Did Pinterest Stop Paying Creators?

Yes — Pinterest stopped paying creators directly when it shut down Creator Rewards on November 30, 2022, and as of September 2026 no standing pay-per-view or ad-revenue-share program has replaced it. Pinterest’s own guidance now routes creators to affiliate links, product tagging, brand partnerships, and a limited-cohort Inclusion Fund instead.

Related: creator platform fees compared and how to monetize followers directly.

Did Pinterest actually stop paying creators?

Yes. Pinterest ended Creator Rewards, its only in-product cash-bonus program, on November 30, 2022, and posted the retirement notice on its own help page: “The Creator Rewards program ended on November 30, 2022. To all the creators who participated, thank you for your partnership” (Pinterest Business help, Creator Rewards, archived August 29, 2025).

Pinterest launched Creator Rewards on October 20, 2021, stating in its own newsroom announcement that “Pinterest is investing $20 million for Creator Rewards and other initiatives to support creators” (Pinterest Newsroom, “Pinterest introduces ‘Takes’ and new ways to watch, discover and shop,” October 20, 2021). Measured from that launch date to Pinterest’s stated end date of November 30, 2022, Creator Rewards paid creators for about 13 months in total.

Creator Rewards was also narrow while it ran. Pinterest required a business account, an age of 18 or over, a US location, at least 1,000 followers, and at least three published Idea Pins, per Pinterest’s Creator Rewards help page, archived January 18, 2022. The same archived Pinterest help page states the program ran only inside “the Pinterest app, versions 9.33 or higher,” and that it was “currently in testing to select early access users in the US.”

Pinterest paid Creator Rewards earnings through the third-party processor Adyen, and its archived help page states that “within 30 days of the reward goal ending, your accumulated earnings can be deposited to your linked bank account” and that “1099 forms will be sent annually from Adyen by January 31”. No equivalent Pinterest-to-creator payout rail is documented on Pinterest’s current creator pages.

A direct check of Pinterest’s current creator monetization guide and its 2026 Inclusion Fund announcement, both accessed September 2026, found zero open cash-bonus, pay-per-view, or ad-revenue-share programs listed as a replacement for Creator Rewards.

How does Pinterest creator income work in 2026?

Pinterest itself pays almost nobody in 2026. Its creator guide groups earning into four routes — product tags, affiliate links, a link to your own site, and brand partnerships — and every one of them is paid by a third party. Asked “Will Pinterest pay me directly?”, Pinterest answers: “Pinterest does not facilitate payment for monetization programs like product tagging, affiliate links or brand partnerships”.

For a broader comparison of creator-business costs, see creator platform fees compared.

What are the current ways to make money on Pinterest?

Pinterest documents four monetization routes in 2026, none of which pays a per-Pin or per-view rate. Each one requires a third party — an affiliate network, a retailer, or a brand — to send the money, because Pinterest states plainly that it “does not facilitate payment” for any of them.

• Affiliate links: Pinterest’s creator guide states that you “first need to join an affiliate program before using the tags” and that “Pinterest isn’t part of the affiliate agreements, so your commission will depend on the terms you’ve set up with external merchants or programs” — meaning the commission rate is set by the merchant, not by Pinterest.
• Product tagging and Shopping: Pinterest expanded product tagging to include the Amazon Associates Program for US creators on October 20, 2021, “so creators in the US can add affiliate links from Amazon and earn commission on qualifying purchases”; the commission still comes from Amazon, not Pinterest.
• Brand partnerships: Pinterest’s help center defines a paid partnership as a relationship whose terms “are already established by the creator and brand outside of Pinterest,” and limits creators to tagging one brand per Pin, with the brand required to approve the tag before its name appears (Pinterest Business help, “Paid partnerships for creators”).
• Traffic to a site or store you own: Pinterest instructs creators to “add a prominent, straightforward link to your website on your Pins to help drive traffic to your site,” set from the Pin’s “finishing touches” editing page. This is the only route where the creator controls what happens after the click.

Is the Pinterest Inclusion Fund the same as getting paid to post?

No. The Inclusion Fund is a limited-cohort grant and training program, not per-post pay: the 2026 round was the fund’s sixth year, accepted applications only between July 21 and August 4, 2026 at 9 p.m. ET, and has supported “over 500 content producers” since 2021, per Pinterest’s 2026 Inclusion Fund announcement.

The fund began as the Pinterest Creator Fund in April 2021 with a first cohort of exactly eight creators, each of whom received “a financial grant of $25k in cash and ad credits” across a four-week workshop (Pinterest Business, “Your ideas belong here: apply for the Creator Fund,” May 25, 2021). Pinterest reported that first cohort averaged “2.9x more Idea Pin impressions and 72% more monthly viewers” and gained “over 24,000 new followers” combined, in the same May 2021 post.

Pinterest expanded the program on March 28, 2022, moving to a new cycle every quarter, stretching the workshop “from four weeks to five,” and offering “$25,000 in the form of a cash grant, ad credits and an equipment stipend,” with graduates gaining “60% more followers after completion of the program” on average (Pinterest Business, “Exciting expansions to the Pinterest Creator Fund,” March 28, 2022). That same post directed applicants to “our new Creator Inclusion Fund page,” confirming the rename.

The 2026 cohort runs in 10 countries — the US, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, the UK, Germany, France, India, Australia, and New Zealand — and offers “grants to assist with content production, along with training and resources,” per Pinterest’s 2026 Inclusion Fund announcement. A one-time production grant awarded to a selected cohort is not the same as being paid for the Pins you publish.

What can creators do without an affiliate program or brand deal?

Link Pins to a destination you own where fans can pay you directly. All three Pinterest-adjacent income routes gate payment behind someone else’s approval — an affiliate network’s acceptance, a brand’s signature, or a fund cycle that was open for just 15 days in 2026 (July 21 to August 4, 2026). Pinterest’s own guide confirms creators can “add a prominent, straightforward link to your website” on any Pin.

FanBell is one example of such a destination: a direct-fan-payment tool with no Pinterest affiliation, used for paid private questions, personalized shoutouts, small creator services, tips, or project support. FanBell charges $0 per month and a 12% platform fee taken only when a fan actually pays, with payouts made through Stripe Connect and no follower minimum to open a page (FanBell pricing and how it works). Against Creator Rewards’ old bar of 1,000 followers and three Idea Pins, that is a threshold of zero.

For related guidance, see the best platforms for direct fan monetization. Creators publishing style, home, or recipe boards can also review FanBell for fashion creators for an example of placing a paid offer alongside affiliate links.

Related reading: whether Instagram still pays for Reels, which wound down its own bonus program in a similar way, and whether Spotify pays for songs under 1,000 streams, the equivalent question for musicians.

Frequently asked questions

When did Pinterest stop paying creators through Creator Rewards?

Pinterest ended Creator Rewards on November 30, 2022, roughly 13 months after launching it on October 20, 2021. Pinterest’s own help page carried the notice “The Creator Rewards program ended on November 30, 2022” (archived August 29), and TechCrunch reported the shutdown the same day;.

How much did Pinterest commit to Creator Rewards?

Pinterest committed $20 million “for Creator Rewards and other initiatives to support creators,” announced at its Creators Festival on October 20, 2021. The program closed 13 months later, on November 30, 2022, per Pinterest’s own archived help notice.

Does Pinterest have a pay-per-view or ad-revenue program now?

No standing program is documented as of September 2026. Pinterest’s creator monetization guide lists four earning routes — product tags, affiliate links, your own site link, and brand partnerships — and answers “Will Pinterest pay me directly?” with “Pinterest does not facilitate payment for monetization programs like product tagging, affiliate links or brand partnerships”;.

Is the Pinterest Inclusion Fund an ongoing payment for posting?

No. It is an application-based grant and training cohort: the 2026 round was the program’s sixth year, accepted applications only from July 21 to August 4, 2026 at 9 p.m. ET, and has supported over 500 content producers since 2021 (Pinterest 2026 Inclusion Fund announcement).

Can Pinterest followers pay a creator directly?

Pinterest’s creator monetization guide, accessed September 2026, documents no built-in tipping or direct fan-payment feature. Creators instead link out to an external service such as FanBell, which costs $0 per month, has no follower minimum, and charges a 12% platform fee only when a fan pays (pricing and how it works).

Ready to give your Pinterest traffic a direct way to pay you instead of waiting on an affiliate check? Create your free FanBell page and set up your first paid offer in minutes.