Yt YouTube
The largest video platform in the world, with monetization through ads, memberships, Super Chat/Thanks, paid livestreams, and merch.
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YouTube is the dominant video platform globally. Creators in the YouTube Partner Program earn through ad revenue share (55% on long-form, 45% on Shorts), paid channel memberships (70% to creator), Super Chat and Super Thanks tips on live and recorded video (70%), the merch shelf, and YouTube Shopping.
Our take
YouTube needs no introduction as a platform — the question is whether its Partner Program works as a creator business. Ads pay 55% to creator, memberships pay 70%, and the $100 AdSense threshold means your first real cheque is months away. Best for: video creators building large audiences who want ad + membership + Super Thanks revenue diversified across a platform with real built-in discovery. Skip if: you have a small but engaged audience — ad RPMs are brutal below 10k subs, and a Patreon or direct membership will pay you 10× more per fan.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Unmatched audience reach via algorithm
- Multiple monetization streams in one place
- Strong tools for large channels (Analytics, Studio API)
Cons
- No subscriber email list — relationship owned by YouTube
- 45% cut on long-form ad revenue is the highest in this directory
- Ads shown to all viewers, including paying members
Full breakdown
- Platform fee
- 30–45% · 45% on ads · 30% on memberships
- Payout speed
- monthly
- Minimum payout
- $100
- Countries supported
- AdSense-supported
- Email list export
- None
- Custom domain
- No
- Community features
- Community posts, members-only posts, Super Chat