Inside YouTube’s 2024 Spotlight: Top Creators, Surprising Stats, and Record-Breaking Videos

YouTube is currently the second most popular social media platform in the world and an unlimited source of original content. With almost 3 billion active users per month, the number of YouTube creators has increased exponentially in the past 5 years. Channels like T-Series or CoComelon as well as celebrities like MrBeast and the controversial Jake Paul attract new subscribers day after day, generating millions of dollars per month. To understand their success, we simply need to delve deep into the statistics of this popular video-sharing platform.

In today’s article we’ll explore YouTube’s latest stats and figures of 2024, taking a closer look at its top creators, revenue, biggest channels and most popular videos of all time.

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Top YouTube Content Creator Stats 2024

• As of June 2024, there are around 63.8 million YouTube content creators worldwide.
• With 260.12 billion views, T-Series is the most viewed channel on the platform.
• MrBeast has the largest number of subscribers (332 million).
• MrBeast is YouTuber’s top earner, making an average of $54 millions per year.
• Pinkfong’s Baby Shark Dance is the most watched video with 15.4 billion views.

How Many YouTube Content Creators Are There?

The latest data gathered by Social Blade shows that there’s approximately 64 million YouTube creators worldwide. The number increased exponentially in 2020, due the COVID-19 pandemic, although most of these new creators stopped making videos post-COVID. However, the number of YouTube creators is still increasing and it is expected that from every 80 YouTube users, 1 will create and upload their videos to the platform.

Which channel on YouTube Has the Most Views?

According to Statista, the most-viewed channel of all time is T-Series with 260.12 billion views. This channel is owned by India’s largest music label and movie studio, offering an ample catalogue of hindi and bollywood music as well as popular reality shows like Indian Idol. In second position there’s CoComelon nursery rhymes with 184.76 billion views. This popular music channel for kids turns well-known nursery songs into adorable cartoons that follow the life of JJ and his family. Finally, in third position there’s SET (Sony Entertainment Television) India with 166.26 billion views. Here users can watch all kinds of hindi entertainment shows and movie premieres.

Here’s a complete breakdown of the results:

1. T-Series: 260.12 billion views.
2. CoComelon Nursery Rhymes: 184.76 billion views.
3. SET India: 166.26 billion views.
4. Sony AB: 116.65 billion views.
5. Kids Diana Show: 104.26 billion views.
6. Like Nastya: 101.9 billion views.
7. Vlad and Niki: 92.27 billion views.
8. Zee TV: 91.4 billion views.
9. WWE: 85.85 billion views.
10. Colors TV: 71.94 billion views.

Which YouTube Channel Has the Most Subscribers?

Currently, MrBeast holds the title of the most subscribed YouTube channel with 296 million subscribers. In second position we find T-Series, boasting over a quarter of a billion subscribers (268 million). Following from afar we have YouTube Movies and CoComelon Nursery Rhymes, with 182 and 172 million subscribers respectively.

Here’s the top 10 subscribed channels on YouTube:

1. MrBeast: 296 million subscribers.
2. T-Series: 268 million subscribers.
3. YouTube Movies: 182 million subscribers.
4. CoComelon Nursery Rhymes: 178 million subscribers.
5. SET India: 174 million subscribers.
6. Kids Diana Show: 123 million subscribers.
7. Music: 121 million subscribers.
8. Vlad and Niki: 120 million subscribers.
9. Like Nastya: 117 million subscribers.
10. PewDiePie: 111 million subscribers.

(source: Statista)

Who is the Richest YouTuber in the World?

According to the latest data by The Money Ninja and Forbes, MrBeast (Jimmy Donaldson) is the richest YouTuber in the world. It is estimated that he earns a total of $85 million per year through the platform thanks to his challenger videos. In second position we find the always controversial Jake Paul, whose tricks, music videos and boxing career made him earn an average of $45 million per year. Last, but not least, there’s Markiplier (Mark Edward Fischbach) with his let’s play videos and comedy videos. These have made him earn an average of $38 million per year.

Here’s the complete list of the 10 top YouTubers by earnings:

1. MrBeast: $85 million.
2. Jake Paul: $45 million.
3. Markiplier: $38 million.
4. Rhett and Link: $30 million.
5. Like Nastya: $28.1 million.
6. Ryan Kaji: $27 million.
7. Ninja: $20 million.
8. Dude Perfect: $20 million.
9. Logan Paul: $18 million.
10. Preston: $16 million.

In conclusion, Mr Beast is definitely the highest-paid YouTube creator in the world, having a total net worth of $500-$700 million per year. In fact, he made it into the TIME 100 most influential people list of 2023 and is the number one creator of 2024 according to the Forbes magazine.

How Old is the Average YouTube Creator?

Most of the current YouTube creators are between 25 and 34 years old. Most of them started their channels as teenagers, dedicating approximately 3 years to create content for their channel. If we take MrBeast as an example, he started his YouTube channel when he was 15 years old and it took him over 4 years (from 2012 to 2016) to get 1000 subscribers.

Which Countries Pays YouTube Creators the Most?

YouTubers all over the world don’t get paid the same for their number of views, their earnings mostly depend on where their audience lives. This is because YouTube pays their creators through their adverts’ performance, before or during the video. Creators only get a small amount of money from these ads, and the total is measured by how much they earn per 1000 views. This concept receives the name of Revenue Per Mile (RPM).

According to Is This Channel Monetized, the country that pays the most for YouTube content is the United States ($11.62 RPM). In second position we find Australia with $9.53 RPM, followed closely by Switzerland with $9.32.

Here’s the complete list of the top countries for YouTube earning power:

1. USA: $11.62 RPM.
2. Australia: $9.53 RPM.
3. Switzerland: $9.32 RPM.
4. Norway: $7.89 RPM.
5. New Zealand: $7.17 RPM
6. Canada: $6.90 RPM
7. Denmark: $6.89 RPM
8. UK: $6.64 RPM
9. Germany: $6.36 RPM
10. The Netherlands: $6.14 RPM

What Is the Most Viewed YouTube Video of All Time?

With over 15 billion views, Baby Shark Dance is the most viewed YouTube video of all time. While Korean education brand Pinkfong holds this record-holder with its catchy shark song, it was Korean artist Psy’s Gangnam Style who remained in the top stop the longest (4.6 years). 

The second most watched video on the platform is Luis Fonsi’s Despacito ft. Daddy Yankee. While also a record-breaker with its 8.6 billion views, it still is miles away from Baby Shark. Finally, in third position we find LooLoo Kid’s Johny Johny Yes Papa with almost 7 billion views.  With figures like these, it comes to no surprise that the most popular YouTube videos are music ones. In fact, since 2010, the most-viewed content on the platform has been music videos.

Here’s the list with the most popular YouTube videos of 2024 based on their total views:

1. Baby Shark Dance by Pinkfong Kids’ Songs & Stories– 15.33 billion views.
2. Despacito by Luis Fonsi– 8.59 billion views
3. Johny Johny Yes Papa by LooLoo Kids– 6.98 billion views.
4. Bath Song by CoComelon Nursery Rhymes & Kids Songs– 6.92 billion views.
5. Wheels on the Bus by CoComelon Nursery Rhymes & Kids Songs– 6.79 billion views.
6. See You Again by Whiz Khalifa– 6.47 billion views.
7. Shape of You by Ed Sheeran– 6.3 billion views.
8. Phonics Song With Two Words by ChuChu TV–  6.12 billion views.
9. Uptown Funk by Mark Ronson– 5.4 billion views.
10. Learning Colors – Colorful Eggs on a Farm by Miroshka TV– 5.19 billion views.

(Source: YouTube)

Conclusion

19 years have passed since “Me at the zoo” was first uploaded to YouTube back in 2015. From that day forth, the platform has attracted billions of content creators who daily share their entertainment videos with the rest of the world. While only a few celebrities like MrBeast or Jake Paul can earn a living with their videos, YouTube has slowly become a stable source of income to many creators through their ads. However, Indian entertainment, content for children and music videos are still the top dogs that dominate the YouTube charts. And the numbers say that’s not going to change anytime soon.