Facebook offers various ways for content creators to monetize their content and earn money on the platform. The main ways Facebook content creators can get paid include:
- Facebook Ad Revenue Sharing – Creators can earn a cut of the ad revenue from ads displayed alongside or within their videos.
- Facebook Stars – Fans can purchase and send virtual goods called “Stars” to support creators during Facebook Live streams.
- Facebook Subscriptions – Fans can pay a monthly fee to access exclusive content from creators they want to support.
- Facebook Paid Online Events – Creators can host paid virtual events that fans must purchase access to.
- Facebook Branded Content – Creators can get paid by brands to produce sponsored content and promote products.
Other monetization options like the Facebook Marketplace, Facebook Gaming and Facebook Shop also provide ways for creators to potentially earn money. So in summary, yes Facebook does provide various monetization features to allow content creators on the platform to get paid.
Facebook Ad Revenue Sharing
One of the main ways Facebook content creators can earn money is through ad revenue sharing. If a creator produces videos that are eligible for in-stream ads, they can enroll in the Facebook Ad Monetization program.
With Ad Monetization enabled, short ads will be displayed before, during or after a creator’s video content. When viewers watch these ads, creators will earn a 55% share of the resulting ad revenue.
To be approved for Facebook Ad Monetization, pages must meet certain eligibility requirements including:
- Having at least 10,000 1-minute views of video content in the past 60 days
- Having a sufficient number of videos that are at least 3 minutes long
- Complying with Facebook monetization policies and guidelines
Ad revenue provides an ongoing passive income stream for qualifying video creators on Facebook. As their view count grows, they stand to earn progressively more through ad shares.
How Facebook Ad Revenue Sharing Works
Here is an overview of how Facebook’s ad revenue sharing model works:
- A video creator enables Ad Monetization on eligible video content
- Facebook inserts short video ads into the creator’s content
- When viewers see the ads, ad revenue is generated
- Revenue is split 55% for the creator, 45% for Facebook
- Earnings are paid out monthly when a $100 threshold is met
By having ads directly inserted in their content, creators can passively monetize their existing Facebook videos without major changes. Ad revenue provides an additional income stream on top of the other monetization options.
Facebook Stars
Another way for creators to earn money on Facebook is through Facebook Stars. Stars are virtual goods that fans can purchase during Facebook Live streams to support creators they like.
Fans can buy Stars in bundles, with prices ranging from $0.99 for 20 Stars to $99.99 for 12,000 Stars. They can then send these Stars as a virtual gift to creators during a Live broadcast.
When Stars are received, creators get a share of the value. The payout rate varies based on the creator’s home country and currency but is approximately $0.01 per Star after deductions.
Stars represent a way for creators to earn money in real-time based on the engagement and support from fans during livestreams. They are similar to Twitch Bits or YouTube Super Chats.
Some key things to know about Facebook Stars include:
- Only available to send during Facebook Live videos
- Senders can include a message with their Stars purchase
- Total number of Stars received is shown publicly during the video
- Creators must enable Stars to start receiving them
- Payouts are deposited monthly when a $100 threshold is met
Stars provide a unique way for creators to monetize their real-time audience support and engagement. They can incentivize fans to purchase Stars and also encourage creators to go live more often.
Facebook Subscriptions
In 2018, Facebook launched a Subscriptions feature to allow creators to offer exclusive, paid content to their most engaged followers. Fans can pay either $4.99 or $9.99 per month to access subscriber-only content.
Creators can publish subscriber-exclusive posts with in-depth content, videos, or live streams. Subscribers get special badges and access to a community tab where creators can interact with their paying supporters.
To use Facebook Subscriptions, creators must meet these criteria:
- Have a page that has been active for over 30 days
- Have over 10,000 page followers
- Be located in a supported country
- Upload content frequently
Subscriptions allow creators to establish a recurring, predictable income stream from their most loyal fans. Subscriber-only content also provides an incentive for fans to pay.
Some creators offer exclusive behind-the-scenes footage, discounts, promotions, and community access to attract and retain monthly subscribers. Facebook takes a 5% cut of subscription earnings.
Overall, Subscriptions give qualifying creators a direct way to get paid by fans in exchange for access to premium, bonus content.
| Subscription Tier | Monthly Price |
|---|---|
| Tier 1 | $4.99 |
| Tier 2 | $9.99 |
Facebook Paid Online Events
In 2020, Facebook launched the ability for pages and creators to host paid online events via Facebook Live or Facebook Rooms. This feature was initially introduced to help businesses and creators earn revenue during the COVID-19 pandemic.
To use Facebook Paid Online Events, creators can schedule an event, set a price, promote the event, collect payment from attendees, and host the event. Events can include anything from online classes, to concerts, to professional conferences.
Facebook takes no fees from paid online events for at least the first year, so creators keep 100% of the ticket sales. To qualify to host paid events, creators must:
- Have pages in good standing
- Be located in a supported country
- Comply with commerce policies
Paid online events give creators a new way to monetize their content, skills, and access. Anything they would normally charge for in-person can now be sold online through ticketed events. Fans worldwide can also attend and pay.
During the pandemic, many creators leveraged paid online events to replace income from in-person events that were cancelled. Facebook paid events offer an ongoing virtual monetization stream.
Facebook Branded Content
Another way content creators can monetize their Facebook presence is through branded content campaigns. This involves partnering with brands to produce sponsored content and promote products or services for payment.
Brands work with creators who align with their target audience and brand values. Compensation can include:
- Upfront fees for individual posts or entire campaigns
- Free products or services
- Affiliate commissions when promo codes or links are used
- A combination of the above
Branded content offers a few benefits for creators:
- Provides revenue from brands in addition to monetizing fans
- Helps diversify income streams
- Can promote new products/services to existing audiences
To comply with Facebook policies, branded posts must be properly disclosed according to FTC endorsement guidelines. But overall, partnering with brands represents a significant money making opportunity for content creators on Facebook.
Other Facebook Monetization Opportunities
In addition to the above direct monetization features, creators can also leverage other aspects of Facebook to earn money indirectly:
Facebook Marketplace
Creators can use Facebook Marketplace to sell products, merchandise, and physical goods to their followers. Marketplace lets creators easily list items for sale and process transactions through Facebook Pay.
Facebook Gaming
Gaming creators can earn money through Facebook Gaming via Stars during streams, ad revenue shares, and subscriptions. Gaming video content can reach both gaming and non-gaming audiences.
Facebook Shops
Creators can launch digital shops on Facebook to sell products directly from their business pages. Shops integrate with Instagram, Messenger and ads.
Affiliate Marketing
Creators can promote affiliate links to products and services and earn commissions when followers make purchases. Links can be shared directly or indirectly.
So in many ways beyond just content monetization, Facebook also provides creators with diverse platforms to earn income through commerce, gaming, and advertising.
Conclusion
There are a variety of options for Facebook content creators to earn money and get paid directly from their audiences. Ad revenue sharing, Stars, subscriptions, paid events, and branded content partnerships represent the core ways creators can monetize their followings.
Facebook provides both in-platform monetization features as well as secondary earning opportunities through gaming, shopping, affiliates and more. The platform enables diverse money making avenues for different types of creators. With various monetization options available, Facebook content creators have multiple ways to get paid for the value they provide to their followers.