How to get YouTube videos on MSN in 2026: a guide for creators and agencies

Open Up 10 New Revenue Streams Beyond YouTube

Download Free Checklist

Microsoft's guidelines for MSN partners carry a short warning. Right now, every YouTube video sent to MSN as an embed gets rejected. So you can't send MSN your YouTube links, and you can't open an account and upload there yourself either. To get your YouTube videos on MSN, you need your own publisher account in MSN Partner Hub, which Microsoft opens by invitation only, or a content partner from Microsoft's official directory.

We're one of the 13 partners in that directory, and we bring both creators and whole agency rosters to MSN. So we've prepared answers to the questions creators and agencies ask most about getting there. Like, why an invite code isn't something you can request. Why the fastest agency we onboarded needed two weeks, while the average is about 50 days. What it took a home and DIY channel to get from signing to its first payout in 65 days. And what to check in any partner's contract before you sign. We'll get to all of it.

In this guide:

• Why you can't just upload
• The two ways onto MSN
• Where your videos appear
• MSN Partner Hub and invite codes
• Creator and partner programs
• Step by step for creators
• For agencies and MCNs
• How to check a partner
• What to expect

Why you can't just upload YouTube videos to MSN

MSN looks like a video site, but nobody uploads to it the way you upload to YouTube. Everything there comes from partners Microsoft has approved, and Microsoft vets them when they apply, and again later, its MSN Partner Hub setup guide says.

Links don't help either. Microsoft says it can't moderate YouTube embeds right now, so it rejects every YouTube video sent through a feed or placed inside an article. A partner has to send the video files themselves, with titles and descriptions written for MSN, through a video feed (MRSS) or Microsoft's uploader. Then your videos play in MSN's own player and can land in Watch, MSN's video feed on the Edge start page, MSN.com and the MSN app.

So if anyone offers to put your channel on MSN, ask how the files get there. A YouTube link alone won't pass.

Two ways to get your videos on MSN

Microsoft gives out MSN Partner Hub invite codes itself, by email, to publishers it wants on the platform. That's the first way to join MSN, and with it you run everything yourself. The second way is a content partner. In October 2026, Microsoft updated its MSN content provider partner directory, a list of 13 companies that bring creators' videos to MSN and handle moderation and onboarding for them. AIR Media-Tech is on it.

Here's how the two ways compare.

For one channel, the second way is the realistic one. Microsoft's guides don't describe any way to ask for an invite, and the account is built around a content feed, not a YouTube channel. Agencies have a real choice between the two, and we compare them for a whole roster further down.

Where your videos appear on MSN

Open a new tab in Microsoft Edge, and by default the feed that loads is MSN. That page is one of the places your videos can show up. Microsoft says most MSN video is watched on desktops and laptops, and viewers spend more time there during the working week.

Videos sent through a feed or Microsoft's uploader go to Watch, MSN's video-only feed. Watch sits on the Edge start page, on MSN.com and in the MSN app, and it ranks videos for each viewer by what they watch. MSN can also show your videos next to related articles. Beyond that, Microsoft calls MSN the world's largest cross-platform service for news, entertainment and lifestyle, and says its content feed reaches people every day through Windows, Bing, Edge, and MSN. MSN itself has more than 700 million monthly users in 2026, according to our 2026 MSN report.

That viewing habit shapes which videos do well. Microsoft says MSN viewers finish 2- to 5-minute videos more often, and 16:9 works best. Vertical videos are welcome, but MSN converts them to 16:9. If you're picking what to send first, we'd start with horizontal videos in that range.

What is MSN Partner Hub and how to become an MSN publisher

Every MSN Partner Hub account starts with an email from Microsoft. Partner Hub is the dashboard where publishers connect their content to MSN, manage their brand, and see analytics and earnings, as Microsoft's getting started guide describes it. An account there is what makes you an MSN publisher, so when people search for an MSN publisher program, this is it.

MSN is short for The Microsoft Network, the name it launched under in 1995.

Microsoft picks its publishers itself, and it's a long business process that starts on Microsoft's side, not yours. When an invite does come, the publisher builds its own content feed, sets up payments, and handles rights, metadata and moderation from then on.

How to get an MSN Partner Hub invite code

You can't request one. MSN Partner Hub is invitation-only, and Microsoft emails the invite code, which people also call an invitation code, to the publishers it invites. Its guides don't describe a form or a waitlist. Once you have a code and start the setup, Microsoft sends a verification email, and that email expires after seven days.

So if a company offers to sell you an invite code, be careful. Microsoft doesn't hand them out that way. For a YouTube channel, a content partner gets you on MSN without a code at all.

MSN creator program and partner program: what exists in 2026

Search for an MSN creator program, and you'll find pages with that name from different companies. Microsoft doesn't run one. It has no open program where a creator signs up and starts earning.

What Microsoft does have are MSN Partners. That's what it calls publishers with a Partner Hub account, and they earn a share of the ad revenue from their content. So the MSN partner program and the MSN publisher program are the same thing, the invite-only Partner Hub from the section above.

Creators get in the second way, through a content partner from Microsoft's directory. When a company calls its service an MSN creator program, it's offering this route. Check that the company is in Microsoft's directory before you sign.

How to get your YouTube videos on MSN through a partner, step by step

In January 2025, a US home and DIY channel with about 1,600 videos filled out our application. Sixty-five days after signing, it got its first MSN payout. Its case shows what the road looks like when you go through a partner, so here it is step by step.

1. Check that your channel fits. At AIR, channels usually need 10,000+ subscribers, or 7,000+ with strong views, plus 100+ videos and at least one upload a week over the last three months. Evergreen, visual topics do best. News, reused clips, and videos with unclear rights usually don't get through. The full list is in our guide to who can get on MSN in 2026.
2. Apply. Our application is free and takes about 15 minutes. It asks about your channel, your monetization status, and your content.
3. Sign the contract and add your channel to your AIR account, so we know it's really yours. Adding it doesn't give us any access. The contract only covers MSN and other Microsoft products, so your YouTube channel, AdSense and upload schedule stay as they are.
4. Wait for Microsoft's review. Microsoft checks content standards, rights, and quality across the channel and its library. For the DIY channel, it took about three weeks.
5. Let the partner send your videos. We prepare the files, titles, and descriptions for MSN and publish your existing videos. Nothing gets re-edited or re-uploaded on your side.
6. Get reports and payouts. You get monthly reports, and your earnings come through MilX, AIR's payments platform.

Our usual range from signing to the first payout is 60 to 90 days. When you choose what goes first, look at your back catalog. The DIY channel's best earners on MSN were tutorials filmed years ago.

How agencies and MCNs get their roster on MSN

The fastest agency we've brought to MSN went from its first email to live videos in two weeks. On average, it takes about 50 days. An agency has the same two ways in as a creator, but every choice repeats for each channel on the roster, so the difference between them grows with every creator you add.

Option 1: your own MSN Partner Hub account

An agency can run its own publisher account only if Microsoft invites it, and Microsoft chooses those publishers itself. Then the agency's team does everything a partner would, from video feeds and rights to metadata, moderation and paying its creators. That suits a media company with a tech team and its own site. For a roster of YouTube creators, waiting for an invite isn't a plan.

Option 2: a partner from Microsoft's MSN content provider partner directory

Microsoft keeps an MSN content provider partner directory. It describes the companies there as vetted partners that work with Microsoft on content moderation, onboarding, and scale for creators and video brands. As of October 2026, the list has 13 companies, and AIR Media-Tech is one of them.

With AIR, your creators don't need their own Partner Hub accounts. We handle submission, metadata, moderation, and payouts under a dedicated agency agreement, and the agency stays its creators' only point of contact.

Here's how the two options compare for a roster.

How roster onboarding works

Agencies work with us under a dedicated agency agreement. Under it, the agency stays the only point of contact for its creators, and AIR doesn't reach out to them directly. The agency also sets its own revenue split with each creator. In the agencies we work with, creators usually get half or more, from 50/50 to 60/40 in the creator's favor.

Here's how a roster gets on MSN with us.

From the first email to the start of distribution, it takes about 50 days on average. That covers the roster review, approvals, adapting the contract, and signing. The fastest agency did it in two weeks. In agencies that work with YouTube creators, half the roster or more usually passes the check.

Once you're live, the agency gets an AIR account with every approved channel, its analytics, and users and roles for the agency's team. Each month, the money arrives on MilX in one payment with a breakdown by creator, and the agency pays its creators itself.

When Microsoft turns down a strong channel from an agency's roster, we argue its case. We also agree on the distribution strategy with the agency, whether that's only new videos, a mix of new and old, or the most popular ones. If the agency or a creator wants certain videos kept off MSN, we take them out of distribution.

If you're not sure about MSN yet, start with a pilot on a few of your strongest channels. That's how the pilot with Jake Rosen Entertainment began.

Example: an agency pilot

In February 2026, Jake Rosen Entertainment, a US talent agency on the Inc. 5000 list, started an MSN pilot with us. It began with one flagship channel, the family-lifestyle channel Bus Life 4 Me, which had 63,000 subscribers and over 10 million views at the time. Since then, Gamer Talent in Australia and Bitspearhead, which works with South Asian creators, have announced MSN partnerships with us too.

Pilot results stay confidential at the agencies' request. For what MSN pays creators, see 6 creator stories with real earnings.

How to check that an MSN partner is official

Microsoft's MSN content provider partner directory fits on one page. Thirteen companies, each with a short profile, a website, and a contact link. If a company says it can put your videos on MSN and it isn't on that page, ask which partner it works through. And if your channel already works with another distributor or is already on MSN, mention it before you sign, since MSN usually keeps one channel per creator when the content is similar.

Being in the directory tells you a company works with Microsoft. It doesn't tell you what your contract will say. So before you sign with anyone, us included, check how the contract handles each of these points. Here's how they work in ours.

If a contract leaves any of these points out, ask for them in writing before you sign.

What to expect: timing, payouts, review and leaving

MSN money varies a lot from channel to channel, even in the same niche. In our distribution data, it runs from a few dozen dollars a month to several thousand, depending on how the videos perform, which markets watch them, and the season. Our 2026 MSN report breaks down what moves those numbers. Among our published cases, a niche golf channel averaged $722 a month, with months between $202 and $1,246, and Outdoors with Erik averaged $6,963.

The home and DIY channel from earlier is at the high end. Between December 2025 and April 2026, its monthly MSN earnings grew from $6,852 to $26,679, from the same library. In May, they came down to $5,721, as MSN traffic for home projects softened with the season. Every MSN month looks a little different, so here's what you can know before you start.

How long it takes

For creators, our usual range from signing to the first payout is 60 to 90 days, and Microsoft's own review takes about three weeks of that. For agencies, the road from the first email to the start of distribution takes about 50 days on average.

How payouts work

Microsoft pays for watch time. Since April 2024, MSN partners have earned for the seconds people spend watching their videos, at a rate that changes by market and season. Views on their own don't decide the money. Microsoft also says MSN traffic dips on weekends and holidays, during summer breaks, and from late December to early January in the US and Europe. So a slow month doesn't always mean something broke.

At AIR, your share comes through MilX every month, after Microsoft's monthly report. For what MSN pays in different niches, see how creators monetize on MSN.

If your channel isn't accepted

We review your channel before anything goes to Microsoft. If MSN isn't the right fit, we tell you why and suggest other ways to earn from your library. MSN's review covers distribution on MSN only, so a rejection there has no effect on your YouTube channel or AdSense.

If you want to leave

Your videos stay yours the whole time. We show them on MSN and other Microsoft products and pay you your share of what they earn there. Everywhere else, from YouTube to TikTok, you keep posting and earning as usual. The one thing to avoid is giving another company rights to the same videos on MSN.

How and when you can leave is written in your contract, and you see it before you sign. When the contract ends, so does our permission to show your videos on MSN, and we ask MSN to take them down right away. Microsoft decides how fast that happens, but anything your videos earn until then is still paid to you.