// how it works
Four steps to your first clip
Clipping is one of the simplest ways to get paid for your editing. Brands bring the footage, you bring an eye for a great moment, and every real view your clip gets adds to what you earn.
Make an account
It's free, and there's no follower minimum.
Verify your page
Verify the account you'll post from, and every clip on it can earn.
Pick a campaign
Browse the live campaigns and grab the footage. The rate, rules and platforms are all in the brief. There's nothing to apply for: choose one and start.
Clip it and post it
Cut it your way, post it on your own account and paste the link back. Your edit, your page, your audience.
// what you need
Less than you think
All you need is an account on a platform the brief allows, usually TikTok, Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts or X, and an editing app you enjoy using. The footage comes with the brief.
You don't need a following either. You're paid on views, not followers, so a brand-new account earns the same per 1,000 views as one with a million followers. Plenty of clippers in the network started from zero.
// what you earn
Your views times the rate
Every campaign has its own rate per 1,000 views. Rates run from about $0.30 to $3.50, and the average is $1.68. The more people watch your clip, the more it earns:
That example is before the processing fee, and what you earn depends on how your clips do. Campaigns run until their budget is spent, so when you find one you like, start early.
// getting paid
How the money reaches you
Your views come straight from the platform and add up on your dashboard, so you can watch your clips grow. They're verified, held briefly, then paid on a fixed cycle, and your first payout usually lands within days of your first clip clearing.
No invoices, and no chasing anyone for payment. A processing fee applies to each payout, as set out in our Terms. ClipIt pays clippers in 90+ countries.
// keep every clip paid
Three rules that protect your earnings
Clips that miss out on pay almost always break one of three rules, and all three are easy to follow:
- Follow the brief. Read the rules before you cut, and your clip is on track.
- Make your own edit. Your clip has to be your own cut, never someone else's.
- Keep your views real. Organic views are the ones that pay.
A clip that breaks them earns nothing, so a minute with the brief is time well spent. We check every clip for as long as it runs, with our own detection technology and human moderators. It keeps the network fair for the brands who fund it and for every clipper who plays by the rules.
// getting better
What the best clippers do differently
Across 40K+ clippers, the ones who do best tend to work the same way. They're rarely the loudest voices in the community. They're the quiet ones, focused on their craft.
They experiment. They post a few versions of a clip, see which one takes off, and work out why.
They build on what works. Their best version becomes the template for the next one, so every campaign starts from an edit that has already proved itself.
They cut by feel. AI tools speed up the editing, but it takes a person to feel which moment will land. The best clippers use both.
They read the brief first. Every rule they follow is a clip that gets paid.
They run a few campaigns at once. Many run three or four in parallel and let the winners show them where to spend their time.
// your first clip
Two easy wins on your first clip
Most first clips can get better in one of two ways, and both are easy:
Find the balance. Some first clips pile on captions, effects and transitions until the moment gets lost. Others are a raw cut with nothing to stop the scroll. The sweet spot is in between: a strong opening, the moment itself, and the edits that keep people watching.
Start with the brief. Every brief sets what to say, what never to say and what's off limits. Read it before you cut, and you've already avoided the most common reason a first clip is rejected.
// how monsterlab does it
Three ways to earn from short video
Clipping is one of several ways to earn from short video. Here's how it compares with the two most people try first.
| Clipping on ClipIt | Creator programs | Brand deals | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Followers needed | None | Usually a minimum | Enough for a brand to notice |
| Who you deal with | No one to pitch: pick a brief and post | The platform | Each brand, one by one |
| You're paid for | Real views, at the brief's rate | Whatever the platform's terms say | A fee you negotiate |
| When you're paid | On a fixed cycle | On the platform's schedule | When the brand pays you |
| Footage | Comes with the brief | You make your own | Usually you make your own |
ClipIt has run this model since 2018. Your first clip could be up today.
108B+
Views delivered
480+
Campaigns run
100+
Brands
40K+
Clippers, 90+ countries
// proof
MJ: 36.3M views.
The Michael Jackson catalogue. Archive performance footage — the first moonwalk, the anti-gravity lean, the 2001 30th Anniversary concert at Madison Square Garden — cut for an audience that has only ever met it second-hand. The top three clips alone drew 36.3M views on Instagram; the best one, 22.8M.
Read the case study →// questions
Common questions
Does it cost anything to join?
No. Joining is free, and so is taking a campaign. A processing fee applies to each payout, as set out in our Terms.
Can I use a brand-new account?
Yes, as long as you verify it. A new account earns the same per 1,000 views as one with a million followers, and plenty of clippers in the network started from zero.
Can I clip for more than one campaign?
Yes, as many as you like. Many clippers who earn well run three or four at once.
When do I actually get paid?
On a fixed cycle. Views are verified against the platform, held briefly, then paid, and your first payout usually lands within days of your first clip clearing.
What's the best way to get my first clip paid?
Read the brief before you cut. Clips that follow the rules get paid, and the brief tells you everything you need.
How long does it take to get good at it?
Most clippers spend their first month learning what works and fine-tuning it. By the second, the ones who stick with it usually have a routine they can repeat. Everyone's pace is different, and there's no guarantee of earnings.