Creator Awards

YouTube Creator Awards are the Play Buttons YouTube sends channels that pass a review at 100,000 subscribers (Silver), 1 million (Gold), 10 million (Diamond) and 100 million (Red Diamond). Subscribers alone are not enough: the channel must be active, original and free of recent strikes.

YouTube sends a Silver Creator Award at 100,000 subscribers, Gold at 1,000,000, Diamond at 10,000,000 and Red Diamond at 100,000,000, but only after a review of the channel: it must have uploaded in the last six months, have no recent strikes, and make original content. The awards are the framed "Play Buttons" creators hold up in unboxing videos, and YouTube says plainly that they are given at its discretion, so reaching a milestone is a reason to be reviewed, not a guarantee.

Being in the YouTube Partner Program is not required. Being rejected or suspended from it, on the other hand, rules a channel out.

Quick facts

Silver	100,000 subscribers
Gold	1,000,000 subscribers
Diamond	10,000,000 subscribers
Red Diamond	100,000,000 subscribers
Active channel	Uploads within the last 6 months
Strikes	No active Community Guidelines violation and none in the last 365 days; no active copyright strikes
Notice	Within 10 days of the milestone, in YouTube Studio, with a redemption code
Delivery	About 2 to 3 weeks after ordering (YouTube's awards page also says 2 to 4 weeks)
Damage reports	Within 7 days of delivery

Source for the table: YouTube Creator Awards (YouTube Help) and YouTube Creators: Awards, read Nov 6, 2026.

Who qualifies for a Play Button?

Every channel that crosses a milestone is reviewed before anything is sent. Help lists the conditions, and a channel must meet all of them (YouTube Help):

It has reached one of the four subscriber milestones.
It is active: at least one upload in the last 6 months.
It has no active Community Guidelines violation and has had none in the past 365 days.
It has no active copyright strikes or violations.
It follows YouTube's Terms of Service.
It has not been rejected from or suspended from the Partner Program.
It is not terminated and not linked to a terminated account (see Channel Termination).
It has no deceptive, spammy or scam content.
Its main content is original.

YouTube's awards page adds that the subscriber count itself is checked: channels with artificially inflated counts do not pass (YouTube Creators).

Why channels are denied

Most refusals come from rule 9. Help warns that channels built on compilations, mixes or curation, or that lean heavily on other people's copyrighted material or characters, may be ineligible, the same kinds of channel the Inauthentic and Reused Content policy keeps out of monetization. A channel can therefore have millions of subscribers and still never see a Gold award.

George Vanous, who runs the Freedom! network, recorded one such case in his notes: a music channel with many record label matches and two copyright takedowns was turned down twice, in 2018 and again in 2019. His summary of YouTube's reply to networks at the time was that awards go only to creators who follow the rules, with the account active, strikes resolved and the subscriber count legitimate, which is what the current Help list says.

The other common reasons are a recent strike (a single Community Guidelines strike blocks an award for a year after it was issued), a channel that stopped uploading more than six months ago, and a Partner Program suspension. The awards program is also not offered to channels in Belarus, Cuba, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea, Russia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela and Yemen, as of Nov 6, 2026 (YouTube Help).

There is no appeal form on the Help page. Creators in the Partner Program can ask YouTube Support about an award that did not arrive.

How do I redeem a YouTube Creator Award?

A channel that passes review gets a notification in YouTube Studio, usually within 10 days of the milestone, carrying a unique redemption code, also sent by email.

Find the redemption code in the Studio notification or the email. If it is lost, Help's interactive eligibility check can show it again.
Open the Creator Awards redemption site linked from that notice and enter the code.
Enter the shipping address and choose how the channel name appears on the award.
Select Order Now.

Use your full legal name on the shipping form and sign up for the courier's tracking notifications. Creators in Bangladesh, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Turkey and Vietnam must give extra details, such as a tax ID, that their customs offices require. In some countries, Help names Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, the creator pays any customs duties, which YouTube says it legally cannot cover. An award whose courier gets no reply may be returned or lost, and a replacement then has to be bought (YouTube Help).

Damage, replacements and selling

A damaged award has to be reported within seven days of delivery, with photos of the award and its box, so keep the packaging. A free replacement is sent only after the damaged one is returned and checked.

Awards are for personal use. They may not be sold or given to anyone outside the channel's team, and breaking that rule can cost the award, all future awards and possibly the Google Account.

George's notes from 2018 record that YouTube then confirmed a channel could order more than one award, at $150 for an extra Silver and $450 for an extra Gold, plus shipping and customs. Those prices are seven years old and the current Help page does not mention extra awards at all.

Frequently asked questions

How many subscribers do you need for a YouTube Play Button? YouTube's Silver Creator Award starts at 100,000 subscribers, Gold at 1 million, Diamond at 10 million and Red Diamond at 100 million. Each milestone triggers a review, and the channel must also be active, original and free of recent strikes.

Do you need to be monetized to get a YouTube Play Button? No. YouTube says Partner Program membership is not required, but a channel that was rejected from or suspended from the program is not eligible.

How long does it take to get a YouTube Play Button? YouTube sends a Studio notification with a redemption code within about 10 days of the milestone if the channel passes review. After ordering, the award usually arrives in two to three weeks, depending on the country.

Why didn't I get my YouTube Play Button? The usual reasons are a Community Guidelines strike in the last 365 days, an active copyright strike, no uploads in six months, a Partner Program rejection or suspension, or content that is mostly compilations, mixes or other people's material. YouTube also reviews whether the subscriber count is genuine.

Do I have to pay for a YouTube Play Button? The award itself is free, but YouTube says creators in some countries must pay customs duties or taxes on delivery, and a replacement for one lost because the courier got no reply may have to be bought.

Can I sell my YouTube Play Button? No. YouTube says awards are for personal use only, and selling one can cost the award, future awards and possibly the account.