Can You Make Money on YouTube Shorts?

YouTube’s not just for long-form content anymore. Thanks to YouTube Shorts — 60-second-long vertical footage — audiences can consume bite-sized content on the platform. 

With Shorts seeing 50 billion daily views, creators have jumped at the opportunity to create short-form videos to showcase their content and try to get more subscribers. But can you make money on YouTube Shorts if they only last one minute? 

The answer is yes, and there are several ways to do it. From ad revenue sharing to affiliate marketing, read on to learn more about YouTube Shorts monetization.  

Can You Make Money on YouTube Shorts?

There are multiple ways to monetize your Shorts. You can divide these monetization options into two main categories:

• Revenue paid by YouTube through the Partner Program — YouTube can pay you in the form of ad and premium subscription revenue sharing. It can also be funded by subscriber support in the form of YouTube Fan Funding, shopping, and a subscription service known as YouTube Premium. 

• External Revenue — Marketing through YouTube Shorts but being paid through outside means, including brand partnerships, external affiliate programs, and similar, is another way to monetize Shorts. 

YouTube Partner Program: YouTube Shorts Requirements and Eligibility

By joining YouTube’s Partner Program (YPP), you can access several monetization options. You can also access more detailed information about your channel’s performance, letting you create videos better aligned with viewer behavior.

There are two tiers to the YPP:

1. Accounts With More Than 500 Subscribers

These are the minimum channel requirements for the first tier, which gives you access to a limited number of monetization opportunities, including YouTube Shopping and Fan Funding (more on these later).

Here are the requirements:

• 500 subscribers with three uploads in the last 90 days
• 3,000 watch hours in the last 12 months or 3 million Shorts views in the last 90 days

2. Accounts With More Than 1,000 Subscribers

Here are the minimum channel requirements for the top tier, which offers more extensive opportunities, including Fan Funding, YouTube Shopping, Ad Revenue Sharing, and more.  

Here are the requirements:  

• 1,000 subscribers
• 4,000 watch hours in the last 12 months or 10 million Shorts views in the last 90 days 

Note: Only creators from eligible countries can join the program. Check YouTube support pages to see if your country is on the list of eligible countries.

How to Monetize YouTube Shorts: Applying for YouTube’s Partner Program

Once you meet the eligibility requirements, here’s how to apply to the YPP and monetize your Shorts from your computer:

1. Go to “Earn” in YouTube Studio

Sign in to YouTube, then:

• Go to YouTube Studio by clicking on your profile picture in the top right. 
• Select Earn in the left menu.

2. Check Your Eligibility and Apply

If you’re eligible, you’ll see an Apply button:

• Click Apply.
• Click Start to review and accept the terms.

If you aren’t eligible, click on Get Notified to receive a notification when you are eligible to complete the process.

3. Create or Link Your Google AdSense Account

You’ll see a sign-up for Google AdSense card, which you need to get paid:

• Click Start. 
• Enter your YouTube password and authenticate (confirm it’s your account). 
• Select the Google Account you want to use.  
• Verify your email address. 
• Provide your contact information and submit your AdSense account application. 

You’ll receive an email when your AdSense account is approved. 

4. Wait for YouTube To Review Your Application

YouTube typically takes around a month to review your application and ensure your account follows all their policies and guidelines. 

If your first application isn’t successful, you can appeal the decision within 21 days. You can also upload more original content and reapply after 30 days. 

5. Once Approved, Accept the Shorts Monetization Module

Before you can turn on monetization, you’ll need to review and accept YouTube's Shorts Monetization Module. This module lets you get paid from Shorts ad revenue, YouTube Premium revenue, and more.

YouTube Shorts Payment: Claiming Your Money

YouTube pays creators monthly through an AdSense account. Here’s how to receive your first payment:

1. Give Google your tax information via your account. 
2. Verify your identity and address. 
3. Choose your preferred payment method — EFT, wire transfers, or something else. 
4. If the amount owed to you reaches the payment threshold (the minimum you must accumulate before YouTube processes a payment) by the end of the month, YouTube will process your payment within 21 days. The payment threshold differs for each country; U.S. based creators must accumulate $100 before YouTube pays them. 

5 Ways to Monetize YouTube Shorts

Now that you know what makes you eligible and how to get paid, it’s time to learn how to earn. 

While there are many ways to monetize your YouTube Shorts, here are five popular methods: 

1. YouTube Shorts Ad Revenue Sharing

You can watch YouTube Shorts in a nonstop scroll feed, like TikTok or Instagram Reels. After scrolling through a few videos, you’ll see a sponsored post or an ad. 

Those who are part of the YPP are eligible for the ad revenue generated by Shorts, which is pooled and distributed between YouTube itself and YPP members. 

Here’s how YouTube works out the payment: 

• YouTube pools revenue from advertisements that run between Shorts. 
• Some revenue covers music licensing costs; the rest goes into the Creator Pool.
• YouTube allocates revenue from the Creator Pool to you based on the percentage of views your Shorts received from the total Shorts views in your country. If your Shorts received 1% of the Shorts views in your country, YouTube will allocate 1% of the revenue in the Creator Pool to you.

• YouTube then pays you 45% of the revenue allocated to you and keeps the other 55%.

You may wonder, “How much does YouTube Shorts pay for ad revenue?” But it depends. The average creator earns about $0.05–0.07 per Shorts view from ad revenue sharing. That means if your video earns 1,000 views, you earn around $10–60. Although this will add up if you have a video that goes viral or your content consistently earns thousands of views, it’s best to improve your earning potential by focusing on multiple monetization methods rather than ad revenue sharing alone.

2. YouTube Premium

Creators who are part of the YPP can receive a share of YouTube’s Premium subscriptions. This revenue comes from users who pay a monthly subscription to watch YouTube content without ads. YouTube pays creators monthly based on how much time Premium members spend watching your content. 

YouTube Premium revenue can provide a more stable and predictable income compared to ad revenue alone, especially if the Premium members who watch your content are your subscribers. The payout is based on subscription fees, so it’s less likely to fluctuate like advertising rates do.

3. YouTube Fan Funding

Let your subscribers express their appreciation for your content and supplement your income with Fan Funding. 

You can check if you’re eligible and turn on funding features in the YouTube Studio, under the Earn tab. You’re likely eligible for Fan Funding if you have:

• At least 500 subscribers and 3 uploads in the last 90 days

• At least 3,000 watch hours in the last 12 months or 3 million Shorts views in the last 90 days

If you’ve turned this feature on, there are three main ways to receive funding from your fans:

1. Channel memberships — Subscribers pay to become channel members and gain access to exclusive content. 
2. Super Chat and Super Stickers — During live-stream Shorts, viewers give a donation in exchange for a highlighted message or animated image that appears in the live chat.
3. Super Thanks — Viewers buy an animation on your Shorts video and a customizable comment underneath to express their admiration. 

4. YouTube Shopping

Use YouTube Shopping to promote your Shopify, Spring, or Spreadshop stores and leverage YouTube Short’s massive audience. With Shorts, you can gain exposure for your business or a brand you’re promoting and sell products directly in your videos.   

YouTube creates a product overlay that will appear on your Shorts video, with a link that viewers can click to shop. You can also name products or mention where users can find affiliate links to direct them toward purchasing something that supports you.  

To be eligible, you must meet YouTube’s Partner Program requirements. 

5. Affiliate Programs

Whether you’re a part of the YPP or not, take advantage of affiliate programs to earn commission by promoting products via YouTube Shorts. 

The Amazon Influencer Program is a popular affiliate program that lets you earn money by recommending products in your videos and directing viewers to unique affiliate links or promo codes. The company whose product you’re promoting will pay you a percentage for every purchase made using your link. Just add the link in your bio or video description for easy access.

YPP members who reside in the U.S. and have more than 20,000 subscribers may be able to join YouTube’s new Shopping Affiliate Program. This program lets you tag products in your videos and earn a commission through the Partner Program when viewers buy the product from your Short.

Create Your Shorts With Captions

Your time is precious — don’t waste it recording dozens of YouTube Shorts from scratch. Use Captions and leverage the power of AI to automatically extract viral-worthy Shorts from your existing long-form videos. This way, you can easily create multiple YouTube Shorts, make the most of your existing content, and start monetizing quickly.

Check out Captions today to discover how its AI-powered range of tools can help you create YouTube content audiences will love.