Super Chat is the obvious way to support a YouTube live stream, but it only opens once your channel is in the YouTube Partner Program, and YouTube keeps 30% of the net. A tip link in your description works from your very first stream and leaves you more of every dollar. This page compares the two and shows how to take YouTube live donations without Super Chat, with alerts in OBS.
YouTube pays creators 70% of Super Chat, Super Sticker and Super Thanks revenue, calculated after any sales tax and, for purchases on an iPhone or iPad, Apple's App Store fees. So a $10 Super Chat leaves you $7 at most, and less when sales tax or App Store fees apply.
A tip through your own page is paid in dollars on your connected Stripe account. On a $10 card tip, Stripe takes $0.59 and DonoLink $0.35, so you keep $9.06.
Super Chat needs a channel in the YouTube Partner Program, which opens fan funding from 500 subscribers with watch-time requirements, a creator aged 18 or older and the feature switched on in YouTube Studio. Streams made for kids, age-restricted streams and private or unlisted streams never show it. A tip link has none of these conditions: it works wherever you can share a link.
Make the link easy to find during and after the stream:
Add the DonoLink alerts browser source in OBS: each tip plays with your image, sound and text-to-speech, and a goal bar fills live. Super Chats stay in the YouTube chat, so you can run both without double alerts. Viewers pay by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay, plus Amazon Pay once Stripe has activated it for your account. PayPal is coming soon, and Venmo is not offered.
Viewers tap the link in your description or pinned message, choose an amount and pay. Super Chats need the YouTube app on a phone; a tip page works in any browser, with no YouTube or DonoLink account.
How to donate on YouTube Live: Super Chat vs a donation link
| Route | What reaches you from $10 | When it works |
|---|---|---|
| Tip, card or Apple Pay | $9.06 | From your first stream |
| Super Chat | $7.00 at most | Partner Program, 18+, switched on |
| Channel membership | 70% of net revenue | Monthly, with perks for members |
Super Chat and memberships: 70% after sales tax and App Store fees. Tips at Stripe's published US card rate, October 2026.
YouTube pays you 70% after sales tax and any App Store fees, so a $10 Super Chat leaves you $7 at most.
Yes. Put a tip link in your description and a pinned chat message. It works below 500 subscribers and on streams where Super Chat is off.
Yes, many creators link a support page in their description. Follow YouTube's rules on external links; clickable links in descriptions need advanced features on your channel.
Yes, through the DonoLink alerts browser source in OBS or Streamlabs Desktop. Super Chats keep showing in the YouTube chat.
Yes. Keep Super Chat for viewers who like it and add a tip link for those who want more of their support to reach you.