Quick answer
YouTube Shopping lets a channel in the YouTube Partner Program connect its own store, such as a Shopify store, and tag those products in videos, Shorts and live streams, up to 60 products per video. A store owner without an eligible channel can still reach YouTube viewers through the YouTube Shopping affiliate program, where eligible creators tag your products and you pay a commission only when creators drive a purchase.
Nation, an AI store builder, publishes this page. It is pre-launch, with a waitlist on withnation.ai, so it is not part of this guide's comparisons. See where Nation fits.
What YouTube Shopping is
YouTube Shopping is the set of YouTube features that show products next to videos. Viewers see tagged products in a Shopping button on long videos, a product sticker on Shorts, a product shelf under the video, the video description and a store tab on the channel. Checkout happens on the seller's own site or the retailer's site, and the store platform or retailer, not Google, handles fulfillment, refunds and customer service.
A store owner can use it in two ways. If you run a YouTube channel that meets the eligibility rules, you connect your store and tag your own products in your own videos. If you do not have an eligible channel, you can join the affiliate program from the merchant side, and creators who are in the program tag your products in their videos. The table sets both routes side by side, together with the creator side of the affiliate program, where a channel tags other brands' products.
YouTube Shopping eligibility and requirements
To promote your own products, YouTube Help lists four channel requirements. All of them apply at the same time, and YouTube shows the Shopping tab in YouTube Studio only once the channel qualifies.
- The channel is in the YouTube Partner Program.
- The channel meets the subscriber threshold for the Partner Program, or is an Official Artist Channel.
- The channel audience is not set as made for kids, and the channel does not have a significant number of videos set as made for kids.
- The channel has not received any hate speech Community Guidelines strikes.
The Partner Program threshold that unlocks Shopping is 1,000 subscribers with 4,000 qualified watch hours in the last 12 months, or 1,000 subscribers with 10 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days. Watch hours from Shorts in the Shorts feed do not count toward the watch hour figure.
Your store also has to sell through a platform or retailer that YouTube supports, and the products have to follow YouTube's policies and Google Merchant Center's shopping policies. Products that break those policies are disapproved one by one. If you do not meet the Partner Program threshold yet, the affiliate route further down is the way to get your products into YouTube videos now.
Which stores you can connect to a YouTube shop
YouTube connects to a fixed list of store platforms and merch retailers. In YouTube Help's list of supported platforms are Shopify, Fourthwall, SHOPLINE, Spreadshop, Spring (formerly Teespring), TeePublic and Wix, plus a few that work only in South Korea or Japan. The retailer list is longer and is made up mostly of merch companies that print and ship creator products.
If your store runs on a platform that is not on the list, YouTube's advice is to set up a store on a supported platform or retailer first and then connect it. You can connect more than one store to the same channel and show products from each store in the same video, Short or live stream.
Sales data in YouTube Analytics is available for some platforms, Shopify among them. YouTube notes that these numbers may not match your store's own reports, because of returns, app sales, ad blockers and different attribution rules. Use your store's dashboard for revenue.
How to connect a Shopify store to YouTube Shopping
Before you start, use the same email address on YouTube and Shopify, with owner or manager access on the channel and staff access on the store.
Open the Shopping tab
Sign in to YouTube Studio on a computer, select Earn in the left menu and click the Shopping tab. The tab appears only if the channel is eligible. Click Get started, choose Shopify from the list of retailers and follow the link to Shopify.
Add the Google & YouTube app
In Shopify, add the Google & YouTube app to your store and follow the set-up steps. The app syncs your products from your store to Google Merchant Center.
Connect your Google account
In the Shopify admin, open Settings, then Apps and sales channels, select Google and check the Google account under Settings. That email must have admin access to the YouTube channel.
Select the channel
In the Google & YouTube app, go to Overview, then YouTube Shopping, and click Get started. Pick the channel to connect. If the same email manages several channels, check you picked the right one.
Accept the terms and wait for review
Read the program rules, agree to the terms and select Complete setup. YouTube then reviews your products against its policies and Merchant Center's policies, which typically takes a few business days.
How to tag products on YouTube
Once your store is connected, you add products to each video in YouTube Studio. The same tool works for a new upload and for a video that is already live.
Open the video's details
Sign in to YouTube Studio. For a new video, upload it as usual. For an existing one, select Content in the left menu and click the video's title or thumbnail.
Open the products tool
On the Details page, go to the video description and click Products. Search for the product by name.
Drag products into the list
Select each product and drag it to the indicated area. You can tag up to 60 products. On Shorts, the first product in the list becomes the Shopping product sticker, so reorder the list to choose which one shows.
Add timestamps on long videos
On a computer, click Add timestamp next to a product so it shows at the moment you talk about it. Timestamps work on long-form videos that are at least 1 minute long.
Save and check the result
Save the video. Viewers then see a Shopping button on long videos or a product sticker on Shorts. Product tags also work in live streams once you are in the program.
Tagging rules that keep products live
YouTube removes tags that do not follow its tagging guidelines, and repeated problems can cost a channel its access to the affiliate program. The guidelines are short, and they apply to standard videos, Shorts and live streams alike.
- Feature the product clearly and mention it by voice or in text, for example in the frame, the title or the description.
- Tag products that relate to the video, such as the paintbrushes used in a renovation video.
- Show the product well enough that a viewer could decide to buy it; avoid brief, blurred or hidden shots.
- Show the product used as the manufacturer intends.
- Do not tag lots of unrelated products. YouTube treats that as spam tagging.
You also cannot add product tags to a video whose audience is set as made for kids, that has a copyright claim, or that is limited or not eligible for monetization. Sponsored videos need YouTube's paid product placement disclosure as well.
The YouTube Shopping affiliate program for sellers
The affiliate program is the route for a store owner who wants YouTube creators to feature their products. You make your catalog available, eligible creators tag your products in their videos, Shorts and live streams, and checkout still happens on your own site. You pay a commission only when creators drive a purchase. YouTube handles creator onboarding, affiliate links, conversion tracking and billing.
For Shopify merchants, Google Merchant Center Help lists these requirements:
- a Shopify Advanced or Plus subscription plan, with the Google & YouTube app installed and connected to a Merchant Center account.
- The Merchant Center target country set to the United States, a US billing address and the store currency set to US dollars.
- Products synced through the app's automated product sync; most third-party feed providers are not eligible.
- Conversion tracking and auto-tagging turned on.
- A store that does not use Shopify's headless commerce set-up.
To set it up, open the Google & YouTube sales channel in Shopify and click Get started on the YouTube Shopping affiliate program card. The card shows only to eligible merchants. You set a default commission rate for all products and creators, a pending period during which a commission is reversed on a return or cancellation (30 days by default, adjustable to between 30 and 50 days), and an attribution period of 30 days after a viewer clicks a creator's tag. Then add a billing profile, by credit card or monthly invoicing, and accept the terms.
Products already approved for free listings should appear for creators to tag within 24-48 hours. After that you manage commission rates, creator exclusions and reports in Merchant Center under Marketing, then YouTube affiliate.
On the creator side, the program is open to channels in the YouTube Partner Program that meet its subscriber threshold, are not music or Official Artist Channels, are not made for kids, and are based in one of these countries: Argentina, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States, and Vietnam. Creators join in YouTube Studio under Earn, then Programs.
Where Nation fits
Nation
Category: an AI store builder
Nation says one description of what you make builds the store, then agents handle orders, customers and delivery and run ads, content and social posts, with you approving the work. This guide covers only YouTube's and Google's own requirements.
Limits today
- Status: pre-launch, with a waitlist on withnation.ai.
- Pricing and fees: not announced yet.
- Shopper marketplace: no shopper marketplace has been announced.
- Track record: no independent reviews or public stores yet.
Nation publishes this page. Nation is not one of the store platforms YouTube lists as supported.
Describe what you makeQuestions about YouTube Shopping
What are the YouTube Shopping requirements?
The YouTube Shopping requirements for selling your own products are that the channel is in the YouTube Partner Program, meets its subscriber threshold or is an Official Artist Channel, is not set as made for kids, and has no hate speech strikes. The store must also run on a platform or retailer that YouTube supports, such as Shopify.
How many subscribers do you need for YouTube Shopping?
YouTube Shopping requires the subscriber threshold of the YouTube Partner Program. That threshold is 1,000 subscribers with 4,000 qualified watch hours in the last 12 months, or 1,000 subscribers with 10 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days. A store owner below it can still reach YouTube viewers through the affiliate program, where eligible creators tag the store's products.
How do I tag products on YouTube?
To tag products on YouTube, open the video in YouTube Studio, go to the description on the Details page and click Products. Search for each product and drag it into the list. You can tag up to 60 products, and on long videos of at least 1 minute long you can add timestamps on a computer.
How does the YouTube Shopping affiliate program work for sellers?
The YouTube Shopping affiliate program lets eligible creators tag a seller's products in their videos, Shorts and live streams. Checkout happens on the seller's site, and the seller pays a commission only when creators drive a purchase. Shopify sellers need a Shopify Advanced or Plus subscription plan, the Google & YouTube app and a US Merchant Center account.
Does YouTube take a cut of YouTube Shopping sales?
YouTube Shopping sales from your own connected store are paid through your store platform or merch retailer, and YouTube Help says YouTube and AdSense are not involved in those payments. The cost you can add is the affiliate program, where you set the commission paid to creators who drive a sale.