"An update to how we count public views across YouTube"

Hi everyone!

Last year, we updated how we count public views for Shorts to better capture how viewers watch on YouTube. Now, we’re aligning all other video formats to this same standard for consistency across the platform.

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Beginning on 8/24/2026, a view will be counted the moment a video begins to play—from the very first frame. This standard will now apply globally across all formats.

Historically, we’ve used multiple view counting systems across different formats. However, we’ve heard that creators want to eliminate this metric confusion and accurately understand their true exposure, which is why we’re making this update!

Impact on YouTube Analytics & performance metrics:

We’ll keep the original view metric, called “Engaged views,” in YouTube Analytics > Advanced Mode so creators can see how many viewers choose to continue watching their video.

Impact on monetization:
This change will not impact creators’ earnings or how they become eligible for the YouTube Partner Program (YPP):
Creator earnings will continue to be based on ”Engaged Shorts views” and “Engaged Watch Hours,” which you can view in YouTube Analytics > Advanced Mode.

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There is no change to YPP eligibility. YPP entry requirements will also now be referred to as “qualified Shorts views” and “qualified watch hours” (previously “valid public Shorts views” and “valid public watch hours”).

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From 8/24 onwards, you’ll start to see the new view metric applied wherever views are shown on YouTube (which means creators will likely see their total view counts increase faster moving forward).

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We hope that having metric parity across all formats gives creators a clearer picture of their overall exposure and makes it easier to confidently express their true scale and value to brand partners and sponsors! Feel free to check out our Help Center article to learn more about the new views metric.

Let us know any questions in the replies below - we’re here to help!

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thaaz said:

A higher public view count after August 24 won’t automatically mean the video performed better. Engaged views will be the more useful number for comparing old and new uploads. Earnings and YPP eligibility still use the qualified metrics, so the public counter is becoming more about exposure than actual retention.

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MrWhite2018 said:

I wonder if that'll be a good thing for SMM panel views?

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