and when a freeform tool like Canva is the better choice. If you are still deciding what panels to make, start with the stream panels guide for sizing and content, or the 20 panel ideas list for the menu.
What a Twitch panel maker actually needs to do
- Lock the width at 320px. Twitch renders every panel at exactly 320 pixels wide. A tool that starts from the right canvas removes the most common upload surprise: text that looked fine on a big canvas and turns unreadable at real size.
- Show the whole set together. Panels are read as a strip, not as individual images. If you design them one at a time in separate files, they drift apart - different padding, different font sizes, slightly different shades of the same color.
- Apply one style across everything. Changing your accent color should update six panels, not require six manual edits.
- Export transparent PNGs. Twitch's channel page is dark. Panels with a transparent background and no hard white box sit much more naturally on it.
Making panels with the Pulz Panel Creator
The Panel Creator is a free tool inside the Pulz dashboard. It edits your full panel set side by side in a column that mirrors the real 320px Twitch About layout, so what you see while editing is what viewers get.
- Sign in and open the Panel Creator. A free account works - sign in with Twitch and open the Panel Creator in the dashboard sidebar.
- Start from the default set. You get a realistic starting lineup (About Me, Socials, Rules, Discord, Schedule, Donate) you can rename, remove, or extend instead of facing a blank canvas.
- Pick a template. Templates apply to the whole set at once - including ones derived from your Pulz page theme, so your panels and your link in bio share one visual system automatically.
- Edit each panel. Adjust the text, swap icons from the built-in icon picker, and tweak colors. The live preview always shows the actual upload size, so if text is readable there, it is readable on Twitch.
- Export. Download a single panel as a transparent PNG, or the entire set as a ZIP. Then upload them in your Twitch channel's About tab via 'Edit Panels'.
When Canva or Figma is the better tool
A dedicated panel maker is the fast path for the standard case: clean, consistent, text-and-icon panels. A freeform design tool wins when your panels are not the standard case:
- Illustrated or photographic panels. If your panels are built around commissioned art, mascots, or photos, you need freeform layering. Use Canva, Figma, or Photopea.
- Assets beyond panels. If you are building the full brand kit in one sitting - banner, overlays, social headers - one Figma or Canva project for everything keeps it coherent.
- An existing PSD template. Photopea opens Photoshop files free in the browser. No reason to rebuild what you already own.
If you go freeform, set the canvas to 640px wide (2x for sharpness), design at double size, and export at 320px. And keep every panel in one project file so the set stays consistent.
Mistakes that survive any tool
- Text too small for mobile. Panels render at roughly half size on phones. If you cannot read the text at 50% zoom, neither can mobile viewers - and that is most of them.
- Designing on white. Twitch's page background is near-black (#18181B). A panel that looks crisp on a white artboard can wash out completely on the real page. Preview on dark before uploading.
- No link behind the panel. The image is half the job. A Socials or Donate panel without a clickable link behind it is decoration. Viewers will not copy-paste a handle from an image.
- One-off styling. A new panel added six months later in a different font undoes the set. Re-open the same template, add the panel, re-export.
FAQ
Is the Pulz Panel Creator really free?
Yes. It is included with every free Pulz account, with no watermark on exports and no export limit. Pulz monetizes through optional Plus and Pro page upgrades, not by gating the tools.
What size does a panel maker export at?
320 pixels wide - the exact width Twitch renders panels at. Height varies by panel type; 100-200px covers most panels. Twitch accepts up to 600px tall and just under 3MB per image.
Do Twitch panels need a transparent background?
Not required, but transparent PNGs usually look better because they sit directly on Twitch's dark page instead of floating in a colored box. If your design uses a solid background on purpose, make sure it works against #18181B.
Can I make Twitch panels without Photoshop?
Yes - nobody needs Photoshop for panels anymore. The Pulz Panel Creator, Canva, and Photopea are all free and browser-based. Photoshop only earns its cost if you already use it for other work.