YouTube is changing how it counts views | Social Media Today

YouTube is changing how it counts public video views from August 24, 2026, aligning long-form videos and other formats with the Shorts methodology. A view will count as soon as a video starts playing, which means creators may see significantly higher public view counts. YouTube will still retain “Engaged views” in Analytics for measuring deeper viewer engagement, and the change will not affect creator earnings or YouTube Partner Program eligibility.