How to Make Money Streaming on Facebook

Turning your Facebook stream into a source of income is entirely possible, but it starts with treating your stream like a business. It's about building a loyal community, creating engaging content, and tapping into the right monetization tools. This guide will walk you through the exact eligibility requirements for Facebook's features, break down the different ways you can earn, and provide actionable strategies to grow your stream and your bank account.

First, a Reality Check: Getting Ready to Monetize

Before we get into the specifics of Facebook Stars and In-Stream Ads, it's important to set the right foundation. Making money from streaming is a marathon, not a sprinter. The streamers earning a full-time living have one thing in common: they focused on building an authentic community before they focused on making money. A community that feels connected to you and your content is one that will be happy to support you financially when the time comes.

Your journey should start with these three core principles:

• Consistency Builds Trust: Viewers are creatures of habit. Streaming on a predictable schedule (e.g., every Tuesday and Thursday at 7 PM) allows people to build you into their routine. Create a simple graphic with your weekly schedule and pin it to your Facebook Page. Showing up consistently signals that you're serious about this, making your audience more likely to invest their time - and eventually, their money - in your content.
• Quality Over Clutter: You don't need a professional studio, but you do need clear audio and video. A decent microphone is the single most important investment you can make, viewers will forgive a less-than-perfect camera, but they won't stick around for scratchy, inaudible audio. Start with a solid USB mic and a simple webcam, and make sure you have good lighting.
• Play by the Rules: Facebook has specific rules for creators who want to make money. Familiarize yourself with the Partner Monetization Policies and Community Standards. Violating these can get your monetization features suspended or permanently removed. It's dry reading, but it’s essential to protect your hard work.

Meeting the Eligibility Requirements: The Official Checklist

Facebook offers several native tools for monetization, but you have to unlock them by meeting specific criteria. You can always check your Page's eligibility by going to Meta Business Suite >, Monetization. Here are the main pathways and what you need to achieve them.

Facebook Stars

Stars are a virtual currency that viewers can buy and send to you during your live stream (or on some videos). For every Star you receive, Facebook pays you $0.01 USD. It’s a direct and interactive way for fans to show support.

To be eligible for Stars, you must:

• Comply with Facebook's Partner Monetization policies.
• Live in a country where Stars are available.
• Have at least 500 followers for 30 consecutive days on your Page.

Meeting these makes your Page eligible, but ultimately, Stars must be enabled and set up by you in the Meta Business Suite or Creator Studio.

Fan Subscriptions

Think of this as your own version of Patreon, built right into Facebook. Fans pay a recurring monthly fee (which you set) in exchange for exclusive perks like special badges, subscriber-only content, and access to private groups. It’s a powerful tool for generating steady, predictable income.

To be eligible for Fan Subscriptions, you need:

• At least 10,000 followers on your Page OR 250+ returning weekly viewers.
• And one of the following milestones in the last 60 days: 50,000 Post Engagements OR 180,000 Watch Minutes.

In-Stream Ads

These are ads that can play before (pre-roll), during (mid-roll), or after (post-roll) your videos, including live streams. Revenue is typically based on ad views and the advertiser's bid. While more passive than Stars or Subscriptions, it can add up significantly, especially with a large-volume audience.

The main eligibility criteria for In-Stream Ads are:

• A minimum of 5,000 followers.
• A total of 60,000 eligible minutes viewed in the last 60 days. This includes minutes from both on-demand videos and live broadcasts.
• Your Page must have at least 5 active videos (live or on-demand).

Your Monetization Toolkit: A Deep Dive into Each Method

Once you’ve unlocked these tools, the real work begins. Here’s how to effectively use each method to build a sustainable income stream.

Mastering Facebook Stars ⭐

Simply enabling Stars isn't enough. You have to make it an interactive and rewarding part of your stream.

• Set Up Goals: Use your streaming software (like OBS or Streamlabs) to add a visible "Star Goal" overlay on your stream. It can be for a new piece of gear, a community event, or just a fun personal milestone. Public goals give people something to rally behind.
• Create Alerts &, Shoutouts: Set up on-screen alerts that pop up when someone sends Stars. The most important thing you can do is acknowledge the supporter in real-time. A simple, "Hey, thanks so much for the 100 Stars, Sarah!" makes them feel seen and encourages others to participate.
• Incentivize with Actions: Make it fun. For example, “For every 500 Stars, I’ll do a silly dance,” or “A 1000-Star donation lets you pick the next game I play.” Let Stars directly influence the stream content.

Building Your Community with Fan Subscriptions 🤝

The key to successful Fan Subscriptions is providing tangible value that people are willing to pay for every month.

• Define Your Perks: Think in tiers. What can I offer a subscriber?
  • Level 1 (Entry): Supporter Badge, supporter-only emotes, access to a subscribers-only Facebook Group or Discord channel.
  • Level 2 (Mid-Tier): Everything in Level 1, plus access to exclusive video content (behind-the-scenes, tutorials), early access to content.
  • Level 3 (Top-Tier): Everything below, plus a monthly Q&,A stream, a personal shoutout, or maybe even your name in the credits of videos.
• Promote, Don't Push: Casually mention the perks ("Our conversation will continue in the subscriber Discord after the stream!") rather than constantly asking people to subscribe. Let them see the value you're offering rather than just telling them about it.

Beyond Facebook's Tools: Other Ways to Earn

You shouldn’t rely solely on Facebook’s native tools. Diversifying your income protects you from algorithm changes and unlocks new opportunities.

Sponsorships &, Brand Deals

Once you have an engaged audience, brands will be interested in reaching them. This doesn't require a massive audience, just a dedicated one in a specific niche. A tech streamer with 500 loyal viewers might land a deal with a microphone company. To get started, create a simple one-page media kit that includes your stats (average viewers, follower count, engagement rate), audience demographics, and what kind of sponsored content you can offer (sponsored stream segment, unboxing video, etc.).

Affiliate Marketing

This is one of the easiest ways to start earning. Simply promote products you already use and love. Every gamer, artist, or cook has their favorite gear. Sign up for affiliate programs like Amazon Associates, and create a list of your gear with affiliate links. You can add a link to this list in your stream's description and mention it verbally when people ask what kind of equipment you're using. You get a small commission every time someone purchases through your link, at no extra cost to them.

Selling Your Own Merch

Building a brand allows you to sell products. This has never been easier with print-on-demand services like Teespring, Streamlabs Merch, or Printful. You can create t-shirts, mugs, and hats with your logo or inside jokes from your community. You only have to create the designs, the platform handles printing, shipping, and customer service. It’s a great way to let your biggest fans represent your brand.

Grow Your Stream, Grow Your Income

At the end of the day, all monetization strategies grow when your stream grows. Your primary focus should always be on creating a better show and building a stronger community.

Create Content That Connects

The recipe for good streaming content is a mix of entertainment, education, or personality. Find your niche - whether it's competitive gaming, chill digital painting sessions, live cooking, or just chatting about your day - and lean into it. More important than anything is engaging with your chat. Your live stream is a two-way conversation. Welcome new viewers by name, answer questions, and respond to comments. That interaction is what separates live streaming from pre-recorded video and is why people come back.

Promote Your Streams Like a Pro

A stream is an event, and every event needs promotion.

• Leverage Other Platforms: Announce your stream schedule on TikTok, Instagram, X, and any other platform where your potential audience gathers. Create short clips or highlights from your best stream moments and post them as Reels, Shorts, and TikToks to reach new people.
• Use Your Facebook Page Effectively: Don't just go live. Before your stream, post a "Starting Soon" graphic. After your stream, post highlights or ask questions related to what you discussed. Keep the engagement going even when you're offline.
• Optimize Your Stream Title and Description: Treat your stream title like a headline. Make it searchable and interesting. Use your description to tell people what the stream is about and include links to your socials, merch store, or affiliate pages.

Final Thoughts

Making money on Facebook Gaming is a byproduct of doing everything else right: building a strong community, providing consistent value, and engaging with your audience authentically. Start with the foundation, unlock the tools one by one, and diversify your income streams to build a resilient creator business.

Being a successful streamer also means becoming a content promoter and community manager. You need to schedule posts to announce your streams and share clips to keep your audience engaged between sessions. This is why we built Postbase to help. It allows us to plan and schedule all our promotional content across all social platforms from a single visual calendar, so we spend less time juggling tabs and more time creating the content our audience loves. Your accounts stay reliably connected, and your scheduled posts actually publish - a simple idea that makes a huge difference in staying consistent.