Indian Writers Can Earn Money on Medium With Its Partner Program
Updated on 16th August, 2023
Stripe, a payment gateway like PayPal, launched its private beta in India in December 2017.
After almost 2 years now, the beta period is finally lifted and the online payment platform is fully functional in the country for everyone.
Although their website says Stripe is in the ‘Preview’ mode…
…I am not exactly sure what it really means. All I know is I had no problem creating my new account. And the account seems to have all the features that of a standard account.
So, it’s a great news for Indian merchants and business owners who wanted a reliable gatewgreat newsay to collect payments from international customers/clients based out of the country.
The pricing seems decently fair as compared to their rivals.
While this is for all kinds of businesses, in particular, I am really excited for the community of writers in India who use Medium.
Through its Partner Program, Medium pays the writers. However, to join their Partner Program, one needs to have a Stripe account through which Medium pays them.
Since Stripe wasn’t available in India, Indian writers couldn’t join the Medium Partner Program and earn money for their work. And Medium doesn’t support PayPal.
Now that’s changing. And it’s something exactly that I talked about a couple of months back in one of my LinkedIn posts…
(If you are on LinkedIn, let’s connect! :))
So, if you’re an Indian writer and want to make money by writing on Medium, you can do it now.
First, create an account of Stripe. Visit https://dashboard.stripe.com/register?country=IN, fill the form and follow the instruction.
You would be asked for the address, PAN card number, bank details, and other details. Provide accurate information.
It would take no more than 10 minutes. Stripe has done a great job with enough DIY resources and descriptions. So, you wouldn’t have much of a problem here.
Once you have created your Stripe account, time now to head to Medium. If you don’t already have a Medium account, create it.
Then go to https://medium.com/creators and click on ‘Join the Medium Partner Program’.
Provide all the information accurately. You will also be asked for Taxpayer information. Fill in the form.
Again, even Medium has done a solid job with DIY resources. So, you wouldn’t have much of a problem signing up here. It would take less than 10 minutes.
Once everything is done, reviewed, and submitted, you will receive several emails confirming that your taxpayer information has been verified and that you’re now officially enrolled in Medium Partner Program.
Now, start writing and publishing on Medium, lock your posts behind the paywall, and get paid.
It’s worth noting though that it’s not easy making money on Medium. The platform rewards quality writers who bring high valueto the table. So, do not expect to earn much if you’re not ready to put in some serious work.
Moreover, starting November 1, 2019, Medium has changed how writers get paid on the platform. Earlier, the amount they earn used to be decided by the number of claps their post got. But now the writers would get paid based on the amount of time members would spend reading their stories.
So, to earn more money, a clear hack here is to publish long-form content on Medium.
Nonetheless, the good news is that Indian writers can earn money on Medium. Go ahead: create your Stripe account and join Medium’s Partner Program.
All the best :)
Update 11.12.19: For whatever reason, they are experiencing an error in processing payment. “ There was an error processing this payment.” I am hopeful though, in the coming weeks and months, it’d get fixed!
Update 13.12.19: Medium sent an email. Here’s a screenshot…
It basically says that the Stripe integration that their Partner Program uses is limited in India and Medium can’t pay the Indian writers until Stripe changes that.
Interestingly, if you activated your Stripe account, connected with Medium and made some money from your articles, Medium will clear that sum through PayPal. After December 16, you (Indian writers) won’t be able to put posts behind the paywall.
Again, hopefully, this will change in the coming weeks and months.
Update 11.05.20: There seems to be some confusion of sorts. Here’s some clarity: As of right now, Medium isn’t accepting Indians in its Partner Program. Stripe is in ‘Preview’ mode in the country. Once it becomes fully accessible, you would then be able to join the Medium Partner Program and get paid!
Update 16.08.23: Stripe was made available in India at the bottom end of 2019. After almost four years since then, Medium Partner Program will be available for people based in India from October 2023. One caveat is that you have to be a Medium member to enroll in this program, which costs $5 USD/month.
