Google has lowered the eligibility thresholds for Search profiles, expanding access to a feature that gives creators and publishers a dedicated presence in Google Search and Discover.

Publishers and creators now qualify for a Search profile with 35,000 subscribers or followers on YouTube, Instagram or X, down from the previous 100,000 threshold. Creators active only on TikTok now qualify at 100,000 followers, down from 300,000. Robby Stein, Google’s VP of Product for Search, confirmed the change on X on August 12, writing, “We’re lowering the follower thresholds so more creators and publishers can set them up.” He also said Google plans to expand Search profiles to more countries.

Search profiles launched in June as a way for creators and publishers to bring their content from multiple platforms into a dedicated, shareable presence on Google. A profile can display a creator’s bio, website, social accounts and content, giving audiences a central place to find their work. People can access profiles through Google Search, Google Discover or a direct profile URL.

The feature remains available only in the U.S. for now, according to Google’s current documentation, with international expansion planned. Creators must also be at least 18 years old and comply with Google’s policies.

The lower threshold matters for creators who have established audiences but fall below the scale Google initially required. It also gives brands working with those creators another reason to consider how their partners appear outside the social platforms where their audiences were originally built.

A Search profile should not, however, be treated as an SEO shortcut. Google says changes to a Search profile do not affect how the creator’s content ranks in Search or Discover. Following a creator through the profile can make that creator’s content more likely to appear in the follower’s Discover feed.

A Broader Search Console Build-Out

The threshold change extends a broader rollout of Google’s tools for measuring creator content in Search.

In July, Google introduced platform properties in Search Console, allowing creators and publishers to track how their Instagram, TikTok, X and YouTube content performs on Google Search and Discover without requiring a traditional website. Google subsequently made the feature globally available, with reporting also covering Google News.

The reporting gives creators access to the search queries that lead people to their social and video content, along with clicks, impressions, top-performing content and audience information such as country. Creators can use the data to identify which topics are generating search demand and which posts are attracting attention beyond their followers on the originating platform.

That creates a new feedback loop for content strategy. A creator can see that a particular topic is generating Google Search traffic, for example, then use that information when deciding what to publish or expand on across social platforms. For brands, the same data can provide another view into whether creator content has relevance beyond the audience reached through a paid campaign or a creator’s existing follower base.

Google has been moving in this direction across several products. In September 2025, it expanded Discover to include more content from creators and publishers, including posts from X and Instagram and YouTube Shorts. Users can follow creators and publishers directly in Discover to see more of their content.

Google also introduced a “Social Media Updates” carousel in some Business Profiles in 2026, surfacing recent posts from connected social accounts directly within local search results.

Google Is Connecting Creator Discovery and Advertising

The developments are also relevant to brands because Google’s creator infrastructure is expanding on the advertising side at the same time.

Since June, core features of YouTube Creator Partnerships have been available in all locations where the YouTube Partner Program operates. Within Google Ads, advertisers can search for YouTube creators, compare creators using filters such as subscriber count, average views and location, and view creator profiles containing additional performance and audience information when creators have shared those insights.

That gives marketers a more direct way to move from creator discovery to evaluation inside Google’s advertising ecosystem, while Search profiles and Search Console give creators more control and visibility over how their work appears across Google’s consumer products.

Google has not disclosed how many additional creators the lower thresholds make eligible. It also has not provided a specific timeline for international availability beyond saying that expansion is planned.

The immediate change is therefore modest in mechanics but broader in its implications: more creators can establish a recognizable presence across Google Search and Discover, while Google continues to build measurement and discovery tools around content that originates on social platforms.

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Check Out Our Podcast