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What Is UGC (User-Generated Content)? A Clear Guide

UGC is content made by users or contributors and shared online. Learn the formats, how it differs from reviews and testimonials, and the key disclosure, copyright and advertising checks.
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UGC means user-generated content: material made by users or contributors and shared online. It can be a photo, video, review, blog post, podcast, piece of music, digital artwork, comment or livestream. In marketing, “UGC” can also describe content a brand commissions from a creator, so the label alone does not tell you whether a post is an independent customer opinion, an advertisement or something in between.

What counts as user-generated content?

UGC is a broad description of content based on who made it: a user or contributor rather than solely the platform or brand publishing it. It may be original or adapted, made alone or collaboratively, and posted under a real name or anonymously. It can appear on social networks, streaming and content-sharing services, subscription platforms, review sites or a publisher’s own website.

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The Australian eSafety Commissioner’s content-creation guidance gives examples including photos and videos, original music, blog posts, vlogs and podcasts, digital art, citizen journalism and livestreams. The term is practical and broad, not one universal legal category.

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How UGC differs from a review, testimonial or brand ad

These terms describe different things. UGC identifies the source; a review or testimonial describes the content’s role or form. A single piece of content may fit more than one description, but the distinctions matter when people decide how much weight to give it.

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Term What it describes Example
UGC Content made by a user or contributor. A customer posts a photo of a product on a social account.
Consumer review A consumer’s evaluation submitted to and published on a website or platform that receives and displays evaluations. A customer rates a service on a review site.
Testimonial An advertising message likely to be understood as reflecting a consumer’s or celebrity’s opinions, beliefs or experience. A person describes their experience in a brand’s advertisement.
Commissioned creator content Content made by a creator for a brand. It may be called UGC in creator marketing, but it is not automatically an independent customer account. A brand hires a creator to make a product video for an ad.

The definitions of consumer review and testimonial come from the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s Consumer Reviews and Testimonials Rule: Questions and Answers. A creator-made video can look like an ordinary customer post, so viewers should be able to understand whether the creator has a relationship with the brand.

What to check before trusting or reusing UGC

Look for a brand relationship

Under U.S. Federal Trade Commission guidance, a creator should disclose a material connection to a brand when that connection could affect how people evaluate an endorsement. It may include payment, employment, a personal or family relationship, or receiving free or discounted products or another perk. The disclosure should be noticeable and understandable, and appear with the endorsement. A profile note or information available only after clicking may not be enough; do not assume viewers already know about the relationship or that a platform’s disclosure tool is sufficient in every situation. The application depends on context.

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See the FTC’s Disclosures 101 for Social Media Influencers and Endorsement Guides: What People Are Asking. These are U.S. sources; requirements may differ in other jurisdictions.

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Distinguish honest reviews from shaped feedback

Businesses may ask customers who have actually used a product or service to leave honest reviews, whether positive or negative, subject to the review platform’s policies. Avoid incentives or selection practices that imply only favorable reviews are wanted or otherwise distort the feedback people see. FTC guidance says disclosures should be clear and conspicuous; a disclosure that requires a click or hover to reveal is avoidable.

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Get permission for commercial reuse

Finding a photo, video or post online does not by itself establish that a brand may use it in advertising. The U.S. Copyright Office explains that original works—including photographs, illustrations, music, books, blog posts and films—can receive copyright protection once fixed in a tangible form. A person or organization other than the creator may own the copyright, so identify the rights holder and document permission for the intended uses before reusing content commercially. See What Is Copyright?

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Check claims and hosted-content policies

Advertising claims must be truthful, not deceptive or unfair, and supported by evidence, according to the FTC’s Advertising and Marketing guidance. A customer’s statement or creator’s video does not remove the need to assess claims used in an ad. Publishers hosting UGC also have responsibilities under the rules of the services they use: Google AdSense, for example, says publishers are responsible for ensuring UGC on their site or app complies with applicable program policies in its User-generated content overview. The exact requirements depend on the jurisdiction, platform and use.

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A practical way to classify a piece of UGC

  1. Identify the maker. Is it a customer, independent creator, hired creator, brand or a collaboration?
  2. Identify the format. Is it a review, photo, short or long video, comment, podcast, livestream or another form?
  3. Check where it appears. Is it on the maker’s account, a review platform, a brand-owned page or in paid advertising?
  4. Ask what it communicates. Is it a personal account, an evaluation, an endorsement or an ad? Do not present commissioned content as an independent customer experience.
  5. Check rights and disclosures. Confirm permission for reuse, identify material brand relationships, and follow relevant platform and legal requirements.

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