The TikTok Creator Fund Is Gone: Here's What Replaced It
The TikTok Creator Fund ended in late 2023. If you're searching for it now, you're looking for the wrong thing — but you're in the right place. What replaced it is the Creator Rewards Program, and the two programs work very differently.
- The Creator Fund closed in late 2023 in the US, UK, France, and Germany [UNVERIFIED — verify exact closure date and regions on TikTok's official newsroom]
- The Creator Rewards Program (CRP) replaced it with higher RPM rates and stricter eligibility requirements
- CRP pays per qualified view, not per total view — the distinction matters significantly to your earnings
- Requirements: 10,000 followers, 100,000 views in the last 30 days, personal account, 18+, eligible region
What the Creator Fund was
The TikTok Creator Fund launched in 2020 as TikTok's first payment program for creators. It was straightforward in concept: creators who met basic thresholds (originally 10,000 followers and 100,000 views in the last 30 days) received payments based on their video views.
In practice, the payouts were low — commonly reported in the range of $0.02–$0.04 per 1,000 views [UNVERIFIED — these figures were widely reported but never officially confirmed by TikTok; actual rates varied significantly by account and region]. As the pool of eligible creators grew, the per-creator payout declined. Many creators found the Creator Fund earnings to be negligible compared to other monetization options.
TikTok began transitioning creators out of the Creator Fund and into the Creator Rewards Program in late 2023.
Why TikTok replaced it
The Creator Fund's pay-per-view model had structural problems. The fund was a fixed pool: as more creators qualified, each creator's share got smaller. TikTok acknowledged the dissatisfaction publicly.
The Creator Rewards Program was designed with a different structure — one that prioritizes content that generates longer, engaged viewing sessions rather than pure view count. TikTok's stated goal was to reward creators who produce content that keeps viewers on the platform longer.
Whether the new program actually pays more depends heavily on content type, audience engagement, and region. The potential ceiling is higher than the Creator Fund. The floor requires meeting stricter content criteria.
What the Creator Rewards Program is
The Creator Rewards Program (CRP) is TikTok's primary direct monetization program for eligible creators. It pays per qualified view — which is different from total views in ways that matter.
A qualified view requires:
- The video to be at least 1 minute long
- The viewer to watch a sufficient portion of the video (exact threshold not publicly confirmed by TikTok [UNVERIFIED])
- The view to come from an eligible region
- The view to meet TikTok's quality criteria (bot views, very-short-session views, and low-quality traffic don't count)
Your RPM (revenue per mille, or per 1,000 qualified views) varies based on your content category, audience geography, and engagement metrics. Creators in different niches and regions report significantly different RPM figures.
How the two programs differ
If you were in the Creator Fund, you were automatically transitioned to the Creator Rewards Program or notified to apply. Log into TikTok and check Creator Tools → Creator Rewards to see your current enrollment status.
How to apply to the Creator Rewards Program
If you're not yet enrolled:
- Open TikTok → Profile (bottom right)
- Tap the menu (top right) → Creator tools
- Look for Creator Rewards Program
- If visible, tap to start the application
- Confirm eligibility: personal account, 18+, 10,000+ followers, 100,000+ views in the last 30 days, eligible region, no active community guideline violations
If Creator Rewards doesn't appear in your settings, see the eligibility troubleshooting guide linked below.
What "qualified views" means for your earnings
This is the most important change between the two programs, and the one creators most commonly misunderstand.
In the Creator Fund, a video view was a video view. In the Creator Rewards Program, most of your views likely don't count at all.
If you post videos under 60 seconds: zero qualified views from those videos. The 1-minute minimum is a hard cutoff.
If you post 60-second videos but most viewers drop off in the first 10 seconds: fewer qualified views than your total view count suggests.
If a significant portion of your audience is in regions with lower RPM: your earnings per qualified view will reflect that geography.
Understanding this is how you go from frustrated ("I have 100K views and earned almost nothing") to informed ("I have 20K qualified views from US and UK viewers, which explains my payout").
Get the free TikTok Earnings Tracker
Track views, RPM, qualified views, and earnings in one clean sheet.
Frequently asked questions
Can I still get paid from the Creator Fund? No. The Creator Fund is no longer active. Payments that were accrued before the closure should have been paid out [UNVERIFIED — contact TikTok support if you believe you have unpaid Creator Fund earnings].
I was in the Creator Fund. Am I automatically in the Creator Rewards Program? TikTok's transition process varied by account. Some creators were automatically moved over; others needed to apply. Check Creator Tools → Creator Rewards in your TikTok app to see your current enrollment status.
The Creator Rewards Program doesn't appear in my settings. Why? Several reasons: your region may not be supported, your account may be set to Business type, or you may not meet the current eligibility thresholds. See the troubleshooting guide below.
Is the Creator Rewards Program available in every country? No. It's available in a limited set of regions [UNVERIFIED — TikTok has expanded the list over time; verify the current list of supported countries at TikTok's official Creator Portal]. If your country isn't supported, you cannot currently enroll.