Super Chat and Super Stickers let viewers pay to highlight a message or post an animated sticker in live chat during your live streams and Premieres, while Super Thanks lets them pay for an animation and a highlighted comment on your uploaded videos and Shorts. To offer them you must be in the YouTube Partner Program, be at least 18, live in a listed country and accept the Commerce Product Module, according to YouTube's fan funding policies. You then switch them on from the Supers tab under Earn in YouTube Studio.
Switching them on is easy. Knowing why they vanish from a particular stream or upload is harder, because each feature has its own excluded videos and the channel rules differ between Super Chat and Super Thanks. Below you will find those rules side by side, a check for missing buttons, moderation steps, and the wording YouTube expects when you ask viewers for support.
What each Super does
Super Chat is a paid live chat message that stands out in color, and a Super Sticker is a paid animated image in the same chat. YouTube's page on managing Super Chat says a buyer's profile picture can stay at the top of the chat feed for a length of time that depends on what they paid, so larger purchases stay visible longer. Both features only exist where there is a live chat, which means live streams and Premieres.
Super Thanks works on uploads instead. The Super Thanks eligibility page describes a one-time animation that only the buyer sees over the video, plus a colorful comment that everyone can read. Viewers can buy it on long-form videos and Shorts, though not on a live stream or Premiere while it is live; it becomes available on the archived long-form version afterwards. The viewer guide to buying Super Thanks adds that the amount paid is shown publicly next to the comment.
Super Chat income therefore depends on going live, while Super Thanks can collect small purchases across your back catalog long after a video goes up. Our guide to monetizing YouTube live streams shows how Super Chat sits alongside live ads, gifts and members-only streams.
Who can switch Supers on
The channel rules come from two places: the minimums that apply to every fan funding feature, and the extra conditions on each feature's own page. YouTube's Commerce Products monetization policies set out the minimums:
- Your channel is in the YouTube Partner Program. Fan funding opens at the lower Partner Program tier in countries where YouTube offers that tier, and our map of YouTube revenue streams by tier explains both levels.
- You are at least 18 years old, as the same policy page requires.
- You live in a country or region where that particular feature is offered.
- You, and your multi-channel network if you belong to one, have accepted the Commerce Product Module. Channels that signed the older Commerce Product Addendum do not have to sign again, the same policy page says.
Super Thanks adds conditions at channel level that Super Chat does not. Its eligibility page says the channel must not be set as made for kids and must not have a significant number of videos that are made for kids or otherwise ineligible. It also says some music channels, including those under an SRAV contract, are not eligible at present. If your Supers tab appears but Super Thanks never does, start with those two conditions.
Location is checked feature by feature. On 1 October 2026 the Super Chat availability list and the Super Thanks list named the same countries and territories, including Australia, Canada, India, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States, while Pakistan and Ukraine were on neither. The memberships page keeps a separate list that does include Ukraine, so read the page for each feature rather than assuming one list covers them all.
Supers availability table
The table gathers the per-video and per-channel exclusions from YouTube's pages into one view. “Not listed” means the feature's page does not name that situation as an exclusion; it is not a promise that the feature will appear.
| Situation | Super Chat and Super Stickers | Super Thanks | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Live stream or Premiere, while it is live | Available when live chat is on | Not available; appears on the archived long-form video later | Super Thanks eligibility |
| Published long-form video or Short | Does not apply, as there is no live chat | Available | Super Thanks eligibility |
| Age-restricted | Not available | Not available | Super Chat eligibility |
| Unlisted or private | Not available | Not available | Super Chat eligibility |
| Video or stream set as made for kids | Not available, and live chat is off too | Not available | Made for kids feature list |
| Whole channel set as made for kids | Not available on any video or stream | Channel not eligible | Made for kids feature list |
| Significant number of videos made for kids or ineligible | Not listed | Channel not eligible | Super Thanks eligibility |
| YouTube Giving fundraiser on the video or stream | Not available | Not available | Super Chat eligibility |
| Live chat or comments turned off | Not available | Not available when comments are off | Super Chat eligibility |
| Video with a copyright claim | Not listed | Not available | Super Thanks eligibility |
| Music channel under an SRAV contract | Not listed | Channel not eligible | Super Thanks eligibility |
| Viewer watching in a mobile browser | Not supported; the apps and computer browsers are | Not covered on the viewer page | Supers viewer requirements |
Most reports of a missing button trace back to one of these rows. A stream set as made for kids has no live chat at all, so Super Chat has nowhere to appear; our guide to made for kids monetization explains what else that audience setting changes. A claimed upload loses Super Thanks while the claim stands, and our guide to copyright claims versus strikes covers what the claim means for the rest of the video.
Why Supers are not showing: checks in order
Work from the channel down to the single video. Each step rules out one cause before you spend time on the next.
- Open Earn in YouTube Studio. If there is no Supers tab or card, the cause sits at channel level: Partner Program status, age, location or the Commerce Product Module. The Super Chat eligibility page says the Supers tab or card only surfaces in Earn if you have access.
- If your channel belongs to a network, ask whether the network has accepted the Commerce Product Module. YouTube's Super Thanks set-up page says a network has to accept it under Settings, then Agreements, before its channels can switch the feature on.
- If a third party administers your rights, such as a distributor, confirm with them first, as the turn-on page advises.
- Check the switches. The Supers tab on a computer lets you turn individual Supers off, so one can be off while the others stay on.
- Check the video's audience setting, its visibility and any age restriction in the Content tab of Studio.
- Confirm live chat is on for the stream, or comments are on for the upload. The live chat moderation page also warns that YouTube may turn off live chat after user reports if the stream or its chat breaks the Community Guidelines, and Super Chat goes with it.
- For Super Thanks, look for a copyright claim on the video, and remember it never shows while a stream or Premiere is still live.
- Rule out a YouTube Giving fundraiser attached to that video or stream.
- Test from the viewer side. Someone outside the listed locations, or watching in a mobile browser, will not see the option even when your own setup is correct.
Setup checklist
Once those checks pass, setup takes a few minutes. Use a computer where you can, because the desktop Supers tab shows individual switches that the mobile flow skips.
- Confirm you meet the fan funding minimums, that your country appears on the list for each Super you plan to offer, and that any network or rights administrator you work with has agreed.
- In YouTube Studio, select Earn, then the Supers tab, then Get started, and sign the Commerce Product Module if prompted, following YouTube's set-up steps.
- Choose which Supers to keep. The mobile flow switches on every Supers product you qualify for at once, so use the computer view to turn off any you do not want.
- Understand the reach of the Super Thanks switch. YouTube says Super Thanks appears on all eligible previous and future uploads once it is on, so there is no per-video setting to change, whatever some guides suggest.
- Set up live chat moderation before your first stream with Super Chat: add moderators, build a blocked words list and choose whether YouTube should hold potentially inappropriate messages for review.
- Tell viewers the features exist and where to find them, and mention that Super Chats cannot be bought from a mobile browser.
- Note where purchases are reported: the activity card in the Supers tab, and Analytics under Revenue, then How you make money.
Moderating paid messages
A paid message is still a message. YouTube's Super Chat management page says you moderate Super Chats and Super Stickers the same way as ordinary live chat, that viewers must follow the Community Guidelines when sending them, and that when one is removed for breaking the rules, YouTube donates its own share of that revenue to charity.
In live chat, the tools on the moderation page apply: delete a message, put a user in a timeout, or hide a user from your channel's chat and comments. You can also filter your own view of the chat to fan funding only, which helps you thank buyers without losing the thread of conversation. The filter changes only what you see; viewers keep the full chat.
Super Thanks comments sit with your normal comments. The Super Thanks management page describes a “From Super Thanks” filter in the Studio comments section, and you can reply to, heart or remove those comments like any other. A buyer can delete their own Super Thanks comment, after which it disappears from your list.
Two facts from the viewer pages are worth knowing before you remove anything. The Super Thanks purchase page says these payments are non-refundable, including when the comment is deleted or moderated, and the Super Chat viewer page says the same of Super Chats and Super Stickers. Removal is final for the buyer, which is a good reason to publish your rules where viewers can see them. Before your next stream:
- Post short chat rules, and say plainly that paid messages follow the same rules as free ones.
- Make at least one trusted helper a managing moderator for long streams. The moderation page says only the owner or a managing moderator can change automatic moderation settings.
- Review third-party overlay and alert tools. The Super Thanks purchase page tells buyers that their name, picture and amount may reach the channel through YouTube's API and be shared with third-party services, so connect only tools you trust and remove access you no longer use from your Google Account.
Asking for support without turning Supers into fundraising
YouTube's pages pull in different directions here, so read them together. The policy pages are firm: the fan funding policies and the Super Thanks eligibility page both say these features are not crowdfunding or donation tools. The page on live goals goes further, telling creators to avoid using goals to raise money for specific items or expenses and to keep celebrations free of direct monetary value.
The Super Thanks tips page reads differently. It suggests telling viewers whether their money will pay for editing help, a new camera or daily costs, and setting goals to fund a specific project or piece of equipment. When a tips page and a policy page disagree, follow the policy page, because the policies and the Commerce Product Module are what your channel actually agreed to. In practice:
- Present Supers as a way to be seen and thanked: a highlighted question, a shout-out on stream, or a reply to a comment with a Short.
- Do not promise a purchase, an item or an outcome in return for Supers, and do not tie a goal to buying equipment.
- Keep goal celebrations to the moment itself, such as a game, a reveal or a thank-you, rather than prizes with cash value.
- To raise money for a cause, use YouTube's fundraising options, such as YouTube Giving where your channel qualifies. Supers switch off on videos that carry a YouTube Giving fundraiser in any case.
YouTube also caps what one viewer can spend. The Super Thanks purchase page says limits vary by country and that, in general, a viewer can spend up to $500 USD per day or $2,000 USD per week across Super Chats, Super Stickers, Super Thanks and gifts combined. Build goals around many small contributions rather than a few large ones.
What you receive and when
YouTube's Super Chat management page says creators receive 70% of Supers revenue confirmed by Google, worked out after local sales tax and Apple App Store fees on iOS purchases, with credit card and other transaction costs currently covered by YouTube. The Super Thanks page gives the same share for Super Thanks and says it reaches you through AdSense for YouTube, like ad revenue.
Analytics shows estimates first. The partner earnings overview explains that monthly estimates can be adjusted and that finalized earnings reach your AdSense for YouTube balance between the 7th and 12th of the following month. The Supers tab shows Super Chat and Super Sticker purchases for the past 30 days, according to the management page, so note anything you need for your records before it ages out. Every Supers policy page also reminds creators that this money may be treated differently under local law, so ask a registered tax agent or accountant how to report it where you live.
Limitations of this guide
Every rule above comes from YouTube help pages checked on 1 October 2026. Country lists, exclusions and revenue shares are YouTube's to change, and Studio labels drift: some pages call the area the Supers tab, while the gifts page calls it Supers & gifts. If what you see differs from these steps, treat the feature's own help page as the current reference.
The guide also has limits. It offers no estimate of what Supers will earn, because YouTube publishes no typical amounts and results depend on your audience. It is not legal or tax advice: YouTube makes you responsible for whether you can lawfully offer and receive these payments where you live, so speak to a qualified professional if you are unsure. For problems with your own channel, contact YouTube Creator Support.