What Are Stars on Facebook?

Facebook Stars are a way for fans to support eligible creators. A fan can obtain Stars through Facebook and send them where a creator has the feature available. Meta describes Stars as a digital good for creator support, rather than a score awarded to a business. The word “stars” can also make people think of a Page’s customer reviews, but those are a different Facebook feature. Meta’s introduction to Stars and its Page Recommendations help describe the two purposes separately.

If you are deciding whether to send Stars, focus on the creator, the amount you will spend, and the total shown before you confirm a purchase. If you are a creator, check your own monetization dashboard for access and earnings. Neither a public video’s view count nor an old blog’s price example can tell you what your account will earn.

Facebook Stars versus Page ratings

The fastest way to tell these features apart is to ask what action you are taking. Sending Stars is an audience-support action attached to eligible creator content. Reviewing a business is feedback about a Page or its service. Meta’s Page help says that when Recommendations and reviews are enabled, people can publish a Recommendation and see a Page’s rating and public reviews. It also explains that a Page can turn Recommendations off. Read Meta’s Page settings guide.

A creator’s Stars balance does not represent how customers rate a business. Equally, a Page rating does not represent money fans have sent. You may encounter both on Facebook, possibly even in connection with the same Page, but one does not convert into the other. If you want to tell other customers about a business experience, look for the Page’s Reviews or Recommendations area. If you want to support a creator financially, look for a Stars control on that creator’s eligible content.

There is another possible source of confusion: Facebook Marketplace has seller ratings. Those relate to Marketplace transactions, not creator Stars or a business Page’s Recommendations. Facebook Help describes Marketplace seller ratings separately. Treat the label and the part of Facebook you are using as the clue; do not assume every star-shaped symbol has the same function.

How sending Stars works

Meta says fans can buy and send Stars to support creators who can receive them. Its product announcements have described Stars on Live streams, videos, Reels, and, in tests, other public creator content. Those announcements were made at different times, so they do not guarantee a send button on every format today. Availability depends on the creator’s access and the particular content. See Meta’s Stars expansion announcement and its later creator-tools update.

To check a specific post, open the content in Facebook and look for the Stars sending option near its interaction controls. If Facebook offers a purchase step, review the pack, currency, payment method, and final total that appear on your screen. Choose an amount only after checking that you are on the intended creator’s account. The labels and placement may differ by device, account, and Facebook version, so use the controls Facebook currently presents instead of relying on a fixed sequence from an older screenshot.

Buying a pack and sending Stars are separate moments. A pack gives you Stars to use through Facebook’s available sending flow; it is not a general promise that every creator can receive them. If you have Stars but cannot see a way to send them on one post, check another eligible item from the intended creator and Facebook’s in-app help before making another purchase. Do not send a password, login code, or payment outside Facebook to someone claiming they can enable Stars for you.

What Stars cost a viewer and what a creator receives

There is no reliable worldwide pack price to quote here. Your purchase screen is the source for the price you would pay now. Packs, currency, taxes, promotions, and the purchase route can affect the total presented to you. The creator’s earnings rate is a separate question. It is therefore misleading to take one example pack price, subtract a creator payout amount, and call the difference Meta’s fixed commission. The old page did exactly that without a current source.

In a Meta-authored presentation dated March 2024, Meta described paying an eligible creator US$0.01 for each Star received. At that stated rate, 100 received Stars correspond to US$1 and 1,000 to US$10 before any account-specific adjustments. This is a dated public rate and simple arithmetic, not a guarantee of today’s terms, a viewer’s purchase price, or a completed payout. A creator should check the current Stars terms and earnings shown in their own account before using that figure in a budget.

Do not describe a Star as one British penny. The cited Meta figure is in US dollars. If your account displays another currency, use the conversion and payout information supplied for that account. The price you pay for Stars is also not necessarily the amount a creator receives.

Can every Facebook creator receive Stars?

No. Stars is a monetization product for eligible accounts, and access can change. Meta’s 2022 announcement listed requirements that were current at the time, including a follower threshold, supported markets, and compliance with monetization policies. Meta then announced that it was lowering Stars eligibility in 2023. Repeating the 2022 threshold as a universal rule now would be unreliable. Compare the 2022 announcement with Meta’s 2023 creator update.

For your own Page or professional profile, open Facebook’s Professional Dashboard or the monetization area available to that account. Look for Stars status, setup requirements, any policy notices, and the current earnings view. Meta identifies Professional Dashboard as a place for creators to inspect tools and monetization information. If Stars is absent, do not assume that a particular follower count or posting schedule will unlock it. Follow the eligibility explanation and support path displayed to you. Meta’s dashboard update describes those account-level checks.

Meta’s product scope has also changed. A 2022 update discussed testing Stars on non-video public posts, while the original expansion centered on Live and video. This is why a creator may see Stars on some content but not on another item. Check the status and controls for the actual Page, profile, and post instead of claiming that all formats are supported for everyone.

How creators should read Stars earnings

A fan’s send action, the number of Stars received, an earnings estimate, and a completed payout are different records. If you manage a Page, record the time period and content type shown in your dashboard before comparing figures. Meta said its creator tools could display Stars earnings by content type; its later Professional Dashboard update discusses finding payout information. Those statements support checking your account records, not assuming a universal payment date or minimum payout threshold. Meta’s Stars tools announcement and dashboard update provide the context.

Views, likes, comments, and followers do not automatically become Stars. Fans choose whether to send them, and a viewer can watch without sending anything. A creator with an enabled Stars button should therefore avoid estimating Stars revenue by multiplying views by the public one-cent example. Check actual received Stars and the payout status in Facebook instead.

If you are collecting support for a cause, distinguish what Facebook shows as creator earnings from any separate promise you make about where you will send that money. Stars do not by themselves verify a charity, establish a donation receipt, or show that proceeds reached a cause. Readers should rely on the specific creator’s transparent explanation and the relevant organization’s own records for any fundraising claim.

If the Stars option is missing

First, check whether you are looking at the intended account and content. On the viewer side, an absent button could mean this content does not offer Stars to you. On the creator side, your dashboard may show an eligibility, setup, or policy issue. These are possibilities, not a diagnosis of a particular account. The sensible next step is to inspect the current in-app status and help information for your account.

If you purchased Stars but cannot send them, keep the receipt and review your Stars balance or purchase history in Facebook. If you see a charge you do not recognize, use Facebook’s payment support and your payment provider’s dispute route as appropriate. A third-party blog cannot view your balance, reverse a purchase, or change Meta’s eligibility decision. Avoid paying someone who promises to restore a missing Stars button.