YouTube Memberships are a way for fans to support their favorite YouTube channels by committing to automated monthly donations. Memberships provide financial assistance to YouTubers and help them make videos full-time. Additionally, members get benefits such as access to member-only posts and exclusive emoji for YouTube live chats.

Which YouTube Channels Have Memberships?

The YouTube Memberships feature isn't available on all channels. To gain access to this feature, a channel must be in the YouTube Partner Program, have more than 30,000 subscribers, and have zero policy strikes.

YouTube Memberships are limited to specific regions and must be manually turned on by the channel owner once they become eligible. It's an optional feature.

How Can I Tell if a YouTube Channel Uses Memberships?

The easiest way to tell if a YouTube channel uses the Memberships feature is to look for the Join button on its main channel or beneath its videos. In both cases, the Join button is to the left of the Subscribe or Subscribed button.

How Much Do YouTube Memberships Cost?

All YouTube Memberships cost $4.99. You can upgrade a membership to higher tiers, with each tier having its own price point and perks. Perks stack as you go up each tier, meaning if you join at the most expensive tier, you get access to the perks in all the lower ones.

For every YouTube Membership payment, the channel owner receives 70 percent of the funds while YouTube takes 30 percent. This calculation is made after applying the cost of taxes, so the YouTuber gets slightly less than the expected $3.49.

YouTube covers all transaction-related expenses. However much these fees may be, these fees aren't deducted from your monthly payment or the YouTuber's compensation.

What Do YouTube Channel Members Receive?

Rewards or benefits for paying a YouTube channel's Membership fee vary from channel to channel, though many offer some common benefits, including:

• Member-exclusive posts: Many channels write special posts for their members. They appear within the Community tab on a channel's page and on your main feed. These posts are only viewable by paid members and usually provide insight into the production of videos or the personal life of the YouTuber.
• Loyalty badges: These small images appear next to your YouTube username when writing a comment or participating in a live chat. Badges help you stand out from the crowd and are a way to promote the channel.
• Exclusive emoji: Some YouTube channels offer members special emoji that they can use on the YouTube app and website. Like loyalty badges, these usually feature unique artwork that can't be found anywhere else and may incorporate people or phrases known to a specific YouTube channel's audience. For example, the Philip DeFranco channel frequently uses the word "wow" in its YouTube video titles, so one of its emoji is a stylized graphic of the word. These special YouTube emojis are essentially the same as Twitch emotes.

How to Join a YouTube Membership

Supporting your favorite channel with a YouTube membership is easy. Here's how to do it:

1. Visit the channel you want to support and select the Join button.

2. A small information panel appears that shows the monthly fee and the perks of becoming a member.

   The monthly fee is priced at $4.99 in the U.S. This price point determines the cost of YouTube memberships in other currencies in different regions. This isn't a direct conversion. For example, in Australia, the cost of a YouTube Membership is AUS$5.99. Your region's price displays automatically on this page.

3. Select Join.

4. Enter your credit card information. If you wish to pay with PayPal, select that payment option from the drop-down menu.

   If you previously used a credit card to subscribe to YouTube Premium or made another purchase on YouTube, your payment information is pre-loaded.

5. Select Buy. A welcome announcement appears after the transaction is complete.

When Will I Be Charged for a YouTube Membership?

You have to make the first payment for a YouTube Membership immediately. You're charged the monthly fee on the same day every month after that.

For example, if you started a YouTube Membership subscription on February 20, you're immediately charged on this date. You would make the second payment on March 20, the third payment on April 20, and so on.

How to Cancel a YouTube Membership

Manage or cancel your YouTube Membership from the YouTube Purchases page. To find it, access the left menu on the YouTube website or go to the Library tab on the YouTube iOS and Android apps.

Are YouTube Sponsorships and Memberships the Same?

YouTube Sponsorships is the original name for Memberships. The name changed to Memberships in mid-2018 when the feature rolled out to more users.

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