YouTube Doubles Ad Revenue Thresholds To 8,000 Watch Hours And 20 Million Shorts Views For New Creators

YouTube is raising the requirements for new creators seeking ad and YouTube Premium revenue through the YouTube Partner Program (YPP), doubling the qualifying watch hours and Shorts views from February 1, 2027, while leaving existing YPP members unaffected.

TL;DR

 

• New YPP applicants will need 8,000 qualified watch hours in 365 days or 20 million qualified Shorts views in 90 days.
• The new requirements take effect on February 1, 2027.
• Existing YPP creators will not be affected by the higher entry thresholds.
• Shorts creators will need 10 million qualified views every 90 days to keep earning Shorts ad revenue.

YouTube is making its first significant changes to its Partner Program since 2018, raising the bar for new creators looking to earn money from ads and YouTube Premium.

According to YouTube’s official announcement, new creators applying for YPP will need 8,000 qualified watch hours over the previous 365 days or 20 million qualified Shorts views during the previous 90 days to qualify for ads and Premium revenue sharing.

Source

Currently, creators can qualify for this level of monetization with 1,000 subscribers and either 4,000 valid public watch hours over 12 months or 10 million valid public Shorts views over 90 days, according to YouTube’s Help Center.

TechCrunch also reported that the new requirements effectively double the current watch-time and Shorts-view thresholds for creators trying to begin earning through the platform. Firstpost and Mashable have also covered YouTube’s upcoming YPP monetization changes.

When Do YouTube’s New Monetization Requirements Begin?

The new requirements take effect on February 1, 2027.

However, YouTube has made it clear that creators already participating in YPP will not be subject to the higher entry thresholds. The company said creators can review and sign its new terms through YouTube Studio before they come into effect.

The change also specifically applies to the YPP thresholds for advertising and YouTube Premium revenue sharing.

YouTube said its entry requirements for Fan Funding and Shopping products will remain unchanged, meaning creators seeking access to those features will not necessarily have to reach the new 8,000-hour or 20-million-view targets.

YouTube Shorts Creators Face Another Revenue Requirement

YouTube is also changing the way Shorts creators remain eligible for revenue sharing.

Starting February 1, 2027, creators will need 10 million qualified Shorts views during the previous 90 days to be eligible for advertising and subscription revenue sharing on Shorts.

Dropping below that threshold will not remove a channel from YPP. Instead, the channel can continue earning money from eligible long-form videos, while Shorts revenue sharing will automatically resume after the channel once again crosses 10 million qualified Shorts views over 90 days.

YouTube said it plans to introduce other incentive programs for creators below the Shorts threshold, including potential bonuses tied to YouTube Shopping, brand deals, and starting or growing trends, although full details are yet to be announced.

Why Is YouTube Raising Its YPP Requirements?

YouTube says the changes are intended to keep pace with the growth of its platform.

The company said YouTube now records more than 200 billion daily Shorts views and over one billion hours of daily watch time on televisions. Its Partner Program has also grown to more than three million creators.

 

YouTube expects to pay creators more in 2027 than it did in 2026, despite tightening the entry requirements.

As part of its wider monetization changes, YouTube is also expanding Premium Lite to every country where YouTube Premium is available. Creators receive their share from subscription revenue pools based on watch time and views, with a 55% revenue share for long-form videos and 45% for Shorts.

For aspiring creators, however, the immediate consequence is straightforward: reaching YouTube’s main advertising revenue-sharing tier will require twice as many qualified watch hours or Shorts views from February 2027.