YouTube raises monetisation thresholds, making it harder for creators to earn from Ads

Dorcas Agambila 12:30 - 11 August 2026

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YouTube is tightening the requirements creators must meet to access advertising revenue through its YouTube Partner Programme (YPP), with the changes expected to particularly affect creators who rely heavily on short-form content.

Long-form creators will now need 8,000 qualified watch hours in 12 months, up from 4,000, alongside at least 1,000 subscribers to qualify for ad revenue sharing.
Creators seeking Shorts revenue will need 20 million qualified views within 90 days, double the previous 10 million-view requirement.
YouTube says it will introduce shopping bonuses, milestone-based incentives and other earning opportunities, while existing YPP creators will remain in the programme.

The platform announced the changes on Monday, describing them as the first major update to its Partner Programme requirements in several years.

Amjad Hanif, YouTube’s Vice-President of Creator Product, said the most significant adjustments would affect eligibility for advertising revenue sharing.

He said in a video explaining the updates;

The biggest changes are on what it takes to earn from ads rev-share

Under the new rules, creators producing long-form videos will need to accumulate **.

Creators who post long-form videos (aka not TikTok-style Shorts) now need 8,000 "qualified watch hours" in the last 12 months when applying to YouTube's ad revenue share program. Previously, that number was 4,000 "qualified watch hours." Creators will still need at least 1,000 subscribers to qualify.
For creators mostly posting shorter-form content, they can qualify for YouTube's Shorts revenue-share program if they have 20 million "qualified Shorts views" within the last 90 days, also doubling the requirement (which was previously 10 million views). Creators will still need at least 1,000 subscribers.
Once accepted, Shorts creators will also need to stay within the 10 million views threshold over the 90-day period to keep making money. (They'll be able to earn money from long-form videos even if they drop below the Shorts threshold, though.)
YouTube is "broadening revenue opportunities" with new initiatives like incentive-based payouts for milestones, shopping bonuses, and "earning boosts for starting and growing trends." YouTube said it wants to diversify its creator monetization offerings so that the program isn't "relying solely on ad revenue."

Creators who fall below that threshold could still earn money from their long-form content, provided they meet the relevant requirements.

YouTube has sought to reassure creators who are already part of the Partner Programme that the new requirements will not immediately remove them from the scheme.

“If you are in YPP today, you stay in YPP,” Mr Hanif said.

The platform said the changes are intended to reflect the rapid expansion of the creator economy and the changing nature of content consumption on YouTube.

Mr Hanif attributed the adjustments to the “growth of the creator ecosystem over the last several years”.

Alongside the higher entry thresholds, YouTube said it is working to broaden the ways creators can generate income on the platform.

The company is introducing initiatives that could include incentive-based payments tied to milestones, shopping bonuses and additional financial rewards for creators who start or help grow trends.

YouTube said the aim is to reduce creators’ reliance solely on advertising revenue by diversifying monetisation opportunities.

The changes are likely to have a particular impact on creators whose channels are built around short-form videos.

YouTube introduced its permanent Shorts revenue-sharing model in 2023, as short-form video became an increasingly important part of the platform’s ecosystem.

Mr Hanif said YouTube wants its monetisation system to better reward creators who consistently generate views and engagement rather than those who benefit from a single viral hit.

He said;

We had a case where if you had only a few thousand views, you might have a few cents for that month, Instead, we'd like to design the programme in a way where it rewards creators who are leaned in, who are driving views and engagement

The new approach effectively means creators may need to demonstrate sustained audience interest rather than relying on occasional viral successes.

The higher thresholds have already prompted concerns among some creators, particularly those still trying to build an audience.

Creator Austen Tosone said the changes could make monetisation “so much tougher for small creators”, noting that many creators already struggle to generate enough views from long-form content to qualify for advertising revenue.

YouTube’s Partner Programme has expanded considerably since its monetisation requirements were last significantly updated. The programme now has about 3 million creators, compared with a much smaller creator ecosystem when YouTube introduced its previous requirements.

With short-form video now playing a central role in online content consumption, YouTube says the latest changes are designed to ensure its monetisation system keeps pace with the evolving creator economy.

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