If you’ve built a YouTube channel that generates some income, but you’re not planning on continuing with it, selling your channel has probably come across your mind. If you’re just considering it, the more important question is probably: can you sell a YouTube channel?
I thought I’d tackle this question. So, here’s the TL;DR before we delve a little deeper…
Yes, you can sell an entire YouTube channel. Some large YouTube channels have even been sold recently for millions of dollars. A YouTube channel is a digital asset and like most digital assets, you can sell the ownership of it if you ever decide to sell it.
In this article, we’re going to look at everything from why you may want to sell your channel, if this is even legal, to places you can sell your channel, and how much YouTube channels actually sell for.
Why would you want to sell a YouTube channel?
If you’re considering selling or buying a YouTube channel, there are generally 3 reasons why anyone would want to sell a YouTube channel.
The first is that they have lost interest in the topic of their channel. If they continue uploading videos on that same channel on a different topic, they will very likely get little to no engagement on it and it can cause the whole channel to suffer.
This is why you should rather create a new channel and link to it from your existing channel.
That way viewers who may be interested can choose to go to your new channel without it negatively affecting your existing channel and you can then sell the old channel once you’ve gotten as many of those subscribers to your new YouTube channel.
The second reason why someone may want to sell a YouTube channel is they just lack the time for creating new videos.
Life happens and situations change, maybe you have multiple channels and this one just doesn’t get the attention it deserves. If you don’t have time to keep uploading onto YouTube, maybe the best option is to sell the channel and you can focus on other things.
This brings me to the third reason why you may want to sell your YouTube channel. You just want to cash out and move on to other things, maybe even new projects.
Selling your YouTube channel can bring in a nice lump of cash straight into your bank account if you’re earning at least a couple of hundred dollars per month. This could be used to buy a new car, make a down payment on a house, or even buy it outright if your channel is big enough (and the houses are affordable enough).
As you can see, there are many good reasons why you may want to sell your channel, but can you sell a YouTube channel without breaking any rules. Let’s answer that below.
Is selling your channel against YouTube Terms of Service?
It is not against YouTube Terms of Service to sell your YouTube channel. YouTube does not say anything explicitly against it or for it, but considering the massive press that was received recently for a number of large channels that were sold, it is safe to say that you can sell your Youtube channel without it violating any of YouTube’s Terms of service.
You should be aware, however, that YouTube won’t assist you in the sale and you will need to do all of the legal paperwork with your lawyer, broker, etc., and then also actually transfer the ownership of the channel to the buyer.
Is it legal to sell your YouTube channel?
Yes, it is legal to sell your YouTube channel. Your YouTube channel is nothing more than a digital asset you’ve built, much like a website or online service, and you are free to sell the ownership of that asset as you please.
As I’ve already mentioned, many large channels have made headlines for selling for multiple millions of dollars, with MCN’s even raising funds into the hundreds of millions of dollars in order to acquire YouTube channels.
With the increase in popularity of selling websites, marketplaces have even started opening up to sell your channel.
This brings me to the next point…
Where can you sell your YouTube channel?
Websites and marketplaces like Trustiu.com, fameswap.com, or accs-market.com are all places where you can list and sell your YouTube Channel. These sites will evaluate your channel, often also appraising it, and they will take care of finding a buyer for you.
Another way of selling your YouTube channel is to build an adjacent website. This allows you to list your YouTube channel on more well-known digital marketplaces like Flippa, Empire Flippers, etc. While you would list your website, you can include your YouTube channel as an added asset and can tap into a different market of buyers.
You can also, of course, sell your channel privately if you know anyone interested or are a part of private groups where people may have an interest in purchasing. But make sure it’s not against the group’s T&Cs, many Facebook groups don’t allow this sort of thing for example.
Regardless of what you choose, I recommend using a service like Escrow to make sure the transaction is secure for both you and the buyer. Escrow acts as a middle man holding the funds so that you know when you can transfer over ownership and the buyer is secure as you are only released the funds once the transfer has been done.
Can you transfer ownership of a YouTube channel?
Yes, you can transfer the ownership of a YouTube channel, as long as the channel is on a brand account.
If the channel was created as a personal account, previously you would need to sell the entire email account associated with the YouTube channel, but now YouTube has built-in a tool that allows you to move all of the content, views, subscribers, etc. over to a brand account.
Once you’ve moved over to a brand account, you can add the buyer as an owner, and then after 24 hours, they can be made into the primary owner of the account.
Make sure to only add the buyer once the funds have been received by Escrow or the marketplace you are using.
If they need to see your analytics data, you can send a screen recording or give them viewer rights which allows them to see the data, but they can’t change anything, like deleting videos, etc.
How much do YouTube channels sell for?
In general, YouTube channels sell for around 36 times their monthly revenue. If your channel generates $1000 per month, a reasonable price for your YouTube channel would be $36,000. There are a number of factors that can impact how much your YouTube channel can sell for though.
If there is a face associated with the channel, it can receive substantially less. As the audience has built up a relationship with the channel and the face of the channel, they may not show the same level of engagement with the new owners. This is something that buyers will take into consideration when making an offer on your YouTube channel.
There are many other considerations, such as audience demographics, how the channel is monetized, what type of content is published, etc. I cover these aspects in more detail in my guide on how to sell your YouTube channel here.