CREATOR INCOME
How to make money on YouTube as a beginner
To make money from ads on YouTube, apply to the YouTube Partner Program once your channel meets the requirements. Start with YouTube Studio's Earn tab to see which features are available to you. The program reviews channels before approval, and each monetization feature has its own eligibility rules.
Check which YouTube monetization features you qualify for
Open YouTube Studio and go to Earn. Review the criteria for the feature you want, such as ad revenue or channel memberships. YouTube has separate paths based on eligible long-form watch time or Shorts views for ad revenue. Watch time from the Shorts feed does not count toward the long-form path.
Follow the application steps in Studio when eligible. These include accepting the applicable terms and linking an AdSense for YouTube account. Use YouTube's official eligibility guide for the current rules and your region.
Test a channel idea with three original videos
Pick a topic you can demonstrate yourself. A beginner bicycle maintenance channel could show how to check tire pressure, find a puncture, and clean a chain. Give each video a title that names the job and show the result early so the viewer knows what they will learn.
Use equipment you already own for the first batch. Track how long each video takes to make and where viewers stop watching. Choose the next topic based on questions you can answer with your own footage or examples.
Compare revenue with production costs
Once you have actual earnings data, record monthly revenue, expenses, and production hours. In an illustrative month with $90 in revenue, $30 in expenses, and 12 hours of work, you keep $60 before tax, or $5 per hour. Use your own results to decide whether a subscription or equipment upgrade is worth paying for.
Check the terms and availability of any other income source you add. A membership, for example, takes recurring work if you promise members new material every month.
YouTube Partner Program eligibility and application ↗