YouTube Shorts monetization is finally here! But what does it mean for creators, what are the requirements, and have any main policies changed? Let’s get into all that today!

YouTube Shorts monetization finally happened! But what does it mean for creators, what are the requirements, and have any main policies changed? Let’s get into all that below.

Is YouTube Shorts monetized?

Before 2023, you couldn’t make money on YouTube Shorts in the traditional sense. There was a YouTube Shorts Monetization Fund, which dished out a not-to-be-sniffed-at $100 million to the platform’s top creators.

But what about the small fries? The up-and-comers? Well, from February 1, 2023, YouTube Shorts monetization became available for most creators. This is thanks to a new advertising revenue sharing model for Shorts, which replaced the YouTube Shorts Monetization Fund. 

YouTube Shorts monetization requirements for 2023

If you want to know how to monetize YouTube Shorts, you’ll have to do a bit of reading. That’s because the YouTube Partner Program (YPP), which content creators join to earn money on the platform, has started rolling out some updated terms and conditions. 

To remain in the YPP, you’ll have to accept these new terms by July 10, 2023. Even if you’re not looking to monetize on YouTube Shorts specifically, you’ll still need to read and accept these terms. The main thrust of the update is opting into the below monetization modules:

• Watch Page Monetization Module, which allows you to keep earning money on any ads served across your long-form, live-streamed, and YouTube Premium content. 
• Shorts Monetization Module, which allows you to earn money on YouTube Shorts. The money comes from ads – they’ll play between Shorts in the Shorts feed.
• Commerce Product Addendum, which sounds confusing, but we promise it isn’t! It just means monetization will be covered for extra features like Channnel Memberships, Super Chat, Super Stickers and Super Thanks. These terms haven’t changed, so if you’re already using these features, you won’t have to agree again.

YouTube recommends that you opt into all of these modules, to ensure that you take full advantage of everything on offer.

How to turn on YouTube Shorts monetization

Once you’ve accepted the new terms, you needn’t worry – YouTube Shorts is already monetized! If you missed the memo, you might need to head to YouTube Studio on your web browser, rather than the YouTube app, and accept the terms over there.

Now we’ve covered that, what about the YouTube Shorts monetization rules for 2023? How do YouTube Shorts make money, and how can you get a slice of the pie? Let’s take a look.

Can I monetize YouTube Shorts with 1,000 subscribers?

The good news is yes, you can monetize YouTube Shorts with just 1,000 subscribers. The bad news, though, is you need 10 million valid Shorts views in the past 90 days to do so. That’s a lot of views! If you meet that criteria, you can activate ads and earn 45% of the allocated ad revenue on your Shorts videos, with the rest going to YouTube.

How much do YouTube Shorts ads pay?

There’s no saying how much you can earn with YouTube Shorts monetization, given there’s no official equation that tells you how many cents you’ll get per 1,000 views. (We’re sure someone will come up with one soon enough!)

Some people have suggested the figure is around $0.04 per 1,000 views, but there’s nothing concrete from YouTube’s end.

However, whatever amount you do end up netting will be a 45% cut of the gross amount, as is the standard with YouTube’s ad revenue payments. It’s also worth noting that YouTube Shorts monetization only applies to views after you’ve accepted the new terms, meaning old Shorts views unfortunately won’t bring in any cash.

Why can’t I monetize my YouTube Shorts?

There are a couple of things that’ll cut off your cash immediately. If you’ve reposted content onto YouTube Shorts, that immediately disqualifies you from earning. That could be anything from another creator’s content to a clip from a TV show – if it’s not original, you won’t be able to get any money from it. Likewise, any YouTube Shorts with inflated views from automated clicks or bots won’t be eligible for monetization.

Want to soundtrack your YouTube Shorts safely? Use our music and you can monetize your Shorts. Subscribing to Epidemic Sound means all necessary rights are included to use our music and sound effects in your published content.

It’s more than royalty-free. More like worry-free. Check out the 30-day free trial and start soundtracking your YouTube Shorts – and the world – today.

So, that’s YouTube Shorts monetization covered on our end. We don’t know about you, but we’re excited to see this quickfire, short-form corner of YouTube finally open up for monetization.

Interested in how we work with YouTube? Check out our Epidemic Sound for YouTube page to find out more.