YouTube announced a change to how it counts public views on videos. It will now count a view as soon as a video begins playback. The original approach to views will still be tracked as Engaged Views for creators who value seeing how often people stick with their content. This revised policy will take effect globally beginning August 24.

“Historically, we’ve used multiple view counting systems across different formats,” the YouTube said of the change on its support pages. “However, we’ve heard that creators want to eliminate this metric confusion and accurately understand their true exposure, which is why we’re making this update!”

The shift essentially means that YouTube is now treating regular videos the same was as Shorts; the company removed the minimum play time requirement for that format in 2025. At the time, the change made Shorts analytics more similar to those offered for videos on TikTok and Instagram.

People who are monetizing on YouTube, or hope to do so, should know that the altered view counts will not impact earnings or eligibility, which is notable since last week, YouTube doubled several of the requirements content creators would need to meet for participation in the Partner Program. “Creator earnings will continue to be based on “Engaged Shorts views” and “Engaged Watch Hours,” which you can view in YouTube Analytics > Advanced Mode,” the YouTube post confirms.