12 Ways to Make Money on YouTube

Wondering how to get paid on YouTube? Nearly 400,000 people have made YouTube a full-time job, and nearly 114 million channels now exist across the video platform. From ads to affiliate marketing to content licensing, average Americans have ample opportunities to make money off their YouTube videos.

Not exactly sure how to make money off YouTube though? This guide contains 12 ways to generate revenue from your video content — plus helpful tips for getting started.

The Popularity of Content Creation

The internet has enabled anyone and everyone to become content creators. Brands now rely on content creators and influencers to advertise products across industries, and sites like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram have enabled people with something to say to earn income just for posting photos, videos, and reviews.

YouTube’s continued popularity (it’s the second most visited website in the world) and TikTok’s growth explosion, underscore that content creation plays an important role in our culture. And if you know how to make good content on YouTube in particular, you could make a lot of money.

Recommended: Active vs. Passive Income

12 Ways to Get Paid on YouTube

YouTube offers creators an opportunity to make good money, but how exactly? It actually takes a lot of hard work, fresh ideas, and regular posting, but if you’ve got a knack for it, it could be an easy way to make money through social media.

Here are 12 YouTube monetization ideas to get you started:

1. Joining the YouTube Partner Program

The most common way to make money off YouTube is by joining the YouTube Partner Program. Doing so allows you to run ads on your videos — before, during, and after — as you see fit.

At one time, YouTubers could count on $1 per 1,000 views, give or take, but it’s a little more complicated today. There’s really no guarantee how much money you’ll make by running ads on your videos, though the average YouTuber now sees $10 to $30 per 1,000 video views.

According to social media management company Sprout Social, your revenue can vary depending on:

•   Your target demographic (there are some strict regulations about ads on videos intended for children)

•   How relevant the ad content is to your video

•   What kind of content you produce.

How Does the YouTube Partner Program Work?

Not every content creator can slap ads onto the front of their videos. To run ads, you have to qualify for the YouTube Partner Program. Requirements include:

•   1,000 subscribers

•   4,000+ valid public watch hours in the last year

•   A linked Google AdSense account.

Your video content must also abide by all Community Guidelines, and you must live in a country where the program is available.

And here’s the kicker: You’ve got to stay active. YouTube can turn off monetization for channels that haven’t put out new content in the last six months.

2. Sending Viewers to Your Blog

If you have a blog with ads, you can encourage your viewers to check it out during your video and include a link to it in your video description. YouTube video descriptions can be up to 5,000 characters (roughly 800 words), though shorter descriptions tend to perform better.

By steering viewers to your ad-optimized blog site, you can earn additional ad revenue with every pageview. Common examples where this make sense include:

•   Recipe videos paired with your recipe website

•   Travel product review videos paired with your travel blog

•   Car maintenance instructional videos paired with your how-to blog content.

3. Sending Viewers to Your Commerce Site

There are other similar ideas for how to get paid on YouTube. For instance, you can use your YouTube video description to link viewers to your e-commerce site. If your channel is popular enough to warrant branded merch, this could be a good way to generate additional revenue. Alternatively, if you run your own shop selling goods like artwork, candles, or apparel, you may want to create product videos on YouTube that send viewers to your site.

If you don’t have your own merch site but instead sell items on Amazon, Etsy, or eBay, you can also send viewers there.

💡 Quick Tip: Help your money earn more money! Opening a bank account online often gets you higher-than-average rates.

4. Using Lead Magnets

Lead magnets are another idea for how to get paid on YouTube, though it’s a more indirect way of making money.

Your YouTube video description might send viewers to a free resource that you’ve created, like an ebook, template, or online course. When the viewer signs up for or downloads their freebie, you can collect their contact information for a newsletter and future sale alerts, which can in turn grow your business and earnings.

5. Starting a Channel Membership

YouTube has another great built-in feature for popular content creators: channel memberships. This enables creators to charge a monthly membership fee. In return for the fee, your viewers will expect certain perks like badges and members-only content.

Channel membership usually only makes sense if you post content everyday, especially YouTube livestreams. You must be a part of the YouTube Partner Program to offer channel memberships.

Recommended: How to Build an Online Community

6. Encouraging the Use of Super Chat and Super Stickers

Content creators who are part of the YouTube Partner Program can also encourage viewers to utilize Super Chat and Super Stickers during live streams. How does this help to get paid off YouTube videos? To access these features, viewers pay a small fee to pin their comments and stickers to the top of a live chat feed.

7. Encouraging YouTube Premium

While you won’t get money directly for encouraging a subscriber to sign up for YouTube Premium, you will get a cut of a viewer’s monthly membership fee when they watch your videos. If your subscribers are loyal and watch your videos regularly, encouraging them to become YouTube Premium members could put more money in your pocket.

Note: YouTube Premium members don’t see ads. If your viewers are increasingly Premium members, your ad revenue may go down.

8. Crowdfunding

YouTube creators can also make money by crowdfunding. What is crowdfunding? It’s a process by which many people contribute small amounts of money, often to help an entrepreneur reach a particular business goal. Patreon is a popular choice for YouTubers, though there are plenty of crowdfunding sites to use. If you have loyal viewers who are willing to donate toward a specific goal or project, crowdfunding could be lucrative for you.

9. Using Affiliate Links in the Description

Links in video descriptions don’t just have to go to your own site. You can also add affiliate links to relevant products. For example, if your video talks about the 10 best ways to save money on a vacation, you can include affiliate links to any products or services in the description. For every viewer who clicks the link and purchases the item, you’ll earn a commission.

💡 Quick Tip: Your money deserves a higher rate. You earned it! Consider opening a high-yield checking account online and earn 0.50% APY.

10. Getting Brand Sponsorships

YouTubers may also work directly with brand sponsors. For example, a recipe video for a dessert may be sponsored by a specific brand of cake mix. The YouTuber will mention the cake mix directly in the video and may even offer a code to get a discount on the product, and the brand will pay the YouTuber for the exposure.

It’s a good idea to thoroughly vet a sponsor to ensure their brand aligns with your values — and makes sense alongside your video content. Always be transparent with viewers by letting them know in the video and the description that this is a paid sponsorship.

11. Publishing Product Reviews

Similarly, YouTubers may review a specific product in a video. In these instances, the brand may specify talking points for the reviewer to discuss. These kinds of videos are common in the beauty, health, and fitness industries. Proceed carefully, though; they may be off-putting to viewers who view the content as inauthentic.

12. Licensing Content to the Media

If one of your videos goes viral, news outlets may want to report on it and show it to their audiences. Legally, they cannot do this without paying you. Thus, media companies often approach YouTube content creators to license their content.

Just make sure your contact info is clear on your channel so that members of the media know how to find you. You could profit from this as another way to earn money off YouTube.

Tips for Starting Your Own YouTube Channel

Ready to start making money on YouTube? Here are a few tips for starting a YouTube channel:

•   Follow YouTube’s guidelines and best practices for setting up an account. YouTube will walk you through all the major steps so you don’t miss anything. You can also search the web for tips on optimizing your channel as well.

•   Think about your target audience. Creating content for the sake of creating content may be fun for you. However, if you want to make money online, you should focus on content that your target audience actually wants.

•   Invest in the right equipment. Depending on the level of quality you’re aiming for, you may need to invest in high-quality light equipment, an external microphone, a video camera, and video editing software.

•   Know how to optimize your videos. There’s a science to YouTube. Research everything from writing strong video titles and descriptions to popular video trends to creating click-worthy thumbnails to optimizing videos for search.

•   Don’t quit your day job just yet. YouTube has nearly 114 million channels, but less than 1% of those have 100,000 or more subscribers. Subscribers will be key to your success. If you can, build up your channel and subscribers while relying on income from another avenue — until you’re confident you can make the leap.

The Takeaway

YouTube is a source of entertainment for viewers, but it also can create real revenue opportunities for content creators. There are plenty of ways to make money on YouTube, but it requires hard work, dedication, fresh ideas, and a bit of luck. Those creators who are successful can start putting away their hard-earned money to save for future goals.

Interested in opening an online bank account? When you sign up for a SoFi Checking and Savings account with direct deposit, you’ll get a competitive annual percentage yield (APY), pay zero account fees, and enjoy an array of rewards, such as access to the Allpoint Network of 55,000+ fee-free ATMs globally. Qualifying accounts can even access their paycheck up to two days early.

FAQ

How many people make money on YouTube?

According to some estimates, just 0.25% of the nearly 144 million channels on YouTube make money. But keep in mind that some people could be making passive income off a few videos on YouTube, even if they have other full-time jobs.

How many people are on YouTube?

YouTube has nearly 114 million channels with approximately 2.70 billion monthly active users consuming content. In fact, YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world behind Google.

On average, how much do YouTubers make per year?

With AdSense, YouTube content creators can expect to make between $0.01 and $0.03 per ad view; the average content creator earns $18 for every 1,000 ad views and $10 to $30 per 1,000 video views. Calculating an annual salary largely depends on how many views a content creator can amass.

For YouTubers with at least one million subscribers, a creator could make $60,000 and far more, depending on a variety of factors. But less than 60,000 YouTube channels worldwide actually have more than one million subscribers.

How can you make money on YouTube without making videos?

Though it’s technically possible to make money on YouTube without making videos, it may be a much more challenging path to financial success. However, you might be able to generate revenue on a YouTube channel by reposting reels or TikToks as YouTube Shorts, uploading your Twitch streams or Instagram Lives to the YouTube platform, or even transforming an existing webinar or slideshow presentation to a video format on YouTube.

In all of these cases, you’re still technically creating video content — but you’re using content optimized for another platform and recycled for YouTube, so you may be less successful.

Photo credit: iStock/mapodile

SoFi Checking and Savings is offered through SoFi Bank, N.A. Member FDIC. The SoFi® Bank Debit Mastercard® is issued by SoFi Bank, N.A., pursuant to license by Mastercard International Incorporated and can be used everywhere Mastercard is accepted. Mastercard is a registered trademark, and the circles design is a trademark of Mastercard International Incorporated.

Annual percentage yield (APY) is variable and subject to change at any time. Rates are current as of 11/12/25. There is no minimum balance requirement. Fees may reduce earnings. Additional rates and information can be found at https://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet

Eligible Direct Deposit means a recurring deposit of regular income to an account holder’s SoFi Checking or Savings account, including payroll, pension, or government benefit payments (e.g., Social Security), made by the account holder’s employer, payroll or benefits provider or government agency (“Eligible Direct Deposit”) via the Automated Clearing House (“ACH”) Network every 31 calendar days.

Although we do our best to recognize all Eligible Direct Deposits, a small number of employers, payroll providers, benefits providers, or government agencies do not designate payments as direct deposit. To ensure you're earning the APY for account holders with Eligible Direct Deposit, we encourage you to check your APY Details page the day after your Eligible Direct Deposit posts to your SoFi account. If your APY is not showing as the APY for account holders with Eligible Direct Deposit, contact us at 855-456-7634 with the details of your Eligible Direct Deposit. As long as SoFi Bank can validate those details, you will start earning the APY for account holders with Eligible Direct Deposit from the date you contact SoFi for the next 31 calendar days. You will also be eligible for the APY for account holders with Eligible Direct Deposit on future Eligible Direct Deposits, as long as SoFi Bank can validate them.

Deposits that are not from an employer, payroll, or benefits provider or government agency, including but not limited to check deposits, peer-to-peer transfers (e.g., transfers from PayPal, Venmo, Wise, etc.), merchant transactions (e.g., transactions from PayPal, Stripe, Square, etc.), and bank ACH funds transfers and wire transfers from external accounts, or are non-recurring in nature (e.g., IRS tax refunds), do not constitute Eligible Direct Deposit activity. There is no minimum Eligible Direct Deposit amount required to qualify for the stated interest rate. SoFi Bank shall, in its sole discretion, assess each account holder's Eligible Direct Deposit activity to determine the applicability of rates and may request additional documentation for verification of eligibility.

See additional details at https://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet.
We do not charge any account, service or maintenance fees for SoFi Checking and Savings. We do charge a transaction fee to process each outgoing wire transfer. SoFi does not charge a fee for incoming wire transfers, however the sending bank may charge a fee. Our fee policy is subject to change at any time. See the SoFi Bank Fee Sheet for details at sofi.com/legal/banking-fees/.

¹SoFi Bank is a member FDIC and does not provide more than $250,000 of FDIC insurance per depositor per legal category of account ownership, as described in the FDIC’s regulations. Any additional FDIC insurance is provided by the SoFi Insured Deposit Program. Deposits may be insured up to $3M through participation in the program. See full terms at SoFi.com/banking/fdic/sidpterms. See list of participating banks at SoFi.com/banking/fdic/participatingbanks.

^Early access to direct deposit funds is based on the timing in which we receive notice of impending payment from the Federal Reserve, which is typically up to two days before the scheduled payment date, but may vary.

Third-Party Brand Mentions: No brands, products, or companies mentioned are affiliated with SoFi, nor do they endorse or sponsor this article. Third-party trademarks referenced herein are property of their respective owners.

Financial Tips & Strategies: The tips provided on this website are of a general nature and do not take into account your specific objectives, financial situation, and needs. You should always consider their appropriateness given your own circumstances.

*Awards or rankings from NerdWallet are not indicative of future success or results. This award and its ratings are independently determined and awarded by their respective publications.

External Websites: The information and analysis provided through hyperlinks to third-party websites, while believed to be accurate, cannot be guaranteed by SoFi. Links are provided for informational purposes and should not be viewed as an endorsement.

SOBNK-Q325-013