YouTube Partner Program thresholds (checked 8 October 2026)
Taken from YouTube Help on 8 October 2026. These are the figures the checker above applies. Public watch hours and qualified Shorts views come only from videos and Shorts set to public. YouTube can change the numbers, so check the linked YouTube Help pages before you plan around a date.
| Tier | What you need | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Fan funding (lower tier) | 500 subscribers and 3 public uploads in the last 90 days, plus 3,000 public watch hours in 12 months or 3 million Shorts views in 90 days.Channel memberships, Super Chat, Super Stickers, Super Thanks and Shopping. YouTube says the February 2027 update leaves this tier unchanged. | YouTube Help: early access requirements |
| Ad revenue sharing, until 31 January 2027 | 1,000 subscribers, plus 4,000 public watch hours in 12 months or 10 million Shorts views in 90 days.Watch-page ads and a share of the Shorts Creator Pool, plus everything in the lower tier. | YouTube Help: overview and eligibility |
| Ad revenue sharing, new applicants from 1 February 2027 | 1,000 subscribers, plus 8,000 public watch hours in 365 days or 20 million Shorts views in 90 days.Channels already in the programme are not affected, but must accept the updated terms in YouTube Studio by 31 January 2027. | YouTube Help: 2027 updates |
| Shorts Creator Pool earnings, each month from 1 February 2027 | At least 10 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days, measured over the 90 days ending on the 15th of the month before the one being paid.Applies to every partner earning from Shorts, including channels already in the programme. | YouTube Help: Shorts monetization policies |
More free calculator tools
Same quality bar. Still free. Still no upload.
Part of free YouTube tools.
Your files never leave your device
Free to use, with no account, no usage limit and no watermark, because the work runs on your device rather than on our servers.
This is not a promise about how carefully we handle your upload. There is no upload. The file you choose is read into memory by your own browser, processed there, and handed back as a download — the tool has no server component and makes no network request with your data.
- Nothing is stored. We never receive the file, so there is no copy to retain, no retention period to disclose, and nothing to delete on request.
- Nothing is transmitted. No upload endpoint, no analytics payload carrying file contents, no third-party processor.
- You can verify it. Load this page, disconnect from the internet, and use the tool. It still works, because everything it needs is already on your machine.
- Nothing persists after you close the tab. Files are held in page memory only — not in local storage, not in a cache, not in a database.
A note on wording, because it matters: we do not describe these tools as “encrypted.” Encryption protects data that travels to somebody else's computer. Your file does not travel, so there is nothing to encrypt and nothing to intercept — which is a stronger guarantee than encryption, not a weaker one. The page itself is served over HTTPS like the rest of the site.
This makes the tools safe for material you are contractually barred from uploading to third-party services — client footage under NDA, unreleased campaign assets, anything covered by a confidentiality clause.
How it works
1. Copy your Studio numbers
From YouTube Studio, copy your subscribers, public watch hours for the last 365 days, Shorts views for the last 90 days and public uploads in the last 90 days. 1.2k and 3M work.
2. Add your pace
Paste what you gained in the last 28 days, or a daily average. Watch hours and Shorts views are rolling windows, so the tool lets old days fall off as new ones arrive.
3. Read both tiers
Progress bars, what is still missing, and a date for each route. A date after 1 February 2027 is checked against the 2027 entry bar.
4. Apply when a tier says eligible
The numbers are not the whole check: YouTube also asks for 2-Step Verification, no active Community Guidelines strikes and an AdSense account linked or ready to set up. Apply under Earn in YouTube Studio. YouTube says review typically takes about a month.
5. Estimate a range
Enter monthly views and set a low and high RPM, or pick a labelled preset from a published 2026 study. You get a monthly and yearly range.
Questions
How do I check if my YouTube channel qualifies for monetization?
Copy your subscribers, public watch hours for the last 365 days, Shorts views for the last 90 days and public uploads for the last 90 days from YouTube Studio into the checker above. It compares them with both Partner Program tiers, lists what is missing and, with your recent pace, gives a date for each route. It is a planner, not YouTube's decision. It reads only the numbers you type and does not connect to your account, so it cannot tell whether your channel is already monetized or look up another channel, and nothing is sent anywhere. The Earn area of YouTube Studio is where you apply and where YouTube shows your application status.
What counts as public watch hours and qualified Shorts views?
Public watch hours come from long-form videos you have set to public. YouTube Help says private, unlisted and deleted videos, ad campaigns and Shorts do not count. Qualified Shorts views are views of Shorts you have set to public that appear in the Shorts feed; private, unlisted and deleted Shorts, ad campaigns and image posts do not count. Both are the qualified figures YouTube applies for the Partner Program; for Shorts the public view counter can run ahead of them.
What are the YouTube monetization requirements?
As of 8 October 2026, YouTube Help lists two tiers. Fan funding (memberships, Super Chat, Super Thanks, Shopping) needs 500 subscribers, 3 public uploads in the last 90 days, and either 3,000 public watch hours in 12 months or 3 million Shorts views in 90 days. Ad revenue sharing needs 1,000 subscribers and either 4,000 watch hours in 12 months or 10 million Shorts views in 90 days. From 1 February 2027, new applicants to the ad tier need 8,000 watch hours or 20 million Shorts views; channels already in the programme are not affected.
After I qualify, how do I apply, and what else does YouTube check?
In YouTube Studio, open Earn and select Apply now. YouTube Help says review typically takes about one month, and delays are possible. Besides the numbers it asks you to follow the channel monetization policies, live in a country or region where the programme is available, have no active Community Guidelines strikes, turn on 2-Step Verification and have advanced features access, with an AdSense account linked or ready to set up. If an application is rejected you can appeal within 21 days or reapply after 30 days, and after a second rejection YouTube asks you to wait 90 days.
I am already in the Partner Program. Does the February 2027 change affect me?
Not the entry bar: YouTube Help says that if you are already in YPP, your status is not impacted by the update. You do need to accept the updated terms in YouTube Studio by 31 January 2027, or you stop earning from the associated monetization features from 1 February 2027. Separately, from 1 February 2027 earning a share of the Shorts Creator Pool for a month needs at least 10 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days, counted to the 15th of the previous month.
What does engaged views mean on YouTube?
Since 24 August 2026 YouTube counts a view the moment a video starts to play. An engaged view is one where the viewer stayed past the initial seconds, not counting loops; it is the old Shorts view count under a new name. YouTube says Shorts pay on engaged views and Partner Program eligibility still uses qualified views, so the public counter now runs ahead of your YPP progress.
Do Shorts views count toward the 4,000 watch hours?
No. YouTube lists Shorts among the things that do not count toward qualified watch hours. Shorts have their own route: qualified views of public Shorts in the Shorts feed over 90 days.
How is the date to eligibility worked out?
Subscribers add up, so the tool divides what is missing by your daily gain. Watch hours and Shorts views are rolling windows, so it assumes your current total is spread evenly across the window, drops that share each day and adds your daily pace. That also shows the pace that holds a bar: 10 million Shorts views in 90 days means about 111,112 qualified views a day. Studio does not show the day-by-day shape of your window, so treat the date as a plan, not a promise.
Where do the RPM figures come from?
YouTube publishes no typical RPM. The presets are labelled figures from AIR Media-Tech's 2026 study of 274 channels in its network: Shorts RPM mostly $0.07 to $0.20, long-form from about $1.79 for gaming to $18.23 for education. Every slider can be moved, and the RPM in your own Studio beats any preset.
Is anything uploaded?
No. The calculator is arithmetic in your browser. Nothing you type is sent anywhere and there is no account.
Related tools
Stay in the same job cluster. Free tools stay on-device; paid tools are labelled as such.
These rearrange files. Versely makes new ones.
Everything on this page works on a file you already have, which is why it costs nothing. Generating something that did not exist (video from a prompt, a voice, a score) runs a model, and that costs credits.