YouTube lowered the threshold to make money and the platform is better off for it

I remember when a friend and I started a YouTube channel years ago. Like many people at the time, we wanted to be the next MKBHD and dove in to try and build a tech channel. It went okay but, as with many things, we burned out and never picked it up again.

One of the things that I had personally found difficult, as have many YouTube hopefuls, was the eligibility requirements to be part of the YouTube Partner Program. The bar seemed quite high, especially as a new creator who is contenting with SO many established channels. Thankfully, YouTube finally had the same thought.

In a blog post, the company announced a number of changes coming to the YouTube Partner Program, the largest of which is a relaxing of the thresholds to get into the program itself. Now, creators will only need to reach 500 subscribers (and a few other criteria) to start making money on the platform.

Starting today, eligible creators will begin to be able to apply to YPP earlier — once they’ve met a threshold of 500 subscribers, 3 public uploads in the last 90 days, and either 3000 watch hours in the past year or 3M Shorts views in the last 90 days. These new partners will unlock access to fan funding features like channel memberships, Super Chat, Super Stickers, Super Thanks, and the ability to promote their own products with YouTube Shopping.

The company says that it is starting to roll out these changes in the U.S., U.K., Canada, Taiwan, and South Korea and that it will continue to come to other countries “over time.”

This is a great move by YouTube. This will help small and new creators start realizing financial benefits from their work even sooner, something that those who have tried to build a channel on the platform could use to stay motivated that their effort is starting to pay off.

The announcement comes a few weeks after the company announced it was killing off Stories in favor of Shorts, an honestly understandable move as I completely forgot I could watch a creator’s story on YouTube. That’s what Instagram is for.