Every new publisher meets the same wall: the balance grows, nothing arrives. That's the payment threshold — $100 in most countries — doing exactly what it says. Understanding the mechanics around it saves weeks of confused forum posts.
How the threshold cycle works
Earnings accrue during the month and are "finalized" in the first days of the next. Once finalized earnings cross $100, a payment is issued in that month's cycle — typically around the 21st, arriving by your selected method days later. Below $100, the balance simply rolls. It's not lost; it's escrowed. The system also has an annual failsafe: if you end a year between $10 and $100, a payment goes out in January so balances don't hostage forever.
Setting up before you need it
Verify identity early — tax info and ID verification become mandatory on their own schedule, and doing them under payment pressure is miserable. Choose the payment method with its threshold in mind: bank transfer (wire/SEPA/EFT depending on country) is the default for good reason; checks still exist in some regions and are slower. Address verification PIN arrives by mail after crossing $10 — if it doesn't arrive, the system allows retries and support contact. Publishers who handle all three verifications in month one never think about them again.
When payments hold
Holds have named causes: pending identity verification, pending PIN, a payment method that failed, or a policy review flag on the account. Each shows in the Payments center with its fix. The worst response to a hold is panic-clicking; the correct one is reading the named reason and completing the named step.
Planning around it honestly
At $5 RPM, the threshold means your first three months are bookkeeping, not income. Budget psychologically for that: month four is when the first real payment lands. Publishers who expect this stay; publishers who expected month-one payouts quit at month two, usually posting about it.
