- What YouTube counts as branded content
- Ticking the paid promotion box in YouTube Studio
- What the box changes on your video
- What happens if you leave it unticked
- Products you can't promote, and ones with extra rules
- Age and country limits for branded videos
- How this differs from BrandConnect and the AI label
- My take for creators and the brands behind them
- Frequently asked questions
YouTube says that if your video includes branded content, endorsements or other commercial relationships, you have to tick the paid promotion box in the video details, which adds a disclosure label at the start telling viewers it contains paid promotion. Branded content means anything influenced by a brand partner in exchange for something of value, and that includes free products and benefits you get later, not only payment.
Leave the box unticked and YouTube may add the label itself, or remove the video. Here's what counts, how to switch it on and what it changes, as of Nov 2026. It's YouTube's rule in plain English, not legal advice, and YouTube says the same about its own Help page.
What YouTube counts as branded content
YouTube's policy defines branded content as any content on YouTube influenced by a brand partner in exchange for something of value, such as featuring or promoting a brand's products or services for payment, free products or similar deals, whether you get the benefit now or later on.
It also applies wherever the branded content appears: videos, video descriptions, comments, live streams, Shorts and any other YouTube product or feature. So a paid line in your description counts, even if the video itself never mentions the brand.
| Situation | Does it count? | Why, per YouTube's policy |
|---|---|---|
| A brand pays you to feature its product | Yes | Payment in exchange for featuring a brand's products or services |
| A brand sends free products and you feature them | Yes | Free products count as something of value |
| You promote a brand now and the benefit arrives later | Yes | The policy covers benefits you receive now or later on |
| A deal covers a link in your description or a comment, not the video | Yes | The policy covers descriptions and comments, not only the video |
| You mention something you bought yourself, with no brand influence and nothing in return | Not under this definition | The definition needs a brand partner's influence in exchange for something of value |
The free product row is the one most people don't expect. A box of products with no invoice still counts as something of value.
Ticking the paid promotion box in YouTube Studio
On a computer, YouTube's steps for an existing video are:
- Sign in to YouTube Studio.
- In the left menu, click Content, then click the video you want to edit.
- At the bottom of the page, click Show More.
- Tick the box saying your video contains paid promotion like a product placement or endorsement.
- If you want, set a minimum age by location.
- Click Save.
On mobile, open the YouTube app or the YouTube Studio app, select the video, tap Show More, then Products, Paid promotion, and brands, then Paid promotion and brands, and under Paid Promotion tap Yes.
For a brand new upload on a computer, YouTube's route is Upload videos, then Select files, then Show more, and under Paid Promotion you choose the option saying yes, your video includes branded content, then Set Up.
What the box changes on your video
YouTube lists three things that happen when you tick it:
- Viewers see a disclosure at the start of the video saying it contains paid promotion, which links to a YouTube page explaining product placements and endorsements.
- Ads still run, but YouTube may try to avoid showing an ad that competes with your brand partner. Its own example: if Brand A backs your video, it may avoid placing an ad for their direct competitor, Brand B.
- The video leaves YouTube Kids. YouTube says videos with branded content are removed from the YouTube Kids app.
The Kids point is the one that catches family and children's channels out, so build it into the deal before you agree to anything.
Ticking the box doesn't switch your ads off. YouTube says that if you're in the YouTube Partner Program and your content follows the advertiser-friendly content guidelines, you may still be eligible to earn ad revenue from videos with branded content.
There's one hard limit on how the brand gets its message in. YouTube's ads policies don't let you burn or embed advertiser-supplied video ads, such as pre-rolls, mid-rolls and post-rolls, into your content. If an advertiser wants ads running against your videos specifically, YouTube says to work with your partner manager.
What happens if you leave it unticked
YouTube's policy is blunt. If you don't disclose branded content, or it breaks the policy, YouTube may remove the content and notify you, may age-restrict it if the product isn't suitable for all ages, and there may be other effects on your channel, your YouTube Partner Program eligibility or your access to other features. The policy also applies to the whole video, not just the segment where the brand appears.
And YouTube is looking. It says that if its systems detect undisclosed branded content, it may apply the label automatically and notify you. If you think that's wrong, you may be able to certify that the video doesn't contain branded content and override the label. So leaving the box blank doesn't hide a deal. It just takes the decision out of your hands.
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Products you can't promote, and ones with extra rules
YouTube gives examples of things that can't be promoted in branded content at all: recreational drugs or paraphernalia, weapons or ammunition, hacking software, counterfeit products and academic essay-writing services. It says that isn't a complete list.
Some categories are restricted instead. For alcohol, financial services, healthcare and medicines, gambling, and elections and political content, YouTube says you're responsible for confirming your brand partners are certified by Google where needed, and for meeting legal requirements, including age and country restrictions. Again, that list isn't complete, and YouTube says the guidelines may change.
Age and country limits for branded videos
Once you've ticked the box, YouTube Studio lets you set where the video can be shown, an overall minimum age, and a minimum age for specific countries. YouTube says these options only appear after you select Yes under Paid promotion, and you edit them in Studio on a computer.
YouTube also says regional requirements vary widely and that you're ultimately responsible for clear, prominent disclosure. It points creators to their local rules, naming the Federal Trade Commission in the United States, the Advertising Standards Authority in the UK, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, the European Advertising Standards Alliance and the Korea Fair Trade Commission. In other words, the label may not be the whole job where you are.
How this differs from BrandConnect and the AI label
YouTube BrandConnect is YouTube's own marketplace for matching creators with brands. The paid promotion box is the disclosure, and the definition above doesn't care how the deal was found. Then there's the label for altered or synthetic content, which is about AI and realistic edits, not payment. A video can need both.
My take for creators and the brands behind them
I'd tick the box every time a brand has given you anything of value, cash or product, now or later, and I'd agree that in the brief before anyone films. I'd skip it only when there's no brand influence and nothing in return. If you're the brand, don't leave disclosure to the creator's memory: put the paid promotion box, the YouTube Kids effect and any age or country limits into your creator brief so nobody's surprised after the video's live.
If your brand works with creators, getting the disclosure step into your briefing and sign-off process is part of the content workflow work I help teams with. I run AI training and workshops for teams, and help businesses with AI enablement and workflow automation, so the busywork runs itself and people get time back. Most of that work is with SaaS marketing teams and small businesses. Here's how we can work together.
Frequently asked questions
Does a free product count as paid promotion on YouTube?
Yes. YouTube's policy says branded content includes promoting a brand in exchange for free products, not just payment, whether you get the benefit now or later.
Can I still earn ad revenue with the paid promotion box ticked?
YouTube says if you're in the YouTube Partner Program and follow the advertiser-friendly content guidelines, you may be eligible to earn ad revenue from videos with branded content.
What if YouTube added the label and there's no deal?
YouTube says you may have the option to certify that your video doesn't contain branded content and override the label.
Does the rule apply to Shorts and live streams?
Yes. YouTube's policy covers branded content in videos, descriptions, comments, live streams, Shorts and any other YouTube product or feature.
Why did my video disappear from YouTube Kids?
YouTube says videos with branded content are removed from the YouTube Kids app when the paid promotion box is ticked.
