YouTube is raising the entry requirements for its Partner Programme, doubling the watch hours and Shorts views needed for new creators to begin earning advertising and subscription revenue.
From 1 February 2027, new applicants will need 8,000 qualified watch hours over the previous 365 days, or 20 million qualified Shorts views over the previous 90 days. The subscriber threshold remains unchanged at 1,000. These figures double the current requirements of 4,000 watch hours and 10 million Shorts views.
The company announced the changes in a blog post on Monday, stating that with more than three million creators already in the programme, the adjustments represent the first significant updates since 2018. YouTube said the move aims to ensure the programme continues to lead in the creator economy by meaningfully rewarding active creators. The platform expects to pay even more to creators in 2027 than in 2026.
YouTube linked the higher bar to its own growth, pointing to more than 200 billion daily Shorts views and over a billion hours of daily watch time on television. Creators already enrolled in the YouTube Partner Programme will not be affected by the new entry thresholds.
The change marks a shift for a company that spent the past four years expanding access. In September 2022, YouTube opened the programme to Shorts-focused creators at the lower thresholds of 1,000 subscribers and 10 million Shorts views over 90 days, while also introducing an earlier access tier for fan funding tools. Those lower thresholds remain in place at 500 subscribers and three public uploads in the last 90 days, plus either 3,000 valid public watch hours in a year or three million valid public Shorts views in 90 days.
