YouTube Shorts earnings
How Much Do YouTube Shorts Pay Per 1,000 Views in 2026?
Shorts can rack up views faster than anything else on YouTube, but each view pays a tiny fraction of a long video view. Here is what Shorts really pay, why the number is so low, and how to make the views count.
The short answer
YouTube Shorts pay roughly $0.02 to $0.15 per 1,000 views, and most channels land near $0.06. A million Shorts views usually pays somewhere between $20 and $150. Long-form videos, at roughly $1.20 to $8 per 1,000 views, often pay dozens of times more per view.
YouTube Shorts earnings by views
| Views | Low ($0.02 RPM) | Typical ($0.06 RPM) | High ($0.15 RPM) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100,000 | $2 | $6 | $15 |
| 1,000,000 | $20 | $60 | $150 |
| 10,000,000 | $200 | $600 | $1,500 |
| 100,000,000 | $2,000 | $6,000 | $15,000 |
How Shorts revenue sharing works
Shorts ads play between videos in the Shorts feed, not inside your video. So YouTube cannot tie an ad to one creator. Instead it pays out in four steps each month:
- Pool the money. Ad revenue from the Shorts feed goes into one pot.
- Pay for music. Shorts that use licensed music send part of their share to the music rights holders. A Short with one track sends half to the Creator Pool; a Short with no music sends all of it.
- Split by views. What is left in the Creator Pool is divided by each creator's share of engaged views.
- Apply the 45% share. You keep 45% of your slice. YouTube keeps the rest.
YouTube's own example: a $100,000 pool where 20% of Shorts used one music track leaves $90,000 in the Creator Pool. A creator with 1% of engaged views gets $900 of that, and keeps 45%, or $405.
Which views count
Only views on Shorts you posted after accepting the Shorts Monetization Module count. Views on unoriginal content, such as re-uploads or clips with no real changes, are left out, as are bot views and views on videos that break YouTube's advertiser-friendly guidelines. Shorts longer than one minute that carry a Content ID claim are blocked from earning entirely.
What moves your Shorts RPM
Audience country
Viewers in the US, UK, Canada and Australia are worth several times more to advertisers. A Shorts channel that goes viral in lower-value markets can rack up huge views for very little money.
Niche
The pool is shared, so niche matters less on Shorts than on long-form. It still shows up in who watches: finance and tech audiences tend to be worth more than meme and kids audiences.
Music
Music does not change your 45% rate, but every Short that uses licensed tracks shrinks the Creator Pool a little. Original audio keeps more money in the pot.
How to make Shorts pay
- Use Shorts as trailers. Cut a highlight from each long video and link the full version. Long-form views are where YouTube money is.
- Use Shorts views to qualify. 10 million Shorts views in 90 days plus 1,000 subscribers gets you into the Partner Program. Our guide to YouTube monetization requirements has the full rules.
- Sell sponsorships on reach. Brands pay Shorts creators per video or per 1,000 views, often far above the revenue share.
- Make it original. Your own footage and voice keep your views in the paid pool.