Do You Get Paid for Medium Articles? (Yes, With 7 Caveats)

I pay half my monthly bills with the money I earn by blogging on Medium.

Do you get paid for Medium articles?

You do get paid for Medium articles. Once you meet the eligibility requirements for monetization, you get paid for the reading time on each article you publish. Medium pays you monthly through the Stripe app. You can also earn money on Medium through affiliate marketing and tips.

In this article, you’ll learn everything you need to know about getting paid for Medium articles.

7 Quick Answers To Getting Paid for Medium Articles

(This post may have afilliate links. Please see my full disclosure)
Black Woman on a laptop in a cafe—Do You Get Paid for Medium Articles
I made this image —Do You Get Paid for Medium Articles?

There are, however, seven important caveats you need to know.

If you don’t understand when and how you get paid for Medium articles, you could waste a lot of time and miss out on a lot of money.

Keep reading to find out exactly when and how you get paid for writing Medium articles.

You just might be surprised by what you learn.

Do You Get Paid for Medium Articles As a Complete Beginner?

No, you don’t get paid as soon as you join Medium or when you publish your first article on the platform.

You need to meet the eligibility requirements first, apply for monetization, and then publish quality content while following the Medium guidelines.

There are three major eligibility requirements:

  • You must publish at least one article on Medium
  • You must have 100 followers on Medium
  • You must remain active on Medium

If your application is successful (it is 99.9% of the time), you will be invited to join the Medium Partner Program (MPP).

Once you’re a member, you can start publishing articles that are eligible for payment.

Payment is based on a pro-rated system, which means that you’ll earn a share of the total amount that readers pay to read all the articles in a given month.

Note that you only get paid for articles that are actually read – not just those that are initially clicked on.

This system incentivizes quality content and encourages writers to produce engaging and well-written articles. If you’re able to consistently produce quality content, you can make a significant income through the Medium Partner Program.

Do You Get Paid for Medium Articles Before You Join the Medium Partner Program?

No, you must be eligible for and join the Medium Partner Program to get paid for reading time on your articles.

That’s why it’s so important to follow the Medium guidelines, publish your first article, and get your first 100 followers as fast as possible. The best way to get followers is to publish good content in publications and network with other Medium writers in Medium Facebook groups.

That’s what I did.

It took me about a month of writing and networking before I was able to get my first 100 followers.

But it was worth it.

Once I joined the program, I immediately started earning money for every person who read my articles. And the more popular my articles became, the more money I earned.

Do You Get Paid for Writing on Medium Before You Have 100 Followers?

In order to get paid for reading time on your articles, you’ll need to build up a base of followers first.

Before you have 100 followers, you can still monetize your articles with affiliate links or include short CTA’s (calls to action) at the end of your articles.

For example, “Sign up to my email list.” Then, you can offer products and services to your mailing list.

If you’re just starting out, it may seem like a lot of work to get 100 followers, but there are a few things you can do to make it easier.

I’ve already mentioned publishing good content and using Facebook groups.

You can also get followers by:

  • Sharing your articles on social media platforms.
  • Interacting with other users and writers on Medium.
  • Leaving thoughtful comments on their articles.
  • Posting 1-3 articles per day on the same topics/niche.
  • Getting published in popular Medium publications.
  • Using popular tags on Medium to attract more traffic.

By building up a reputation as a thoughtful and insightful user, you’ll be more likely to attract followers of your own.

Do You Get Paid for Medium Articles In the First 3 Months?

The short answer is yes – you can earn money in your first three months (even your first month) if you meet all of the requirements and get accepted into the Medium Partner Program.

I earned money my first month and my earnings have trended upward every month since.

Of course, there’s a bit more to it than simply writing articles and waiting for the money to roll in.

Once you’re in, you’ll have access to a host of tools and resources that will help you maximize your earnings. For example, you’ll be able to see how much traffic your articles are getting and which topics make you the most money.

You can also take advantage of revenue tools like membership referrals and earning tips.

Do You Get Paid for Medium Articles Forever?

You could theoretically get paid for your Medium articles forever.

Once you get into the Medium Partner Program and publish an article, you can earn money from it for years and years. Some months, I make a few dollars from articles I wrote several years ago.

However, you don’t always earn money from your articles.

You won’t get paid for Medium articles if:

  • No one reads one of your articles during the month
  • You stop being active on the site
  • Medium removes you from the Partner Program
  • You accidentally uncheck the monetization box in your profile or story settings

Getting removed is rare. As long as you follow the Medium rules, you should be fine.

Staying active means that you publish at least one article every six months. That’s not hard at all. If I were you, I’d publish as much as possible every month.

That’s how you maximize your earnings from Medium over time.

Before you publish each article, double-check that you have the monetization box marked. You’ll see the box on the screen right before you publish an article or submit an article to a publication.

It’s pretty hard to miss (see screenshot below):

Screenshot of Medium Monetization Box - Screenshot by author
Screenshot of Medium Monetization Box – Screenshot by author

Do You Get Paid for Claps on Medium Articles?

No, you don’t get paid when people clap on your Medium articles.

Clapping is basically Medium’s “like” button.

Clapping makes you feel good as an author and is an indication of your article’s quality. That’s about all.

You only get paid directly from Medium for reading time on your article and any referrals you’ve made for Medium Memberships.

Therefore, to make more money on Medium, your focus should be on increasing reading time on your articles.

Do You Get Paid for Medium Publications?

You don’t get paid for Medium publications.

You only get paid when paid Medium members read your articles that are behind the Partner Program paywall. In other words, you checked that monetization box we talked about earlier.

Publishing in Medium publications can attract more readers to your articles.

However, you don’t get paid for publishing in Medium publications or running publications. That’s why I only run publications where I am the only writer.

This saves me time and effort screening articles from other writers (where I don’t get paid).

Instead, I can focus on building an audience for my publication that will eagerly read every article I publish (and get paid for reading time). You don’t get paid for the reading time of content that is not yours, even if you publish that content in your own publication.

Long story short, write your own content and focus on publishing it to publications.

Do You Get Paid for Medium Articles? (FAQ)

In this section, I’ll answer some of the questions I frequently get about earning money for Medium articles.

How Long Does It Take To Get Paid for Medium Articles?

It will generally take you 30-60 days to get 100 followers, get accepted into the Medium Partner Program, and get paid.

If you get into the Partner Program in your first month, you’ll still need to wait approximately 30 days to get your first payment from Medium. In other words, there is a 30-day delayment in the income you earn.

30-60 days is about the quickest I think you’ll be able to get monetized on Medium.

Can Anyone Get Paid for Medium Articles Anywhere in the World?

You can get paid for Medium articles anywhere in the world that uses the Stripe app.

I’ve heard others use VPNs to get around the Stripe-excluded countries but I live in the United States, so I’ve never had any issues.

If you do live in a country where Stripe is not available, try a VPN (such as Bluehost VPN).

Do You Get Paid for Writing Short Articles on Medium?

Yes, you do get paid for writing short articles on Medium.

Many writers publish stories that take 2 minutes or less to read (so only a few hundred words). Now, you won’t make as much money from short articles as you do with longer articles.

But you do still earn something.

After writing over 500 articles on Medium, I recommend that you write and publish articles between 1,000 to 1,500 words in length (or 4-7 minutes of reading time).

That seems to be the sweet spot for earning the most from your articles.

Here is a good video about getting paid for writing articles on Medium:

YouTube video by The Money Resolution – Do You Get Paid for Medium Articles?

Final Thoughts: Do You Get Paid for Medium Articles?

If you want to get paid for Medium articles, the best thing you can do is join Medium today and start blogging.

We have lots of other articles on this site about Medium.

Check out a few of these related posts before you go: