Got a yellow dollar on your YouTube video’s monetization column and didn’t know what that means or how to get rid of it. Don’t worry; we have got everything you need on Yellow Dollar YouTube.. right here!
YouTube classifies the video with red, green, and yellow dollar signs based on the analysis. Each sign signifies a different monetization status. While the green dollar icon means that your YouTube video is eligible for monetization, red denotes that your video is violating copyright-terms and hence is not eligible for monetization. The sign that confuses creators most is the Yellow Dollar YouTube Sign.
In this article, you will learn what is yellow dollar in YouTube, what to do when you get a yellow dollar sign on one of your videos, and everything else there is to know about this topic that you will not find elsewhere.
What Does Yellow Dollar Sign Mean On YouTube?
The yellow icon in YouTube monetization status means that your video (content, title, description, meta content) violates some of YT’s ad-friendly content criteria and hence will not receive the usual revenue from ads.
The yellow dollar in YouTube notifies you that limited or no ads will run on your YouTube video, given the violation of the guidelines in your video. However, you will still receive the revenue share from YouTube premium subscriptions. But that revenue is next to nothing compared to the ad revenue your video can generate with the green monetization icon.
So basically, the Yellow dollar sign is YouTube’s way of saying that your content is not eligible for total monetization. It’s not as bad as the red sign that means your content is violating the copyright-terms and hence will not be monetized. With the yellow dollar icon, your channel is eligible for monetization, but it is limited as the majority of the advertisers are unwilling to associate their brand with videos that cover violence, foul language, or contain sexual content. This restricts your video’s opportunity to earn good ad revenue.
Now that you know the meaning of the yellow monetization sign YouTube video and how harmful it is to your channel’s earnings. Let’s look at ways to replace the yellow dollar icon with the green one:
How To Turn Yellow Dollar Sign Into Green Dollar Sign?
If you thought the yellow monetization classification by YouTube was permanent, then you thought wrong. You can request a manual review to YT to reconsider and get it changed to green and receive total ad revenue on your videos. Normally, the AI analyses your video and assigns it a monetization icon which means there is some room for error. So when you request a manual review of the yellow dollar sign, a human checks your video.
Why Is There A Yellow Dollar Sign On One Of My YouTube Videos?
When you submit your video for the ad-suitability check, YouTube’s automated system reviews your videos and tags your videos yellow, green, and red based on the video’s compliance with YouTube’s ad-friendly content guidelines.
These bots, however, are not perfect yet, so sometimes they misinterpret the content and mistakenly classify your videos as not in accordance with the ad-friendly guidelines. In such cases, you have the option to request a manual review. When you appeal a manual review, a classification expert (who is a human) reviews your video, title, meta description, and tags to re-check any violation of YouTube’s content guidelines. If the expert finds that your video has been wrongly labeled with a “limited or no-ad revenue” tag, they will update your status from yellow to green monetization level. Your video will then receive its proper ad revenue without any restrictions or limitations.
How To Appeal YouTube For A Manual Review?
The process to appeal for a manual review of your yellow dollar YouTube monetization classification is easy. Here’s how:
- Go to your YouTube Studio
- Click on Content
- Click on the Yellow sign under the Monetization column
- Select Request Review
- You will get a pop-up asking you to confirm that your video follows YouTube’s content guidelines. Check that box
- Click on Request Review
Now when you click on the yellow YouTube monetization sign, you will see “Under Review” written on the small pop-up. It will mention the date you requested the review. YouTube takes up to 7 days to manually review your video. Sometimes the YouTube manual review is finished within a few hours, sometimes it takes a few days but never more than 7 days.
Here are the different stages your video goes through in the Review process:
- If the status description says ‘causing limited or no ads. You can request a review: This signifies that your video was assessed by YouTube’s automated systems. You can request a review, which means a policy professional will re-examine the video and, if necessary, adjust the YouTube video’s monetization status.
- If the status description says ‘currently causing limited or no ads, but the video is under review’: This indicates that this video is being reviewed by a policy specialist. The experts have the authority to keep or change the status of monetization, and their judgment is final.
- If the status depiction says ‘currently causing limited or no ads. Confirmed by manual review’: This means that the policy experts reviewed the video and determined that it does not comply with all of YouTube’s advertiser-friendly content criteria. The status of the yellow icon is locked and cannot be modified. Your video will remain in the yellow stage and you cannot change its status once it’s locked by the expert.
But what if the specialist finds no issue in your video? Then your video will automatically turn from yellow dollar sign to green. The system keeps running multiple checks, so the sign keeps changing. You will know the final decision when you receive an email that the review is complete.
Should You Opt For The Manual Appeal On YouTube To Get Rid Of The Yellow Dollar Sign?
Are you worried that requesting a manual review will hurt your channel or revenue growth? Is the fear of getting your monetization eligibility taken away stopping you from requesting the manual review of your yellow status YouTube video?
Let us clear the air: Acceptance or Rejection in the Manual Review has no complications for your YouTube channel. The specialist only reviews your video and nothing else. Even if the specialist finds guideline violations in your video, it will not harm your channel. It will simply lock your video in review on the yellow monetization stage. But isn’t that where you were already? So whether you request the review or not, you are still losing out on your precious ad revenue.
So it makes no sense to accept the yellow status of monetization when you are sure your content is clean and eligible for the green monetization status.
If you request the review then there is a possibility that the specialist will see that your video is in compliance with the ad-friendly content guidelines and update your YouTube video’s monetization from yellow to green. However, before requesting the YouTube monetization’s manual review, ensure your video doesn’t violate the Terms and Conditions set by YouTube in any way.
If your video does violate the terms and conditions, then too no harm will come to your YouTube channel or video. It will just stay on the Yellow dollar sign, and you won’t be able to request another review for this particular video.
So the bottom line is, if you have a yellow dollar sign on one of your YouTube videos, then requesting a manual review is the way to go! It’s completely safe.
How Do I Fix Yellow Monetization On YouTube?
The only way to fix your yellow monetization on YouTube is to request a manual review. However, if you have already requested a manual review once and the result was the same then nothing can be done. The yellow monetization has been locked. So you must change and adjust your content to adhere to the YouTube ad-friendly guidelines before requesting the manual review to change your yellow dollar monetization status to green.
The yellow dollar sign in YouTube monetization status indicates that a video can only generate money through YouTube Premium subscriptions or limited advertising, as it has been deemed “unsuitable for all advertisers.” Even though the income isn’t completely cut off, the earnings from yellow monetization status videos are negligible. If your video is in complete accordance with YouTube’s guidelines then you must request a manual review of your video’s monetization status.
If your video was originally under the green monetization status but has been switched to the yellow status, it’s because the automated system does multiple scans and sometimes changes the monetization status as per its most recent findings. However, the monetization status stabilizes after the first 24-48 hours. Whether the yellow dollar sign status is given initially or later on, you can always request a manual review on YouTube to get your video the green monetization status.