YouTube's link rules for adult creators: the one link that cost me a channel

My old YouTube channel is gone. It was banned this year, and YouTube's notice cited its external links policy. The link in question sat in the channel header and went to this site: slypanorama.com, a SFW page with no explicit images on it at all, which links onward to the platforms where my scenes live. My current channel is empty.

So this isn't a summary of someone else's help page. It's the rules, read closely, by someone whose channel was banned over one of these links.

Can adult creators link to their site from YouTube?

Only if that site doesn't send people to content YouTube bans. The external links policy says "Links that send users to content that violates our Community Guidelines are not allowed on YouTube," and lists links to pornography as an example. The policy defines a link broadly: "Links can take any form that would direct a user to a site off YouTube."

The text never mentions link-in-bio pages, aggregators or onward links, so it doesn't say whether a SFW page that links onward counts. What I can tell you is that my channel was banned over a link to a SFW site, so a clean first page didn't keep it safe.

Where can you put links on YouTube?

YouTube's link-sharing page lists where clickable links work: long-form video descriptions, comments, channel descriptions, live chat, posts and end screens. Your channel can also show links in its header, up to 14 per its channel customization help; that's where mine was. Every one of those spots is covered by the same external links policy.

Two limits matter:

• Advanced features first. "To add clickable external links, you must enable your channel's access to advanced features." That means phone verification plus channel history or an ID check. YouTube states no subscriber count.
• Shorts links don't click. URLs in Shorts descriptions and comments are non-clickable, "to reduce spam and scam attempts."

What happens if you break the link rules?

The usual path is a warning, then strikes. YouTube's policy pages say a first violation is typically a warning, that "If you get 3 strikes within 90 days, your channel may be terminated," and that a link YouTube can't verify as safe may simply be removed. The nudity and sexual content policy adds that a channel containing pornography can be terminated outright.

I can't tell you which branch my channel went down beyond what the notice said. What I can tell you is that the outcome was a ban, not a quiet link removal, and that's the risk to plan around.

How would I run an adult creator's YouTube channel now?

Treat YouTube as a SFW discovery channel with no direct route to anything explicit. Concretely:

• No link that leads to adult platforms, at any depth. Not in the header, not in descriptions, not in pinned comments. If a page links to OnlyFans, assume YouTube sees OnlyFans.
• Let people find you by name. Say your name clearly in the video and in the channel title. Someone who wants more will search it, and search lands them on a site you control. That's the job owning your own site does.
• Keep the videos clean on their own terms. Gym, gear, behind-the-scenes logistics, the business side. The equipment guide is the kind of topic that works.
• Read the spam rule too. YouTube's spam policy prohibits "Content created solely to drive users off of YouTube to external sites." A channel that only exists to funnel people away reads that way.

Is YouTube worth it for adult creators at all?

I'd still run one, as a SFW discovery channel that can't be a direct funnel. A channel can build a name people search for. It just can't carry the link itself.

If you're weighing where else your work can live, I've compared what 17 adult platforms' own terms allow, and why your bookmark should be a site, not a handle. Every platform rule above can change without notice. Check the live pages before you build a plan on them.

— Sly