X has paid creators a share of ad revenue since 2023. In 2026 it changed what it pays for. In January it more than doubled the pool and began paying on impressions from verified users in the Home timeline. Through the year it cut off accounts that farm engagement or copy other people's posts, and on 8 September it replaced the programme with Original Content Rewards.
Original Content Rewards
- Eligibility: a Premium, Premium+ or Premium Business subscription, 500 verified followers, and 500,000 verified Home timeline impressions in 90 days, not counting replies.
- Copied or reposted content, and posts carrying Community Notes, do not earn.
- The old programme paid on earnings up to 7 September; the new one started on 8 September.
The crackdown that led to it
- March 2026: creators who post unlabelled AI videos of armed conflict are suspended from payouts for 90 days, and removed on a repeat offence.
- July 2026: accounts that solicit engagement three times or more are removed from the programme and referred for suspension, with Grok doing the detection. X said it flagged 1.5 million stolen posts in one payout cycle, and that payouts to aggregator accounts were down about 80 percent this year.
- January 2026: Articles, X's long-form posts, opened to all Premium subscribers.
Getting paid, and the Gulf
Since 2 September, US creators are paid through X Money, X's new payments service, which is US only. Creators elsewhere are still paid through Stripe. Stripe's own list includes the UAE but not Saudi Arabia, so Saudi creators should check how they will receive payouts before counting on them.
Subscriptions
- Premium: 8 dollars a month or 84 dollars a year.
- Premium+: 40 dollars a month or 395 dollars a year.
- Premium Business, the gold check for companies: from 200 dollars a month for Basic to 1,000 dollars for Full Access.
- Creator subscriptions, where followers pay a creator directly, were revamped in March. X said then that it had paid out more than 45 million dollars to creators.
The paid partnership label
Since March 2026 creators can mark a post as a paid partnership with a built-in label instead of writing #ad. Reports differ on whether crypto, financial and gambling promotions may use it, and X's product head called one policy change an error, so check X's current policy before booking a creator in those categories.
The label sits on top of local law. In the UAE, the grace period for the advertiser permit ended on 31 January 2026 and enforcement began on 1 February; creators must show the permit number on their profile. For content aimed at Saudi Arabia, check the creator's Mawthooq licence.
Mentions Boost: a change on the brand side
In July X let businesses on Premium Business pay to boost organic posts that mention them. Trade reports say the person who wrote the post is not paid. If a brand wants to promote a creator's post, ask first and pay for usage, as with any other ad.
What to put in creator deals on X
- The paid partnership label on every sponsored post, plus the local permit or licence.
- Original content only; no reposts of other people's material.
- No engagement bait in sponsored posts, which could cost the creator their payouts.
- Written permission, and a fee, before boosting a creator's post.
The influencer rate calculator on this site gives a starting point for pricing a creator deal on X.
