How YouTube pays creators
YouTube pays creators through the YouTube Partner Program, or YPP. Once your channel is accepted and monetization is turned on, you get a share of the revenue from ads shown on your videos, a share of YouTube Premium revenue when Premium members watch you, and most of the money from fan funding features.
To share in ad revenue, a channel needs 1,000 subscribers plus either 4,000 public watch hours in the last 12 months or 10 million public Shorts views in the last 90 days. In many countries a first tier opens earlier, at 500 subscribers and 3 public uploads in the last 90 days plus either 3,000 watch hours in 12 months or 3 million Shorts views in 90 days. That first tier unlocks fan funding and Shopping only, not ad money.
| Income source | Creator’s share |
|---|---|
| Ads on long videos (the watch page) | 55% of net ad revenue |
| Ads in the Shorts feed | 45% of the revenue allocated to you |
| Memberships, Super Chat, Super Stickers, Super Thanks | 70% of net revenue |
Earnings for a month are finalized and added to your AdSense for YouTube balance between the 7th and 12th of the following month. Once the balance reaches your local payment threshold, the money is paid out between the 21st and 26th.
The calculator counts a month as 365 ÷ 12, about 30.4 days, so 12 months and 365 days give the same yearly total.
RPM vs CPM: which number to use
RPM, revenue per mille, is what you earned per 1,000 views, after YouTube’s revenue share. It counts every view, including views where no ad played, and it includes revenue from ads, YouTube Premium, channel memberships, Super Chat and Super Stickers. For Shorts, it is based on engaged views.
CPM, cost per mille, looks at the same money from the advertiser’s side. It is what advertisers pay per 1,000 ad impressions before the revenue share, and it only covers ads and Premium on monetized views.
So RPM is almost always lower than CPM: YouTube’s share comes off first, and the views without ads still count. A $10 CPM does not mean $10 for every 1,000 views. For planning your income, RPM is the number that matters, and it is the one this calculator asks for. If you buy ads yourself, the CPM Calculator works out the advertiser side.
How much YouTube pays: examples
Monthly earnings from long video views at four example RPMs. The RPMs are round numbers for illustration, not benchmarks. The row for 1,000,000 views also shows what 1 million views pay.
| Views per month | RPM $1 | RPM $3 | RPM $5 | RPM $10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10,000 | $10 | $30 | $50 | $100 |
| 50,000 | $50 | $150 | $250 | $500 |
| 100,000 | $100 | $300 | $500 | $1,000 |
| 500,000 | $500 | $1,500 | $2,500 | $5,000 |
| 1,000,000 | $1,000 | $3,000 | $5,000 | $10,000 |
Why earnings vary so much
Two channels with the same views can earn very different amounts. The main reasons:
- Where your viewers live. Advertisers pay more to reach viewers in some countries than in others, so the same number of views can earn several times more or less.
- Your topic. Videos close to buying decisions, like personal finance, software or business, tend to attract better paying ads than broad entertainment.
- The season. Ad budgets usually rise toward the holidays at the end of the year and drop again in January, and RPM follows.
- Video length. On monetized videos of 8 minutes or longer you can turn on mid-roll ads, which adds ad slots to each view.
- Ad suitability. Videos that do not fully meet the advertiser-friendly guidelines run with limited or no ads.
- Views without ads. Some viewers use ad blockers or see no ad on a given view. Those views still count in RPM and pull it down.
That is also why published “average RPM” figures are of little use for your own channel. Creators who share their numbers report long video RPMs anywhere from under $1 to well over $10, and Shorts RPMs often in cents. Treat any figure like that as a loose orientation and use the RPM from your own analytics as soon as you have it.
Shorts vs long videos
Shorts are paid differently from long videos. Each month, the ad revenue from the Shorts feed is pooled. Part of it pays for music licensing on Shorts that use music, and the rest forms the Creator Pool, which is split by each creator’s share of engaged views in each country. You keep 45% of what is allocated to you, whether or not your Shorts use music.
Because that pool is spread over a huge number of views, Shorts usually earn far less per 1,000 views than long videos, and you need many more views for the same income. Shorts still help: they can bring in subscribers who then watch your long videos. Turn on Shorts in the calculator to see both parts side by side, and use engaged views from YouTube Analytics, since the public Shorts view count can be higher.
Other ways creators earn
- Memberships and Supers: channel memberships, Super Chat, Super Stickers and Super Thanks pay you 70% of net revenue. They are already part of your RPM, so do not add them a second time.
- Sponsorships: brand deals are agreed directly with the brand, often as a flat fee per video, and do not show up in YouTube’s numbers at all. For many channels they earn more than ads.
- Affiliate links, merch and Shopping: a cut of sales from products you link to or your own products.
How to raise your RPM
- Make videos 8 minutes or longer when the topic truly needs the time, and place mid-rolls at natural breaks instead of padding.
- Cover topics close to what advertisers sell, like tools, money, careers or product comparisons, if they fit your channel.
- Keep videos advertiser-friendly, so they are not limited to fewer ads.
- Grow watch time per viewer. Longer sessions mean more ad slots.
- Add memberships and Super Thanks for your most loyal viewers. That revenue counts in your RPM.
How to use the YouTube money calculator
- 1Choose Earnings to estimate income from your views, or Views needed to see what a monthly income goal takes.
- 2Enter your long video views, choose Daily or Monthly, and add a low and a high RPM. With a single RPM, enter it in one field and leave the other empty.
- 3Add Shorts with their own engaged views and RPM, or Per video with your uploads per month, then copy the result or a link.
Frequently asked questions
How much does YouTube pay per 1,000 views?
There is no fixed rate. What you earn per 1,000 views is your RPM, and it differs a lot between channels. At an RPM of $3, 1,000 views earn $3 and 1 million views earn $3,000. Your own RPM is on the Revenue tab of YouTube Analytics in YouTube Studio once your channel is monetized.
How many views do you need to make $1,000 a month on YouTube?
Divide $1,000 by your RPM and multiply by 1,000. At an RPM of $2 you need 500,000 views a month, at $5 you need 200,000, and at $10 you need 100,000. Switch the calculator to Views needed to try your own numbers.
How many subscribers do you need to get paid on YouTube?
To share in ad revenue, you need 1,000 subscribers plus either 4,000 public watch hours in the last 12 months or 10 million public Shorts views in the last 90 days. In eligible countries, a first tier opens at 500 subscribers with 3,000 watch hours or 3 million Shorts views, but it only unlocks fan funding and Shopping, not ad money.
Do YouTube Shorts make money?
Yes, once you are in the YouTube Partner Program with ad revenue sharing. Ad revenue from the Shorts feed is pooled, split by each creator’s share of engaged views, and you keep 45% of what is allocated to you. Shorts RPMs are usually far lower than long video RPMs, so Shorts tend to need many more views for the same money.
Why is my RPM lower than my CPM?
CPM is what advertisers pay per 1,000 ad impressions before YouTube takes its share, and it only counts monetized views. RPM is what you keep per 1,000 views after the revenue share, and it counts every view, including the ones where no ad played.
When does YouTube pay you?
Once a month through AdSense for YouTube. Earnings for a month are finalized and added to your balance between the 7th and 12th of the next month. If the balance has reached your local payment threshold and there are no holds, the payment goes out between the 21st and 26th.
How accurate is this YouTube money calculator?
As accurate as the RPM you enter. The math is exact, but RPM moves with your audience, topics, video length and the time of year, so the result is an estimate. That is why the calculator works with a low to high range instead of a single number.