Highlights
- Epic says UEFN creator payouts have crossed $1 billion USD since the tool launched in 2023.
- Creator-made islands now account for 47% of Fortnite playtime, up from 38% a year ago.
- More than 3K islands now earn more through in-island transactions than engagement payouts.
Epic Games has paid more than $1 billion USD to creators since launching Unreal Editor for Fortnite in 2023. The milestone underscores the growing role of user-generated content within the Fortnite ecosystem.
The benchmark was announced during the State of Unreal presentation at Unreal Fest Chicago on June 17, 2026. At the event, Epic shared updated figures on creator engagement and player spending, underscoring how community content is gaining traction on the platform.
"Your games are a growing share of Fortnite playtime. In May, we saw them capture 47% of all player hours, up from just 38% a year ago," stated Hannah Lowry, Epic's director of Fortnite developer relations. She also noted that in-island transactions are driving a larger portion of total payouts, helping support genres beyond battle royale and shooters.
Epic also confirmed Fortnite has more than 75M monthly active users.
The company stated that more than 75% of all in-game transactions now come from experiences outside of battle royale. It marks a broader shift in how players spend and engage with the game.
Fortnite Creator Payouts Grow as UEFN Expands Monetization
Epic introduced Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN) in 2023 as a direct publishing tool for the game. It lets developers create and launch experiences inside Fortnite using Unreal Engine's tools for animation, rendering, VFX, lighting, and worldbuilding. The system has transformed Fortnite into a broader content platform where creators can reach millions of players across PC, consoles, and mobile devices.
The platform launched while Fortnite was unavailable on major mobile stores during Epic’s legal disputes with Apple and Google. Since then, the game has returned globally, helping expand access to creator-made content.
Epic’s creator economy initially relied on engagement payouts, but the company added in-island transactions in January 2026, opening a second revenue stream. According to Epic, more than 3K islands now earn more through direct player purchases than engagement payouts.
Alongside the creator update, Epic confirmed Unreal Engine 6 remains on track for an early access release at the end of 2027.
