10 August 2026 – YouTube is raising the requirements for creators who want to earn money from YouTube ads and YouTube Premium revenue through the YouTube Partner Program (YPP).
Starting 1 February 2027, to monetise a YouTube channel, new creators will need:
1,000 YouTube subscribers
8,000 valid public watch hours from long-form videos in the previous 12 months, or
20 million valid YouTube Shorts views within 90 days.
The new thresholds double YouTube’s current requirements of 4,000 watch hours or 10 million Shorts views.
The changes will also affect creators already in the YouTube Partner Program. To continue earning revenue from YouTube Shorts, they will need to maintain 10 million valid Shorts views within a rolling 90-day period. Channels that fall below the threshold will remain in YPP and can continue earning from long-form videos. Shorts revenue sharing will resume automatically once their views rise above the threshold again.
YouTube says creators who already earn significant revenue from Shorts are unlikely to be affected.
The lower YPP tier will remain unchanged. Creators can still qualify for fan-funding and shopping features with 500 subscribers, three public uploads within 90 days, and either 3,000 valid watch hours in the last 12 months or 3 million valid Shorts views in the last 90 days. However, this tier will not allow creators to earn money from ads or YouTube Premium views.
In summary, starting 1 February 2027, reaching 1,000 subscribers alone won’t be enough. Creators will need 8,000 watch hours or 20 million Shorts views to qualify for advertising and YouTube Premium revenue, while existing Shorts earners will need to maintain 10 million views over 90 days to continue earning from Shorts.
