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Updated for 2026 · Models the iOS tax

YouTube Membership Take-Home

Web members pay you 70%. iOS members pay you 49%. Find the real number after YouTube’s cut AND the App Store tax.

01 · INPUTS
Sign-up sourceYou keep 49% · 49%
MCN cutNetwork share on top of YouTube's fee
0%
0%10%20%30%
100 members · 49% take
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Why this matters

The membership cut you see isn’t the membership cut you get.

YouTube publishes a simple number: “30% platform fee, creators keep 70%.” That’s true — for members who sign up on the desktop web or a mobile browser. But YouTube’s own mobile app is a different story entirely. When a viewer hits “Join” inside the YouTube iOS or Android app, Apple or Google takes their 30% In-App Purchase fee first, and then YouTube takes 30% of what’s left. You end up with 49 cents on the dollar, not 70.

Most calculators ignore this and quote the flat 70%. The calculator above models the full stack — your mix of web, iOS, and Android sign-ups and the effective take-home. For a creator with 60% of members on mobile apps, that’s roughly a 10-percentage-point difference in what lands in the bank each month. On a channel earning $1,000 monthly gross from memberships, that’s $100 disappearing to a fee creators didn’t know they were paying.

The fix is simple: direct your audience to join via a browser, not the app. A pinned comment, an end card, a Discord link that leads to youtube.com/@yourchannel/join — anything that gets them off the YouTube app and onto a browser for the sign-up. Once they’re members, they can use the app to watch members-only content normally. Only the payment flow needs to happen on web.

How the math works

Two cuts, compounded.

Gross revenue
tier price × members
The top-line before any cut is taken.
App Store cut
30% of mobile sign-ups
Applied first, before YouTube sees the money.
YouTube cut
30% of what’s left
After the store takes its piece on mobile; against the full amount on web.
Take-home
gross − App Store − YouTube − MCN
What actually lands in your bank on a monthly cycle.
FAQ

Questions creators ask before raising a tier.

YouTube's advertised cut is 30%, which means on a web-sign-up member paying $4.99, you get $3.49. But if that member signs up through the YouTube mobile app, Apple or Google takes 30% first, and YouTube takes 30% of the remainder. On the same $4.99 tier, you end up with about $2.44 — roughly 49 cents on the dollar instead of 70.
The tax applies based on where they sign up, not who they are. If they click "Join" inside the YouTube app on their phone, Apple or Google takes 30% regardless of whether they’ve used those accounts before. Only web browser sign-ups bypass the App Store fee.
Send them a direct link like youtube.com/@yourchannel/join from a pinned comment, an end card, your Discord, your newsletter, or your website. Once they’re members, they can watch members-only content through the app normally — only the payment flow needs to happen in a browser.
YouTube supports up to 5 tiers priced between $0.99 and $99.99 per month. Most creators stack three: a low tier for emoji and badge supporters, a middle tier for members-only videos, and a high tier for exclusive content or 1:1 perks. The calculator above includes Tier 1 ($4.99), Tier 2 ($9.99), and Tier 3 ($24.99) presets — the most common choices — plus a custom option.
As of 2026, you need to be in the YouTube Partner Program and have at least 500 subscribers, plus your channel has to be monetization-compliant. Some regions have additional restrictions — check YouTube Studio → Monetization for your specific eligibility.
No. YouTube absorbs credit card and payment processing fees — the 30% is comprehensive. Refunds do come out of your share if a member requests one, and if you’re in an MCN (multi-channel network) your network may take an additional cut on top of YouTube’s.
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