The YouTube Creator Awards are a way for YouTube to recognize its most successful creators. Since 2012, the platform has used their Play Button awards as a way to acknowledge subscriber milestones for top creators, but as the subscriber base has grown the Play Button range has expanded.

Today we’ll take a look at the different Creator Award levels that have been passed out throughout the years, which notable creators have received them, and how you can earn one of your own.

Key Points:

• Silver Play Button

• Gold Play Button

• Diamond Play Button

• Custom Play Button (aka Ruby)

• Red Diamond Play Button

• How Does YouTube Decide Who To Award Play Buttons To?

• How To Get Your Own YouTube Play Button

• I Have The Subscribers But No Play Button - Why?

• What Are The Benefits To Getting A Play Button?

• Frequently Asked Questions

Silver Play Button

First introduced in 2013, the Silver Play Button is awarded to creators who’ve earned at least 100,000 subscribers.

The nickel-based plaque comes engraved with the channel name and a signed letter from YouTube’s CEO. It’s also slightly smaller than the other Play Button awards, as well as more obtainable - over 300,000 Silver Play Buttons have been awarded.

Gold Play Button

The Gold Play Button is for channels with at least 1,000,000 subscribers, and the award is made of gold-plated brass. Like the Silver Play Button it also comes engraved with the channel name, but it’s significantly larger in size.

Did you know that the Gold Play Button is actually older than the Silver one? It’s been around since 2012.

As of 2025, only 29,000 channels have received the Gold Play Button - less than 10% of the number of Silver Play Buttons awarded.

Diamond Play Button

At a whopping 10,000,000 subscribers, channels are awarded the Diamond Play Button. This one is a bit smaller than the Silver and Gold awards but that’s only because it’s not a plaque, it’s more of a silver-plated statuette with a crystal inlay.

Released in 2015, only about 1,000 channels have received this tier of Play Button.

Custom Play Button (aka Ruby)

While this custom Play Button is no longer awarded, a mere 88 channels have managed to meet the 50,000,000 subscriber requirement to receive this.

PewDiePie was the first to receive a custom Play Button, nicknaming it the Ruby Play Button based on the color he received, but each creator’s custom Play Button is designed to match their brand identity.

MrBeast’s custom Play Button, for example, features his blue and purple beast logo, while K-pop girl group Blackpink’s Play Button features a black button on a pink base.

Red Diamond Play Button

The most coveted of all, the Red Diamond Play Button requires a count of 100,000,000 subscribers and so far only 14 channels have reached this level including:

The Red Diamond Play Button looks similar to the regular Diamond award, but with a red crystal triangle instead.

How Does YouTube Decide Who To Award Play Buttons To?

Turns out just reaching a subscriber milestone isn’t enough. YouTube Play Buttons are awarded at YouTube’s discretion, and there have been multiple instances of YouTube withholding the awards particularly in the case of channels that create controversial content.

Once you meet the subscriber requirement, a few things happen:

• YouTube will complete a channel review
  
  

• If you pass, you’ll receive a message with a redemption code
  
  

• You’ll need to provide your channel name and shipping info

How To Get Your Own YouTube Play Button

So how can you get your own YouTube Play Button? Whether you already meet the subscriber thresholds or are just starting out, here’s what you’ll need:

Minimum Criteria

At minimum, every channel needs to meet the following criteria in order to qualify for a Creator Award. Even if you have the right subscriber count, not meeting one of these requirements could prevent you from receiving your award:

• Meet the minimum subscriber count for the relevant award
  
  

• Have an active channel that has uploaded in the last 6 months
  
  

• No active Community Guidelines violations
  
  

• No history of Community Guidelines violations in the last 365 days
  
  

• Compliance with YouTube’s Terms of Service
  
  

• Be in good standing with the YouTube Partner Program
  
  

• Your channel isn’t terminated or linked to a terminated channel
  
  

• No spam content
  
  

• Original content only - no compilations, mixes, or curations.

While you don’t have to qualify for the YPP to get an award, being rejected or suspended from it will disqualify you from a Creator Award.

You’re also not allowed to sell or distribute your Creator Awards - doing so can result in a forfeiture of your award, ineligibility of future awards, and even channel termination.

Best Practices For Content

If you want more subscribers, you’ll need to create great content. Here are a few best-practices for creating quality videos. While it’s not a guarantee that you’ll start drawing in subscribers, all of the top YouTube channels have these things in common:

• High-quality video and audio on all videos
  
  

• Thumbnails and titles that draw viewers attention
  
  

• A consistent upload schedule (either weekly or daily)
  
  

• Strong social media presence on other platforms
  
  

• A diverse variety of YouTube content types including: Shorts, livestreams, and Community posts
  
  

• High engagement levels on their videos

I Have The Subscribers But No Play Button - Why?

Did you reach a subscriber milestone but haven’t received YouTube’s redemption code message? Here are a few reasons why you might not have qualified for the YouTube Play Button.

Your Channel Doesn’t Meet One Of The Requirements

Check out the eligibility criteria listed here to make sure that your channel meets all of them.

If you’re not sure, contacting YouTube Support can help you get some answers.

You’re In A Country That Doesn’t Qualify

Currently the YouTube Creator Awards program is unavailable in the following countries:

    •    Belarus (BY)

    •    Cuba (CU)

    •    Iran (IR)

    •    Myanmar (MM)

    •    North Korea (KP)

    •    Russia (RU)

    •    Somalia (SO)

    •    Sudan (SD)

    •    Syria (SY)

    •    Tajikistan (TJ)

    •    Vanuatu (VU)

    •    Yemen (YE)

If you’re based in one of these countries, you won’t get a Play Button even if you meet the channel requirements and have the subscriber count.

Note that this list is subject to change - past recipients of the Red Diamond play button have been from Russia, for example.

What Are The Benefits To Getting A Play Button?

As of 2025 there are no distinct benefits to receiving a YouTube Creator Award aside from the Play Button itself.

However, until 2021 there were three distinct benefit levels that were awarded aside from the Play Buttons, including:

Graphite

This level was for channels with between 1-999 subscribers.

Opal

Opal required 1,000-9,999 subscribers and was also the minimum subscriber requirement for the YouTube Partner Program (alongside 4,000 watch hours).

Bronze

Channels with 10,000 to 99,999 subscribers qualified for Bronze level, and was part of the criteria for YouTube NextUp.

Frequently Asked Questions