You might have heard that some people have retired due to their YouTube channels, and you may be wondering if you could also pursue vlogging as a career to make millions from YouTube and retire early.
If so, we’ve covered everything you need to understand how much YouTubers make and how you can start making money on YouTube too.
Here’s the hard truth: not all YouTubers make money from their channels. Different studies have found that 3% to 10% of YouTubers earn money, and less than 1% make a decent amount, such as over $5,000.
The reason is that success depends on the niche, audience, and how creators monetize their channels.
Therefore, is YouTube a final destination to get rich, or just some lucky few who have ridden the gravy train?
Let’s find out.
On this page:
YouTube monetization: How YouTubers make money
The first time I heard someone mention they were making a full-time income off of YouTube, it sounded crazy.
It almost seemed like a secret hack to making money online.
But once I started going down the rabbit hole, I realized there is a system behind it—a system that turns average Joes with cameras into six- or seven-figure entrepreneurs.
The biggest way that YouTubers make money is through ad revenue.
If you have watched even one YouTube video and had to sit through an ad, then you are experiencing the YouTube Partner Program (YPP).
Creators can apply for ad monetization after getting 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 hours of watch time in a year or 10 million Shorts views in the past 90 days.
The most interesting part is that you do not just get a fixed amount for every view. The money generated from a view is based on CPM (cost per thousand impressions) and RPM (revenue per thousand views).
CPM is how much advertisers pay per thousand ad views. RPM is what the YouTuber actually gets after YouTube takes its cut (which is 45%).
CPM typically falls between $2 and $10, though niche-specific factors may cause it to be higher.
Channels that focus on finance, technology, and business typically get CPMs over $20. However, entertainment and gaming channels may receive a lower rate.
Surprisingly, to earn $1,000 only from ads, a YouTuber needs 250,000 to 500,000 views on average. Most creators need another source of income because ad revenue is not enough.
Apart from that, Sponsorships and brand deals enter the picture. This is when things start getting profitable.
Companies pay influencers to promote their product or service because they trust that YouTubers will reach their target audience.
And the rates are quite shocking.
A small YouTuber with 50,000 subscribers can easily make $500–$2,000 for a single sponsored video, while big creators with millions of subscribers charge $10,000, $50,000, or even $100,000. Depending on their niche and engagement, of course.
Then there’s affiliate marketing.
This one is smart because they pay you just for recommending the product.
Have you ever clicked on a YouTuber’s Amazon link for a camera they reviewed? That’s affiliate marketing.
Every time a person buys through that link, the YouTuber gets paid, usually around 1–10% of the sale. So, if a tech YouTuber links to a $2,000 laptop, then they can make $50-$100 if you buy it.
Some YouTubers earn six figures yearly just from the commissions they make through affiliate marketing without any extra effort apart from uploading the video.
Another revenue source is merchandise sales. Popular YouTubers, like MrBeast or PewDiePie, are selling T-shirts, hoodies, mugs, and even food items.
You don’t have to be one of those channels with millions of subscribers to make money selling merch.
If you have 10k subscribers steadily buying your merch, that is more than enough to make serious sales, as long as the merch itself is solid. Since YouTubers only design and market the products, equipment like Teespring or Spreadshirt helps with printing and shipping.
Additionally, YouTube has its own built-in monetization tools, such as Super Chats and memberships.
Memberships let fans pay a monthly fee (usually $4.99 or more) for exclusive content, badges, and perks.
During Super Chats, viewers can purchase the right to have their messages pinned on the live stream screen.
To put it simply, some YouTubers earn thousands of dollars in just one live stream due to fans donating or using Super Chats.
In the end, it’s not all about getting a million views to earn money on YouTube. It’s about planning.
The most successful YouTubers combine all their revenue streams—ads, sponsorships, affiliates, merchandise, and fan support—into one business.
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How much do YouTubers really earn?
You may believe that YouTube is the ideal platform. You share videos, get views, and earn money, right? Well, not exactly.
Some make millions of dollars, while a number of them are unable to make a few bucks. There’s no one-size-fits-all paycheck for YouTubers. It is contingent upon the size, niche, engagement rate, and origin of views of the channel.
Let’s analyze who is making money and how.
Small creators vs. Large creators: Who makes more?
Pretty obviously, larger YouTubers make more, but the question is, how much more? It’s probably more than you think.
Consider a small creator with around ten thousand subscribers and ten thousand subscribers viewing their videos, which is pretty typical, and they make something like $100 to $500 each month from ads. That’s barely enough for groceries.
If they ended up landing a sponsorship deal with a brand, simply by mentioning the brand and/or product on the video, they could make an additional $500 to $1000 or more from that sponsorship.
Other sources like Patreon or merchandise might bring in another $100–$300. It’s something, but not enough to live full-time.
Now, take a YouTuber with a million subscribers.
They’re easily getting 5 million views per month. Just from ads, they could be making anywhere from $10,000 to $50,000 per month. Add sponsorships (which can pay $10,000+ per video), affiliate marketing, and merch sales, and their earnings skyrocket.
Small creators, by comparison, struggle to stay afloat, relying on multiple income streams. Meanwhile, a big creator makes easy money from ads and brand deals alone.
Which YouTube niches pay the best?
Not all views are created equal. YouTube ad rates depend on the niche. Some topics attract advertisers willing to pay more, while others don’t bring in much money at all.
Finance and business channels are some of the highest earners.
Advertisers for banks, investment platforms, and fintech companies are happy to spend big. These channels see CPMs (cost per thousand views) between $20 and $50, with RPMs (actual earnings per thousand views) around $10 to $25.
Tech and product review channels also do well. Companies selling gadgets and software pay to be in front of a tech-savvy audience. These channels usually get CPMs of $10 to $30, with RPMs around $5 to $15.
Gaming channels, despite being insanely popular, make a lot less per view. Their CPMs often sit between $3 and $10, and RPMs are as low as $1 to $5.
It’s because of a younger audience. Fewer high-paying advertisers are interested in targeting this audience.
Lifestyle and vlog channels fall somewhere in the middle. Beauty, travel, and daily life content attract a mix of advertisers, leading to CPMs of $5 to $12 and RPMs around $2 to $6.
So, if you’re picking a niche purely for money, finance and business content is the way to go. But if you love gaming, just know you’ll need way more views to earn the same amount.
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How many views do you need to make a living?
Let’s say your goal is to make $5,000 a month—enough to live comfortably in many places. How many views would you need to reach that goal?
If your channel’s RPM (what you actually earn per 1,000 views) is $5-10, then taking this into account, with 100,000 views per month, you would make around $500.
However, if you can get 500,000 views a month, you could make close to $2,500. If you were to reach 1,000,000 views in a month, realistically, you’d earn about $5,000. This is based on ad revenue alone.
With sponsorships, affiliate marketing, and Patreon, you don’t have to hit the million-view mark to earn considerable revenue.
If a creator can achieve 200,000–300,000 views per month, it is very possible to earn $3,000 a month, simply by sometimes including a brand deal, placement, or two to help bring in income.
While viral videos are great, steady viewers and multiple sources of revenue are way more important.
How long does it take to make money on YouTube?
Earning income on YouTube doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time, consistent actions, and strategy.
Some channels begin generating income after months; others take years.
Your niche or topic, the quality of your video, and how well you capture and keep the viewer’s attention will determine how soon is fast enough.
Most of the YouTubers we asked said that you start making money at the time when you reach the 100 useful videos milestone.
The first big hurdle: 1,000 subs & 4,000 watch hours
You must first achieve the requirements for YouTube’s Partner Program before you add ads to any of your videos. You need 1,000 subscribers, 4,000 hours of viewing over the past 12 months, or 10 million views on YouTube Shorts in 90 days.
For some creators, it is easy to get to this point.
MrBeast, for example, started a channel in 2012, but it took him many years before he went viral. Other channels, Ryan’s World, for example, when they started creating content for kids, went viral almost overnight.
Viral videos or trending topics can help you grow fast.
For most creators, it is a year or more of consistent posting and uploading multiple videos to YouTube before what you are posting gets monetized.
The key to YouTube subscription growth is creating video content that holds viewer attention; watch time is almost as crucial a metric as your subscriber count.
How fast do different channels grow?
Channels do not all grow at the same rate; there are niches that take off quicker than others. For example, trending and viral content can easily gain millions of views in a short period of time, with subjects like reaction videos or meme channels.
On the other hand, gaming channels like Markiplier can have a slower rate of growth, but they tend to develop a long-term, loyal audience.
With finance and business channels, for example, Graham Stephan, these niches can take a little longer to grow and gain traction; however, you tend to earn more money per view on these, based on the ad rates.
One major area, regardless of the niche you choose, is being consistent with your uploads. The more content you are uploading, the more opportunities you have to be discovered.
Channels that post consistently (at least once within a week’s time) usually grow much faster than channels that post sporadically.
How to speed up monetization?
If you want to hit the 1,000-subscriber mark faster, focus on making content that people search for.
People seem to always seek out tutorials, how-to videos, and reviews for products, and any of these types of content will bring you steady traffic.
Other ways to increase growth are by being consistent with posting, engaging with your audience in comments, and promoting your videos on other social media platforms.
Consider creating binge-able content, such as a series of videos or a playlist, to encourage people to watch for a longer amount of time.
Remember, just because you are a relatively new YouTuber doesn’t mean you can’t use the “watch time” hours to your advantage.
The more YouTube sees people watching a large amount of time on your videos, the more eager they are to distribute your videos to new audiences.
Can you make a full-time living on YouTube?
Regarding the question of whether “YouTube can replace your 9-to-5 job,” the simple answer is yes, but it is not so easy.
Quite a few people who used to work 9-to-5 jobs have now become YouTubers. It takes plenty of time, strategy, and side hustles to reach that point.
Relying only on YouTube ads isn’t enough for most people. Earnings depend on views, CPM (cost per 1,000 views), and niche.
A gaming channel can make anywhere between $1 and $5 per 1,000 views, while a finance channel can make $10 to $25. In most niches, you need 1 million views a month to make $5,000 just from ads.
Success, in the long run, depends on how engaged the viewers are and how adaptable the creators are.
Creators like MrBeast and Graham Stephan don’t only go for the ads. They have sponsorships, merchandise, courses, and businesses.
With brand deals, Patreon, online courses, and affiliate marketing, diversification gives a YouTube career sustainability.
A smaller 100K subscriber channel can earn $3K-$10K a month if monetized correctly. The key is to establish a loyal audience and provide value beyond video content.
Is YouTube the best way to make money online?
When it comes to generating money from videos, YouTube is more lucrative than Instagram and TikTok.
YouTube ad rates average around $4 and $10 for every 1,000 views. On the other hand, Instagram predominantly relies on sponsorships. If you’re not a major influencer, Instagram payouts are hit-or-miss.
And about TikTok, it’s great for creating viral growth, but their Creator Fund is disappointingly low, meaning even a million-view video might only make $20–$40. Compare that to YouTube, where 1 million views could bring in $2,000–$5,000.
Then there are the wild cards—FeatFinder, Fiverr, and other side hustles.
Now, not everyone is going to sell feet pictures or freelance, but there are people earning thousands of dollars a month with no camera work or editing.
The downside to those types of side hustles is that you receive income as long as you are actively working.
YouTube remains the number one option for passive long-term income; however, it takes time to build your audience on that journey.
TikTok or Instagram provide faster audience growth, but at the cost of monetization—you get less money.
Side hustles can also provide income quickly, but they are not easily scalable. It all comes down to which of the aforementioned you have the best skillset for, and more importantly, how much time do you have?
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How to start making money on YouTube: Beginner tips
Most people think that making money on YouTube is as simple as uploading videos and waiting for the views to turn into earnings.
However, the reality is very different. Building a channel and establishing a real money stream takes intent, strategy, and time.
Here’s where to start.
Pick a niche that actually pays:
Not all YouTube niches make a good income. Gaming and vlogs are fine, but they are at the bottom of the paid content niches.
If you want to maximize how much money you can make, you should stick to finance, business, tech, and education, which tend to pay the most.
For instance, Mr. Beast gives away millions of dollars because of brand deals and sponsorships. Graham Stephan makes thousands of dollars per video because finance content has a high cost per thousand impressions (CPM) and sponsorship offers. Pick a niche that has a reasonable pay to align with your passion.
Grow faster with smart strategies:
Simply posting random videos is not going to do you any good. It takes SEO, engaging thumbnails, and watch time to get noticed.
- SEO (Search Engine Optimization): Include relevant keywords in your title, description, and tags so as to easily be discovered online.
- Thumbnails: Using attention-grabbing thumbnails increases the chance of people clicking on your videos. Remember, don’t go overboard and make them misrepresentative of the video that will follow. Clear and colorful thumbnails create an emotional connection and increase the likelihood of getting more clicks.
- Retention tactics: The longer users stay with your video, the more likely YouTube is to recommend your videos, which is why you have to emphasize storytelling, dramatic cuts, and suspenseful endings.
How to monetize as a beginner:
Once your channel reaches 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 watch hours, you can monetize your channel with ads, but don’t stop there.
Affiliate marketing is one of the best beginner strategies. Basically, you’ll promote a product and get paid for every sale.
Next are sponsorships, which you can get for a smaller channel. If you build a loyal audience base, Patreons, digital products, or merchandise could bring in even more cash.
The bottom line is that you will not make money immediately on YouTube. However, you can, with the correct plan, speed up that process and work towards YouTube as your full-time income.
Success stories: How much do the biggest YouTubers make?
Earning millions on YouTube goes beyond going viral—it’s about monetizing your content.
Some content creators have built empires, while others have gradually created a full-time income from their hobbies.
The biggest YouTubers do not rely solely on ad revenue. They have created additional income streams, enabling them to earn money when they aren’t uploading videos.
The multi-millionaires of YouTube:
Few creators have mastered the platform like MrBeast (Jimmy Donaldson).
With over 375 million subscribers, his channel generates an estimated $85 million per year. But his real money comes from brand deals, merchandise, and business ventures.
His Feastables snack brand is projected to hit $500 million in revenue this year.
He also signed a $100 million deal with Amazon Prime for his show, Beast Games.
His every video is an investment—some costing millions to produce—but the returns are massive.
The Sidemen, a UK-based group including KSI, Vikkstar, and Miniminter, have built a collective empire worth £50 million. Beyond YouTube, they’ve launched a successful Netflix series and sold out Wembley Stadium for a charity football match.
KSI, one of the group’s most well-known members, co-founded Prime, an energy drink brand valued at $8 billion.
Then there’s Jacksepticeye (Seán McLoughlin), a gaming YouTuber with 30 million+ subscribers.
His 2023 earnings were estimated at $8 million, making him one of the highest-paid creators.
His energetic commentary and connection with fans have helped him expand into business and philanthropy.
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From small creator to full-time YouTuber:
Not every success story starts with millions of views.
Ali Abdaal, a former doctor, began by sharing study tips for medical students. His videos slowly gained traction, and he realized he could make more money from YouTube than from medicine.
By focusing on productivity, finance, and education, he built a $ 1 M+ per year business through ads, courses, and sponsorships.
Emma Chamberlain started with relatable vlogs and turned her success into a brand.
She launched Chamberlain Coffee and became a fashion icon, working with Louis Vuitton and Vogue.
Meanwhile, tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee built a highly profitable career reviewing gadgets.
With 19 M+ subscribers, he works with brands like Apple and Samsung, making money through ads, sponsorships, and his own ventures.
Unlike viral entertainers, Marques has built his success on trust.
When he recommends a product, people buy it.
The Takeaway
These creators did not put their success down to just luck.
They chose a good niche, posted consistently, and made use of multiple income streams to maximize their earning potential.
YouTube is more than making videos; it is about building a brand around your content. However, for truly successful creators, it can change their lives.