YouTube Play Button Levels: Subscriber Counts and How to Claim One

A YouTube play button is a physical award YouTube sends to channels that pass a subscriber milestone: Silver at 100,000 subscribers, Gold at 1,000,000, Diamond at 10,000,000 and Red Diamond at 100,000,000. Hitting the number isn't enough on its own. YouTube reviews the channel first, and if it passes, you get a redemption code in YouTube Studio that you enter on a separate site to order the plaque. All of the rules below come from YouTube's Creator Awards help page and its Creator Awards page for creators, both checked on November 1, 2026.

YouTube play button levels

YouTube calls them Creator Awards. Most people call them play buttons because of the shape on the plaque.

You may see a "Ruby" award at 50 million mentioned online. It isn't on YouTube's current help page, so don't plan around it. The channels at the very top (100 million and beyond) have received one-off custom designs, but YouTube doesn't publish rules for those.

The awards have been around for a while. According to Wikipedia's Creator Awards article, the Gold award was introduced at VidCon 2012, Silver followed in 2013, Diamond arrived in 2015, and in March 2018 Silver and Gold changed from a button in a box to a flat plaque with the channel name on it.

Who is eligible for a YouTube play button

The subscriber count gets you a review, not an award. YouTube's help page lists these conditions:

• The channel is active, with uploads in the last 6 months.
• No active Community Guidelines violation, and none in the last 365 days.
• No active copyright strikes or violations.
• The channel follows YouTube's Terms of Service.
• It hasn't been rejected from or suspended in the YouTube Partner Program.
• It isn't terminated or linked to a terminated account.
• The content isn't deceptive, spammy, or a scam.
• The main content is original. Compilation, mix, or curation channels, and channels that lean heavily on other people's copyrighted material, may not qualify.

Two details surprise people. First, you don't need to be in the YouTube Partner Program to get one. Second, YouTube's creator page says the channel must be free of artificially inflated subscriber counts, and that awards are given "at YouTube's sole discretion." A channel that bought subscribers to reach 100,000 can be turned down, and YouTube removes spam subscribers from your total anyway (more on that in how to see your subscribers on YouTube).

The program also isn't available in some countries. The help page lists Belarus, Cuba, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea, Russia, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tajikistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela and Yemen.

How to claim a YouTube play button

You don't apply for the award. YouTube contacts you. Here is the process from the creator page and the help page:

1. Reach the milestone. YouTube reviews the channel once you cross 100,000, 1 million, 10 million or 100 million subscribers.
2. Watch for the notification. If the channel passes review, YouTube says you'll get a notification in YouTube Studio within 10 days of reaching the milestone. It includes a unique redemption code.
3. Copy the code. If you lost it, the help page has an interactive eligibility check that can retrieve it.
4. Go to the redemption site. The help page links to it. Enter the code.
5. Add shipping details. Enter your address and choose how your channel name appears on the award. Use your full legal name, because couriers sometimes ask for documents.
6. Select "Order Now."

Some countries need extra details at checkout. The help page names Bangladesh, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Turkey and Vietnam, where you may need to provide a tax ID.

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How long it takes and what it costs

YouTube doesn't list a fee for the award itself. In some countries, though, you pay the customs duties and taxes. The help page names Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, and says YouTube legally can't cover those costs there.

On timing, YouTube gives two slightly different numbers. The creator page says each award is handcrafted and takes 2 to 4 weeks to build and ship depending on where you live. The help page says delivery takes about 2 to 3 weeks after you submit your shipping information. Orders placed after June 1, 2023 can be tracked, and you get an email with a tracking number once it ships.

If your play button is late, lost or damaged

• No code after 10 days. Check that the channel meets every condition above, especially the 6-month upload rule and the 365-day Community Guidelines window. Then use the eligibility check on the help page.
• The courier asks for documents. Reply quickly. YouTube says if you don't, the award may be returned or lost, and you may have to buy a replacement.
• It arrives broken. Report it within 7 days using the form linked on the help page, with photos of the award and the box. Keep the packaging. YouTube only sends a free replacement after the original is returned and checked.

One more rule: awards are for personal use. You can't sell them or hand them out beyond your channel team. YouTube says breaking that rule can cost you the award, future awards, or even your account.

What a play button means for your channel

A play button is a plaque, not a payment. It doesn't change your RPM or add any features in YouTube Studio. What pays is the Partner Program, where long-form creators keep 55% of ad revenue from their videos, per YouTube's partner earnings overview. If you're still far from 100,000, the more useful milestone is the one that starts the money, covered in YouTube monetization requirements.

Getting to 100,000 subscribers mostly comes down to publishing videos people watch to the end, on a steady schedule, for a long time. Faceless channels can get there too, as long as the content is original, which is one of the eligibility rules above. If making each video is what slows you down, VidPuff can help with production: you type a title, and it writes the script, generates narration, creates a visual for each scene, adds music and captions, and renders a long-form 16:9 video. You review and edit each stage before you upload to YouTube from the app.

FAQ

How many subscribers do you need for a YouTube play button?

You need 100,000 subscribers for the Silver play button, 1 million for Gold, 10 million for Diamond and 100 million for Red Diamond. Your channel also has to pass YouTube's review before the award is issued (YouTube Help).

Do you have to pay for a YouTube play button?

YouTube doesn't list a price for the award. In some countries you have to pay customs duties and taxes on delivery, and if you ignore a courier's request for documents and the award is lost, you may have to buy a replacement.

Do you need to be monetized to get a play button?

No. YouTube's help page says Partner Program membership isn't required. But a channel that was rejected from or suspended in the Partner Program isn't eligible.

Why didn't I get my YouTube play button?

The usual reasons are a Community Guidelines strike in the last 365 days, a copyright strike, no uploads in the last 6 months, content that is mostly compilations or reuploads, inflated subscriber counts, or living in a country where the program isn't offered. Awards are also discretionary, so YouTube can decline a channel that meets the numbers.