What is Envato Elements?

Envato Elements is a subscription-based service that allows you to access and license millions of assets you can use in print, web, and video.

How does it work?

Each asset comes with a broad commercial license, allowing you to use elements in almost every case except for the direct re-sale of an asset.

For example, you can't download a website template and then resell that template. But you could use that template to create a website and then sell that website.

To license an asset, state what project it is for and then download the asset. 

Envato Elements will then attach a license to that asset.

You can also download assets without a license. Still, in my experience with Envato Elements, especially if it's in use with YouTube, I suggest that you always license an asset, even if you don't use it. I'll cover that more shortly.

You can use an asset an unlimited number of times as long as you license it for each use.

For example, I have a website and a YouTube channel.

If I were to use an image asset on my channel, say for a thumbnail or within the video itself, I would need to license that asset for that video, specifically.

However, if I use the same image within a blog post for the same video, I would need to license that image again. 

If that's clear as mud, the point essentially is that it's best to license an asset every time you download one.

Since you can have unlimited licenses, this doesn't cost you any additional money. It could, however, save you some hassle when it comes to Content ID Claims.

What do you have access to with an Envato Elements Subscription?

In my opinion, this is the biggest reason why you would want an Envato Elements subscription: unlimited access to over 59 MILLION assets. 

Everything you would need to create content is under one roof; photos, stock video, music, sound effects, graphics, graphic templates (including motion graphic templates), fonts, website templates, and more.

How much does Envato Elements cost?

At the writing of this article, the subscription plans available for Envato Elements are as follows:

• $33 per month + taxes for a monthly plan / $23 + taxes for students
• $198 per year + taxes for a yearly plan / $138 + taxes for students



What happens when you cancel?

I think the biggest reason you might decide against an Envato Elements subscription is for fear of what might happen if you cancel your membership. Will you suddenly have copyright issues with all of the content you've created using their service?

I certainly worried about that.

Here's what they claim:

"If you unsubscribe, you can no longer use items from Envato Elements. However, any existing uses that you registered are still covered."

But it's one thing for them to say you won't have any copyright issues; it's another to have no copyright issues when you cancel.

So I tried it out and canceled my subscription. So far, they have been true to their word.

My account has been inactive since November 21st, 2021, yet I still have access to all of the assets I previously licensed and downloaded.

I've used Envato Elements for both the web and YouTube, and I can safely say if you're going to have any copyright issues at all, you'll have them on YouTube almost immediately.

I am happy (and relieved) to report that even after five months, I have not had any copyright issues with YouTube after canceling my Envato Elements subscription.

Due to my initial experience with Envato Elements assets and YouTube (which I'll get into shortly), I'm sure that if a Content ID Claim were heading my way, it would have been here by now.

So, let's go over my experience with Content ID Claims on YouTube with Envato Elements assets.

Content ID Claims

My first public video on YouTube, and every video afterward (which, granted, isn't that many), have had Envato Elements creative assets, including stock video and music.

For the first five or so videos I published to my channel, YouTube placed Content ID claim restrictions on them shortly after posting. A few as soon as 30 minutes after publishing and one or two a day or so later. And always for the music, never for anything else. However, the claims were easy to resolve with the licensing info provided by Envato Elements for each of my assets. Disputes were always processed quickly.

And then, I noticed that the Content ID Claims stopped after the fifth-ish video I published to my channel. I believe it could be because I started licensing every asset I tested for my videos, not just those that made the final cut. Whatever the case may be, I have only had to file a handful of disputes since I started my channel, and they weren't difficult to do with the licensing information from Envato Elements.

If you're not worried about monetization, you could choose to do nothing, which would be okay.

Here's what Google has to say about it:

On occasion, I've also used creative assets from Envato Elements on my websites. So far, there haven't been any issues.

But if there ever are, I have peace of mind knowing I have a license for every asset I've used from Envato Elements. I can access that licensing information any time, even if I don't have an active paid subscription.

If you're interested in a subscription, consider using this affiliated link for Envato Elements. If you decide to sign-up for a paid subscription, I'll collect a small commission at no additional cost to you.