- YouTube is testing Gift Goals to gamify livestream donations.
- The feature expands earlier Super Chat goals to gifts in vertical live streams.
- Fans can contribute toward donation milestones, boosting engagement and community building.
- YouTube is incentivizing adoption with bonus payouts and streamlined monetization.
- The move aligns with competitive pressures from TikTok’s proven gifting ecosystem.
Gamified targets aim to increase creator earnings and deepen audience participation.
YouTube has begun testing a new feature called Gift Goals, designed to strengthen creator monetization during livestreams. The feature allows streamers to set donation targets within a specified timeframe, encouraging fans to contribute gifts in order to unlock milestones or rewards.
While YouTube has previously experimented with goal mechanics via Super Chat, this update extends the functionality to gifts, embedding gamification into vertical live formats on mobile.
Competitive Dynamics With TikTok
The move reflects YouTube’s broader strategy to catch up with rivals like TikTok, where gifting has become a cultural norm for live monetization. TikTok’s success with virtual gifts demonstrated that fans respond positively to interactive and competitive donation formats, and YouTube is now mirroring that playbook.
By expanding its toolkit with Gift Goals, engagement leaderboards, and its Jewels donation system, YouTube is building out a more robust ecosystem for fan-driven revenue.
Engagement Beyond Passive Viewing
Gift Goals do more than generate incremental revenue—they transform livestreams into interactive events. The act of contributing to a collective target builds community energy, while also rewarding high-engagement viewers with recognition.
YouTube’s tests highlight a push to move viewers from passive watchers to active participants, a trend that aligns with the platform’s broader emphasis on creator economy growth.
Business Model and Creator Incentives
The monetization structure behind Gift Goals ties directly into YouTube’s broader pivot toward vertical video monetization. Gifts are purchased as Jewels, converted into Rubies, and redeemed by creators, creating a familiar currency-based ecosystem.
To accelerate adoption, YouTube is offering select creators a 50% bonus on gift earnings for the first three months—a clear incentive to push live vertical formats. Notably, enabling gifts replaces Super Stickers, streamlining YouTube’s offerings but also signaling that gifts are now the platform’s preferred donation mechanic.
Testing for Expansion
At present, the Gift Goals feature is being trialed with a small number of U.S. creators on mobile vertical live streams. Its success could lead to a wider rollout across geographies and formats, particularly if YouTube sees measurable uplifts in revenue and watch time.
For creators, the development adds another revenue stream at a time when diversification of income sources is increasingly critical. For YouTube, it strengthens the platform’s live commerce ambitions while directly addressing competitive pressure from TikTok’s gifting model.
