How to get verified on YouTube: your complete guide for 2023

If you’re a YouTube creator or manager of a channel, you may be thinking about how to get verified on YouTube. YouTube channel verification gives you a badge next to your channel name, letting viewers know that they’re seeing the official version of your page. YouTube account verification can also unlock new features to boost your YouTube marketing strategy. 

Getting verified on YouTube is simple, but you’ll need to meet a few requirements before you can apply. In this post, we’ll explain what YouTube verification is, the benefits of getting verified and the steps you need to take to get verified on YouTube.

What is YouTube verification?

YouTube verification means YouTube has reviewed your profile and confirmed that you are who you claim to be. Once YouTube verifies your profile, YouTube users can see that your account is legitimate.

What are the benefits of YouTube verification?

YouTube account verification and channel verification can help build trust with your viewers. A verified badge shows that you’re an official channel or account, and it can help people feel more confident that they’re seeing accurate information from a source they trust. Other benefits of YouTube verification include: 

• Upload longer videos: You can upload videos that are 15 minutes long by default, but verified accounts can upload videos longer than 15 minutes.
• Livestream on YouTube: To livestream, your channel needs to be verified and you need to have no live streaming restrictions in the past 90 days.
• Add custom thumbnails to your videos: If you’re not verified, you can only choose from thumbnails that YouTube automatically generates. If you’re verified, you may upload your own.
• Appeal content ID claims: Content ID claims happen when your uploaded video matches all or part of another YouTube video. When you’re verified, you’re able to dispute these claims.

YouTube account verification vs. YouTube verification badge

This might surprise you, but there are actually two types of YouTube verification.

Account verification: This type of verification is available to anyone with a YouTube account in good standing. When you verify your account, YouTube will send a verification code to your phone. Once you enter the code, your account is verified. This verifies that you’re a real person and not a bot, and it unlocks some extra YouTube features.

Channel verification (YouTube verification badge): This type of verification is available to channels with 100,000 subscribers or more. To verify your channel, you’ll need to submit a verification form. YouTube will then review your channel and, if it meets the criteria, verify your channel. This gives your channel a verified badge, which helps build trust with your viewers.

Who can get verified on YouTube?

To get a YouTube verification badge for your channel, you need to meet these eligibility requirements:

• Have a complete profile: To be verified, you’ll need an active YouTube channel complete with a banner, description and profile picture. You’ll also need to have regularly posted content.
• Be authentic: No lying about age, name or identity—you need to be who you say you are. YouTube states: “Your channel must represent the real creator, brand, or entity it claims to be. We’ll check different factors to help verify your identity, such as the age of your channel.”
• Have at least 100,000 subscribers: If you don’t have 100,000 subscribers yet, focus on growing your audience first. YouTube does verify accounts without 100,000 subscribers on a case-by-case basis.

How to get verified on YouTube without 100K subs

It’s rare, but there are times when YouTube may verify a channel with fewer than 100,000 subscribers if it is “well-known outside of YouTube.” For example, YouTube might verify a musician’s channel that hasn’t built a large following on the platform, if the artist is popular on other platforms.

Contact YouTube if you need more information about this process.

Steps for verifying your YouTube account or channel

Account verification

Account verification on YouTube is easy. Simply go to YouTube.com/verify and enter your phone number. YouTube will send a verification number to your phone, and once you enter it in, you’re verified! 

Channel verification

YouTube channel verification is a bit more complicated but still manageable. We’ve broken it down step-by-step to make sure you don’t get lost.

Step 1. Meet all of the requirements for YouTube verification.

Step 2. Fill out the channel verification application. If you’re already at 100,000 or more subscribers, congrats! You’re a star. We’re not at 100,000 subscribers yet so our channel is not eligible to be verified quite yet.

Step 3. Fill out the channel verification application. Fill out the application with your channel name and ID. You can find your YouTube channel ID by clicking the link at the bottom of the application form, or by going to Settings > Advanced Settings in your YouTube account.

Step 4. Once you’ve completed the application, click Submit. YouTube will review your application and get back to you with a decision within a few weeks. YouTube may consider the age of your channel, your identity, the content you create and your audience.

That’s all there is to it! If everything checks out, YouTube will grant you a coveted YouTube verification badge, which displays a check mark beside your channel name across the platform.

How to maintain your YouTube channel verification

Now that you have your verification badge, it’s important to follow the guidelines that YouTube has put in place to keep your account in good standing. Here are a few key points to remember:

1. Don’t violate the Terms of Service or Community Guidelines
2. Don’t change your channel name
3. Don’t delete your channel or change your URL

Violating these guidelines can result in YouTube taking away your verification badge.

7 tips to become eligible for YouTube verification

If you aren’t yet eligible for YouTube channel verification, here are some tips to help you get there:

1. Choose a great channel name: This is one of the first things people will see when they come to your channel, so make it count.
2. Use an eye-catching profile picture and cover photo: Make sure these are high-quality and on-brand.
3. Create top-notch video thumbnails: Thumbnails are like little ads for your videos. Make sure they’re attractive and tell viewers what they can expect from your content.
4. Create interesting and sharable content: This is the most important thing you can do to grow your channel. If you make great videos, people will want to watch them, no matter what your subscriber count is.
5. Get involved in the YouTube community: Comment on other people’s videos, collaborate with other creators and participate in YouTube groups and forums.
6. Pay attention to YouTube SEO: This can help you ensure your videos are more likely to show up in search results.
7. Be patient: Growing a successful YouTube channel takes time. If you keep at it and produce high-quality content, you’ll eventually achieve your goal of being verified.

Start improving your YouTube presence

Whether you’re already verified or looking to become eligible to be verified on YouTube, you always want to be improving your YouTube presence. If you’re looking for more ways to grow your presence on YouTube, check out our tips on how to promote your YouTube channel to boost your YouTube marketing strategy.