Last updated: Jul 23, 2026
TikTok was launched in September 2017. The popularity of TikTok increased immediately due to its highly engaging and addictive character. Since then, many improvements have been made for the platform, thus adding some benefits for TikTok influencers. TikTok Creator Fund is one of them.
All these programs on the platform are constantly being updated, hence the reason why the creators stay on it longer. TikTok Creator Fund 2026 Update, in one sentence, would be that the fund was shut down in December 2023. All remaining creators were transferred to the Creator Rewards Program, which pays higher per view. If you want to earn money on TikTok today, this is the program you're actually joining.
In July 2020, TikTok introduced the TikTok Creator Fund, which was meant to be the platform’s first real effort to compensate creators. They initially offered a pool of $200 million, aiming to reach $1 billion within three years. For some time, everything went as planned, since creators were being compensated simply because of having high view counts.
The flaw became apparent soon enough. The fund allocated the same daily pool among all eligible videos published on the same day, so the amount creators would get from each view did not depend on the quality of their video, but rather depended on the total number of views of all eligible videos in a particular day. Most creators reported earning somewhere between two and four cents per 1,000 views, regardless of how good the content actually was.
Most of the creators are so used to typing “Creator Fund TikTok” into Google that they fail to remember that this name doesn’t exist anymore. According to TikTok, starting from December 16, 2023, the Creativity Program was completely replacing the Creator Fund for the United States, United Kingdom, France, and Germany. All of the enrolled creators were automatically upgraded, and it wasn’t possible to remain in the old version of the program anymore.
After a year-long trial period, TikTok's official Creator Rewards announcement on March 5, 2024, marked the graduated version of the program we know now, under the name of “Creator Rewards Program.”
This is where the confusion usually lies. The original fund no longer exists. What you've been putting your content into is the Creator Rewards program, which operates under a totally different system. According to TikTok, their algorithm takes into account four main factors:
Originality – how original is the video, does it contain something unique instead of being a reworked trend or some already seen video.
Play duration – how long do viewers watch the video and whether they just click the 'play' button.
Search value – whether your video appears in the searches of TikTok users and answers their request.
Audience engagement – likes, comments, saves; not just passively scrolling.
As you can see, a five-minute video that viewers watch mostly, that pops in the search results for some key search term, and that contains real TikTok Comments will earn you more money than a video three times shorter with three times more views. Ultimately, your content still needs to satisfy an actual viewer, not just tick TikTok's technical boxes.
The other major shift is what counts as a "view" for payment purposes. The old fund paid on nearly every view. The creator rewards program only pays for qualified views from real TikTok Viewers. A full, authentic play of at least five seconds, from unique accounts, on original videos over one minute long. Duets, stitches, watermarked reposts, and slideshow-style videos are excluded entirely.
Now let’s come down to the figures that really matter. Old TikTok Creator Fund distributed an estimated $0.02 to $0.04 for every 1,000 views, which means that videos getting one million views got about $20 to $40 worth of money. It is not too much to say that TikTok's version of couch change. The TikTok Creator Rewards Program pays a lot more:
Old Creator Fund: roughly $0.02–$0.04 per 1,000 views.
Creator Rewards Program, general content: roughly $0.40–$1.00+ per 1,000 qualified views.
Creator Rewards Program, high-value niches (finance, tech, education): roughly $1.00–$6.00+ per 1,000 qualified views.
The TikTok Creator Fund requirements you'll find written up elsewhere are, confusingly, mostly still accurate. They just apply to the Creator Rewards Program now instead. To enroll, you need:
At least 10,000 followers
At least 100,000 video views in the past 30 days.
To be 18 years old or older
A personal account in good standing, with no recent Community Guidelines strikes
Residency in an eligible country.
Original videos at least 60 seconds long
Reposts, duets, stitches, watermarked content, and static-image slideshows won't qualify, no matter how many views they pull in.
In case you repeatedly get caught in the views requirement, do not panic. The 100,000 views in 30 days criterion seems to be the point at which most candidates get stuck. Reaching 10,000 followers becomes surprisingly easy once you've got a viral video working in your favor. And if you want to give yourself an extra boost, services like buying TikTok followers can help you cross that threshold quickly, a handy shortcut while your organic content builds momentum in the background.
Before submitting your request for a paid collaboration, make sure your account is not blocked in TikTok Studio. Even if you manage to meet all requirements, the blocked account will automatically become an obstacle, even if your follower count and view numbers both check out.
The list of countries eligible for the TikTok Creator Fund has expanded quite a lot. For example, the Creator Rewards Program is currently live in the United States, UK, Germany, France, Japan, South Korea, Brazil, and Mexico, among other regions. If the option doesn't appear when you check Creator Tools on your account, chances are that it's due to your location rather than an error in your account.
Not sure how to join the TikTok Creator Fund when it’s officially called the Creator Rewards Program? Well, the enrollment process is now easier than before and is available in the same menu as the one where creators had been enrolling for many years.
Here's exactly how to sign up for TikTok Creator Fund access in 2026:
Go to your profile on the TikTok app.
Press the menu icon located at the upper right corner of the screen.
Go to TikTok Studio and click more ways to get paid.
Now click on Creator Rewards Program.
Check out whether you’re eligible; you’ll get alerts if you’re not yet eligible due to missing some requirements.
Accept the terms of the program and submit your application.
Once you’re fulfilling all the requirements, you’ll get approved within a few days.
Earnings are calculated monthly, based on qualified views and engagement from that calendar month.
Payouts are typically issued around the 15th of the following month.
The minimum withdrawal threshold is $50, the same as it was under the old fund.
Funds are sent to whatever payment method you connected during sign-up, usually a linked bank account or PayPal.
TikTok can recalculate or withhold earnings if it detects inflated views, bot traffic, or content that violates Community Guidelines, and can request repayment for serious violations.
If you're under the $50 threshold at the end of a month, the balance simply rolls over until you cross it.
A few adjustments make a real difference in how much the program actually pays out, based on what TikTok has said publicly about its formula and what creators consistently report.
Opt for longer content. Videos ranging from three to five minutes get more RPM than those of 60 seconds, mainly because they allow for more watch time and relevancy with regard to searches. If you have been making 15-second videos to appease the algorithm, you need to change that now.
Be consistent. Your account needs to be consistent rather than virally popular to meet the requirements of the algorithm. This is why you should avoid falling below the 30-day view threshold.
Understand the algorithms of TikTok before you plan content, not after. Knowing what the platform is currently pushing helps you time uploads and topics for maximum reach.
Keep an eye on TikTok trends, but don't chase every one blindly; originality is one of the four factors TikTok weighs directly, so a trend copied frame-for-frame earns less than a trend put through your own creative lens.
And if your content and consistency are solid but your numbers still feel low, getting likes on early posts can help your videos clear that first algorithmic hurdle so they actually reach the view counts the program rewards.
All in all, it is fair to say that the transition to the Creator Rewards program is truly a step in the right direction regarding the financial treatment of TikTok creators, at least for those accounts and countries where the change has been implemented already. As for 2026 and the following years, we will see whether the platform continues to increase the number of countries eligible for joining and increasing RPMs due to increased competition or the growth will stall as it happened with the old fund.
TikTok creators who diversify their earnings by adding up income from Creator Rewards to deals with brands, TikTok Shop, and an engaged organic audience will probably face the smallest problem. Make sure to create strategies for organic-style follower growth and real engagement that keeps your account within Creator Rewards Program eligibility every single month.
No. TikTok fully retired the Creator Fund on December 16, 2023, in the US, UK, France, and Germany. Every creator who was enrolled got automatically moved into the Creativity Program, which later became the Creator Rewards Program in March 2024. There's no way to sign up for the original fund anymore, in any country.
The Creator Rewards Program pays roughly $0.40 to $1.00 per 1,000 qualified views for most content, and $1.00 to $6.00 or more per 1,000 views in higher-value niches like finance and education. Actual earnings vary widely based on audience location, watch time, and engagement.
Under the old fund, payouts were around $0.02 to $0.04 per 1,000 views. That program is gone, though; anyone monetizing on TikTok today is paid through the Creator Rewards Program's higher rates instead.
Go to the menu, then Creator Tools, then select Creator Rewards Program. TikTok checks your eligibility automatically and flags anything you're missing before you connect a payment method and submit your application.
Since the fund itself no longer exists, this now applies to the Creator Rewards Program: once your balance crosses the $50 minimum, TikTok pays out to your linked bank account or PayPal around the 15th of the following month.
Realistically, that level of income usually comes from combining several income streams rather than the Creator Rewards Program alone. Most solo creators in the $1,000+ monthly range are either in high-RPM niches with over a million followers, or they're stacking Creator Rewards payouts with brand deals, TikTok Shop commissions, and LIVE gifts.
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Jordan Calloway
Jordan Calloway is a social media growth strategist with seven years of expertise in TikTok content optimization, monetization, and algorithmic research. Having worked directly with brands and independent creators across the USA and UK, Jordan focuses on strategies that produce measurable results, not vanity metrics. This page reflects both platform research and real-world testing from working inside active TikTok growth campaigns.
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