The short answer
YouTube Premium revenue is a creator's share of Premium subscriptions, paid by how much members watch their content. From 1 February 2027 YouTube puts 30% of net Premium subscription revenue and 60% of Premium Lite into a pool split by watch time and views, and the creator keeps 55% of their share on long-form and 45% on Shorts.
After YouTube's latest announcement, channel owners ask: “How are YouTube Premium earnings calculated?” and “What changes in 2027?”, and people who receive network reports ask: “What does red_label mean in the report?”. This guide answers all three from YouTube's official sources and from Injaz Digital's experience with the monthly revenue reports of more than 1M videos it manages every month.
What is YouTube Premium revenue?
YouTube Premium revenue is income a creator receives from Premium members' subscription fees, not from ads. YouTube Help says membership revenue “is distributed to video creators based on how much members watch your content”, and that it is paid at the beginning of each month together with ad revenue. Offline viewing after download and background play both count.
To earn from Premium, YouTube requires that you are in the Partner Program and have the right monetization module on:
- Long-form: accept the Watch Page Monetization Module and turn on Watch Page ads.
- Shorts: accept the Shorts Feed Monetization Module.
What changes on 1 February 2027?
What changes on 1 February 2027 is that YouTube publishes fixed shares for subscription revenue for the first time: a pool per subscription type and a set share for the creator. YouTube announced it on 10 August 2026 and called it the first significant change to the Partner Program since 2018. These are its numbers as published:
| Item | From 1 February 2027 |
|---|---|
| YouTube Premium pool | 30% of net subscription revenue |
| Premium Lite pool | 60% of net subscription revenue |
| Basis of distribution | Member watch time and views |
| Creator's share of its allocation | 55% for long-form, 45% for Shorts |
| Premium Lite | Expands to every country where Premium is offered |
| Shorts revenue | For channels with 10M qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days |
| New entry to ads and Premium revenue | 8,000 watch hours in 365 days, or 20M Shorts views in 90 days |
The new entry thresholds do not affect channels already in the Partner Program. A channel that falls below 10M Shorts views stays in the program and keeps earning on long-form, and Shorts revenue sharing resumes automatically if it crosses the threshold again. YouTube also says that in 2026 partners on average earned more from a user who subscribed to Premium than from that user watching ads.
How is your Premium share calculated?
Your Premium share is calculated in four stages, all from YouTube's 2027 announcement:
- YouTube totals net Premium subscription revenue and net Premium Lite revenue, separately.
- It puts 30% of net Premium into its pool and 60% of net Premium Lite into its pool. YouTube says this allocation accounts for running the service and amounts paid to music partners.
- Each pool is distributed to creators by members' watch time and views of each creator's content.
- From your allocation you keep 55% for long-form and 45% for Shorts.
In practice, an hour a Premium member spends with a long-form video on your channel goes straight into your share, even when watched in the background or offline, because that view carries no ad that would be counted for you any other way.
Why does Premium revenue arrive in separate reports?
Premium revenue arrives separately because it comes from subscriptions, not ads, so YouTube splits it in its financial reports. Content Manager Help lists a “Subscriptions Revenue” report and a “Subscriptions Adjustments Revenue” report for its corrections, apart from the ads revenue report.
According to the YouTube reports Injaz Digital has received up to October 2026, Premium revenue reaches networks in a file named red_label_rawdata_video, and its corrections in adjustment_red_label_rawdata_video. The name dates from “YouTube Red”, the service YouTube announced on 17 May 2018 was becoming YouTube Premium.
| File as it arrives | What it contains |
|---|---|
| videoclaim_rawdata | Ad revenue per video and asset |
| red_label_rawdata_video | YouTube Premium revenue per video and asset |
| adjustment_red_label_rawdata_video | Premium corrections to past months |
From our experience, the same video with the same asset usually appears in both the ads file and the Red file. A correct statement merges them into one line per video, channel and asset, combining ad and Premium revenue. Keeping each file as its own line doubles the row count and can count the video's views twice. That is how Injaz Digital's statements reach every channel: one line per video and asset, with both sources visible.
What does this mean for recitation and nasheed channels?
For recitation and nasheed channels it means long background listening is now a counted part of income, on one condition many miss: Watch Page ads must be on.
- Background and offline listening count for a Premium member, so a long recitation a member listens to while working adds watch time to your share.
- Premium Lite expands to every Premium country with background and offline viewing for most content, and its pool is 60% of its net revenue.
- Long-form earns nothing from Premium if Watch Page ads are off, so a channel that switches ads off also gives up its subscription share.
That is why Injaz Digital reviews the monetization settings of every Quran channel it manages and protects its recitations from re-uploads through Content ID, so both ad and Premium revenue reach the rights holder.
What should you do before 1 February 2027?
Before 1 February 2027, check five things on your channel:
- Sign the new program terms in YouTube Studio; they take effect on 1 February 2027.
- Make sure the Watch Page Monetization Module is accepted and its ads are on for long-form.
- Compare your qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days with the 10M threshold, if Shorts are part of your income.
- Track Premium revenue separately in YouTube Analytics, or in the subscriptions report if you receive downloadable reports.
- If you are in a network, ask for your statement to show Premium revenue and its corrections clearly next to ads.
Why choose Injaz Digital to manage and protect your channel?
- An official YouTube partnership: monetization, rights protection through Content ID and channel optimization, in one place.
- Over 4.1 billion views across partner channels, and over a million videos under our management every month.
- We handle claims and disputes for you, and send you clear regular reports.
- Over 15 years in the Arab market, with offices in Cairo, Dubai and Riyadh.
FAQ
Do I earn from YouTube Premium if ads are off on my channel?
Not on long-form. YouTube requires the Watch Page Monetization Module with Watch Page ads on to earn from Premium; Shorts need the Shorts Feed Monetization Module.
When is YouTube Premium revenue paid?
At the beginning of each month, together with and on the same schedule as ad revenue.
What is red_label in YouTube revenue reports?
It is the YouTube Premium revenue file networks receive. The name dates from YouTube Red, which became YouTube Premium in May 2018. Its corrections arrive in an adjustment_red_label file.
Is my existing Partner Program channel affected by the 2027 rules?
The new entry thresholds (8,000 hours or 20M Shorts views) apply to new channels only. The Premium shares and the new Shorts threshold apply to everyone from 1 February 2027 once the terms are signed.
Does Premium Lite pay creators?
Yes. YouTube puts 60% of net Premium Lite revenue into a pool distributed by viewing, and the creator keeps 55% of their allocation on long-form and 45% on Shorts.