Before this course: YouTube Growth: content strategy and analytics (course 4.3.2), which builds on YouTube Channel from Zero (course 4.3). You already have a channel with a series plan, you read your analytics, and you know the basic YouTube Partner Program (YPP) thresholds from course 4.3, lesson 6. This course goes one step deeper: how a channel works as a small business.
The map of ways to earn on YouTube
A shop can earn money in more than one way: selling things, charging for a club, or getting paid to show another shop's sign. A channel is the same. Each way has its own door, and each door has its own key.
YouTube Help lists these ways to earn through the YouTube Partner Program:
| Way to earn | What it is | Entry rule listed by YouTube Help |
|---|---|---|
| Advertising revenue | Ads on Watch pages and in the Shorts feed | 1,000 subscribers and either 4,000 qualified long-form watch hours in 365 days or 10 million qualified Shorts views in 90 days |
| Shopping | Sell your own products or tag other brands' products | Meet the subscriber threshold, or be an Official Artist Channel (check the page for the current number) |
| YouTube Premium revenue | A part of a Premium subscriber's fee when they watch your content | Accept the relevant contract modules |
| Channel memberships | Recurring monthly payments for perks | 500 subscribers, 3 public uploads in 90 days, and either 3,000 qualified long-form watch hours in 365 days or 3 million qualified Shorts views in 90 days; viewers must be able to join; you must be 18 or older |
| Super Chat and Super Stickers | Fans pay to highlight a message or an animated image in live chat | No subscriber threshold listed; 18 or older; accept the Commerce Product Module |
| Super Thanks | Fans pay for an animation and a highlighted comment | No subscriber threshold listed; 18 or older; accept the Commerce Product Module; not for music channels under the SRAV category |
- YouTube Help does not state revenue share percentages on this page. Do not quote a percentage unless you have found it on a current official page.
- The updated YPP terms start on February 1, 2027. To keep fully monetizing, existing partners must review and accept the updated terms in YouTube Studio by January 31, 2027. (See course 4.3, lesson 6, for the new entry thresholds.)
- Sponsorships and brand deals are not a YPP feature: you make them directly with a brand (lesson 4).
- Joining YPP does not guarantee income.
- Open YouTube Studio and click Earn.
- Write each earning feature that is listed for your channel.
- For each feature, write its entry rule from the table and your current number (subscribers, watch hours or Shorts views).
- Mark each feature as Open, Close (within reach) or Far.
- Check your 18+ and country requirements for memberships, Super Chat and Super Thanks.
- Note the January 31, 2027 terms deadline in your calendar.
- Check: you have a one-page "earning map" that lists every feature, its rule and your status.
Videos by other creators on YouTube, for reference. They are not made by or affiliated with The Future Market.
Read the video script
[Host] "A channel can earn in several ways. Each one has its own rules."
[Text on screen: Ads, Shopping, Premium, Memberships, Super Chat, Super Thanks] "Ads, Shopping, a share of Premium, memberships, Super Chat and Super Thanks."
[Screen: YouTube Studio, Earn tab] "Open Earn in Studio. It shows which doors are open for your channel."
[Host] "Write down each rule and your own number. Joining is not a paycheck guarantee, so plan with what you can control."
Make your one-page earning map and mark which feature is closest to being open for your channel.
ClaudeStuck? Copy a ready-made prompt for Claude
Copy this, open Claude, paste it, and Claude will walk you through the lesson step by step.
For a grown-up: Claude is for adults (18+). Copy this, paste it into Claude, and use the answer to explain the lesson to your child.
I'm learning "YouTube Business: monetisation and channel systems" on The Future Market. Lesson 1: "The map of ways to earn on YouTube". What the lesson teaches: - Way to earn - What it is - Entry rule listed by YouTube Help - Advertising revenue - Ads on Watch pages and in the Shorts feed - 1,000 subscribers and either 4,000 qualified long-form watch hours in 365 days or 10 million qualified Shorts views in 90 days - Shopping - Sell your own products or tag other brands' products - Meet the subscriber threshold, or be an Official Artist Channel (check the page for the current number) - YouTube Premium revenue - A part of a Premium subscriber's fee when they watch your content - Accept the relevant contract modules - Channel memberships - Recurring monthly payments for perks - 500 subscribers, 3 public uploads in 90 days, and either 3,000 qualified long-form watch hours in 365 days or 3 million qualified Shorts views in 90 days; viewers must be able to join; you must be 18 or older - Super Chat and Super Stickers - Fans pay to highlight a message or an animated image in live chat - No subscriber threshold listed; 18 or older; accept the Commerce Product Module - Super Thanks - Fans pay for an animation and a highlighted comment - No subscriber threshold listed; 18 or older; accept the Commerce Product Module; not for music channels under the SRAV category The exercise I'm working on: Make your one-page earning map and mark which feature is closest to being open for your channel. I'm stuck. Please: 1. Explain the main idea in plain, simple words with one everyday example. 2. Walk me through the exercise one small step at a time. Ask me what I've done so far before giving the next step. 3. Don't just give me the final answer. Help me do it myself, and check my work when I share it.
I'm a parent helping my child (about 8 years old) with a lesson called "The map of ways to earn on YouTube" from the course "YouTube Business: monetisation and channel systems". Here's what the lesson says: A shop can earn money in more than one way: selling things, charging for a club, or getting paid to show another shop's sign. A channel is the same. Each way has its own door, and each door has its own key. The activity: Make your one-page earning map and mark which feature is closest to being open for your channel. Please explain this so an 8-year-old understands: short sentences, a fun everyday example, and no hard words. Then give me 3 simple questions I can ask my child to check they understood, and a way to do the activity together, one tiny step at a time.
Sources
- YouTube Help, how to earn money on YouTube: support.google.com/youtube/answer/72857
- YouTube Help, YouTube Partner Program overview and eligibility: support.google.com/youtube/answer/72851?hl=en
Reading revenue numbers: estimated revenue, CPM and RPM
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Monetization policies and ad suitability
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Sponsorships and honest disclosure
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Rights: music, claims and strikes
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Team systems: access, roles and checklists
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Money admin (with Canadian examples), and your channel business plan
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Final project
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Quiz
Which metric is calculated after YouTube's revenue share: CPM or RPM?
RPM.
Where does estimated revenue for all sources appear?
On the Revenue tab in YouTube Studio Analytics.
By when must existing partners accept the updated YPP terms to keep fully monetizing?
By January 31, 2027.
What is "inauthentic content"?
Generic or mass-produced, template-looking content (the policy was renamed from "repetitious content" in July 2025).
What can you do if you disagree with an automated ad suitability decision?
Request human review.
What does selecting the paid promotion option do?
It adds a disclosure label at the beginning of the video.
Name two material connections to disclose.
For example payment or commissions, free products or services, discounts, free trips or tickets, or a personal or family relationship.
Is tagging a brand or posting a discount code enough disclosure on its own?
No; advertising regulators say it is unlikely to be enough.
What is the difference between a Content ID claim and a copyright strike?
A claim usually affects only the video; a strike comes from a valid copyright removal request.
Which role hides revenue data but lets a person edit and publish?
Editor (Limited).
Why give permissions instead of sharing your password?
It is safer, and invited users do not need your Google Account access.
Why check your country's rule for when to register for sales tax?
Limits differ by country (for example, in Canada more than $30,000 over four calendar quarters).
Final exam
This lesson is part of full access: every course and every level for one payment.
Certificate
This lesson is part of full access: every course and every level for one payment.