In today's social media landscape, YouTube is almost synonymous with digital video, considering it is one of the largest platforms alongside Facebook. With over a billion people using YouTube for everything from digital marketing and content creation to community-building, it's understandable why these YouTubers want to know how much they can earn from their channel.
The YouTube Money Calculator is a handy tool that shows the estimated earnings of your YouTube channel based on your daily video views and average engagement rate. You can use the results from this calculator to negotiate sponsorships and even decide whether you should go full-time as a YouTuber.
Below, we discuss the use of our YouTube Money Calculator in detail. We also share tips on growing your channel and increasing your earnings potential.
- What Is a YouTube Money Calculator?
- How to Use Our YouTube Money Calculator?
- Is Monetizing on YouTube Different from Google Adsense?
- How to Make Money on YouTube?
- How Much Money Can You Make on YouTube?
- Which Factors Determine Your YouTube Earning Potential?
- Steps to Follow to enable Monetization of Your Videos
- How to Grow Your YouTube Account to Maximize Earnings?
- Put Our YouTube Money Calculator to Use
- Frequently Asked Questions
What Is a YouTube Money Calculator?
A YouTube calculator is a simple online tool that calculates an estimate of how much money you can earn from your YouTube channel.
Calculating your potential earnings from YouTube is a great way to see if it is worth your time to start a channel and begin creating videos for certain niches. It can also help you set realistic expectations for the average earnings you can expect.
The tool below has been developed to allow you to easily calculate the estimated earnings from a Youtube Video or Channel and is based on your video view count, engagement and various other factors.
How to Use Our YouTube Money Calculator?
Using a YouTube money or revenue calculator is quite straightforward. All you need to do is enter some basic information about your channel and video views. From there, the calculator will do the rest of the work and give you an estimate of your potential earnings.
Below are the three easy steps to use the YouTube Money Calculator:
- Drag the YouTube View Count slider up or down based on your daily video views
- Set your Estimated CTR based on your channel's historic performance
- View your estimated daily, weekly and yearly earnings potential
It's that simple. With just a few clicks, you can get an estimate of how much money you could be making from your YouTube channel.
For example, suppose you get 20,000 views per day, and your average engagement rate is 15%. Your estimated monthly earnings will be between $164 and $274, while your projected annual earnings will be anywhere from $2,000 to $3,331.
YouTube Money Calculator estimations
Now, let's say you're a bigger account with the same engagement rate but around 85,000 daily views, your estimated yearly earnings spike to anywhere from $8,575 to $14,291.
YouTube Money Calculator estimations
Estimated Total Earnings by Channel
Estimated Total Earnings by Video
Is Monetizing on YouTube Different from Google Adsense?
In essence, yes, it is. Monetizing on YouTube is a bit different from using Google Adsense. However, the overall concept is the same. You are still displaying ads and earning revenue from them.
The main difference lies in the fact that with YouTube monetization, you have more control over the ads that are displayed. With Google Adsense, you have less control, and the ads are more general.
With YouTube monetization, you can choose to display video ads, overlay ads, banner ads, and even sponsored cards. You also have the option to turn off certain types of ads that you do not want to show.
This gives you more control over the user experience and allows you to better customize the ads that are shown to your audience.
In addition, YouTube also allows you to run ad campaigns. Ad campaigns are a great way to generate more revenue from your channel. With an ad campaign, you can choose to run ads for a specific product or service.
This is different from Google Adsense, which only allows you to display general ads. By running an ad campaign, you can specifically target your audience with ads that they are more likely to be interested in.
Keep in mind that Google owns YouTube. As such, they do have some control over the monetization process. However, YouTube does give you a lot of freedom when it comes to choosing how to monetize your channel.
How to Make Money on YouTube?
There are quite a lot of ways to make money on YouTube. While some of them are direct, others are indirect, and some require a bit of work to get started.
Ad Revenue
The most direct way to make money on YouTube is through the YouTube Partner Program. Creators can monetize their videos by turning on ads from Google and its partners. You get a share of the ad revenue whenever someone watches your video and clicks on or interacts with the ads.
According to Salar Kamangar, former CEO of YouTube,
"What we'd like to think of YouTube as is a part of Google with very overlapping goals and values. We're a fundamental part of the advertising business for Google."
While it's somewhat similar to Google AdSense, advertising on YouTube gives you more control.
To be eligible for the YouTube Partner Program, you should live in a country where the program is available. You should also not have had any Community Guidelines strike in the past 12 months. Plus, you must have 1,000 subscribers and at least 4,000 public watch hours or 10 million public YouTube Short views in the past year.
Source: support.google.com
Most top YouTubers use ad revenue as their initial source of income from the platform. Colleen Ballinger, best known for her YouTube character Miranda Sings, says,
"How it works: it's like I have a tour, so there's, you know, some income from that. We have merchandise. There's income from that. Then on YouTube, there's ad revenue... so, you know, YouTube puts ads on the videos, and we need a little bit of that."
How much you can make through ad revenue depends on various factors, such as the number of views, the country where your viewers are located, the types of ads, and your niche. Some of the most profitable YouTube niches are personal finance, tech and gadgets, online money-making, digital marketing, and educational content.
Sponsored Content
A lot of brands work with YouTubers to push out sponsored content. It's a win-win situation for both parties — brands get exposure, and the YouTuber gets paid. Mark Rober, an American YouTuber, explains,
"We spent zero dollars on advertising. We just had a YouTube video, and that was it. We did a quarter million dollars in revenue just in three weeks."
Just like he did it for a personal project, brands can do it for their products.
Take SoFi, a personal finance company, for example. They work with YouTubers like Drew Gooden to mention the company's services in their videos. In a single video, Gooden got over 4.25 million views for his sponsored content, bringing a lot of exposure to the brand.
Brands usually reach out to YouTubers themselves for sponsored content. If your content and audience demographic are a good fit for them, they'll be happy to work with you.
Affiliate Marketing
YouTube is an excellent platform to promote your affiliate products. It works best if you have a niche channel because you'll attract an audience that's interested in that specific topic.
Suppose you run a home decor and lifestyle channel; you can include affiliate links from Amazon in your video descriptions and encourage your viewers to check them out. If they make a purchase through your link, you'll earn a commission.
That's what Lone Fox does in his home interior decor videos. He has shared his favorite must-have home decor items in this video and added his affiliate Amazon links in the description box. The amount you earn from affiliate marketing depends on the product category and the number of sales you generate.
You can find high-paying affiliate programs in our guide.
Selling Merchandise
If you have a highly-engaged audience that deems you as their favorite creator, you can leverage this trust and sell merchandise to them. For example, if you have a cooking channel, you can design and sell aprons or recipe books with your logo on them. Similarly, commentary channels can sell merchandise like t-shirts with their famous catchphrases.
One notable example of a YouTuber successfully selling merch is Zach King. He rose to fame through his Vines and since then has made a niche for himself in the magic and illusion community. He sells t-shirts, stickers, and hoodies with his logo. Since he's a magician, he also sells branded decks of cards. As you can see, he has personalized his merch to suit his brand, which is why his fans are more likely to buy it. Check out our influencer merch ideas to get inspiration for your own merch line.
Channel Memberships
YouTube also lets you sell channel memberships to your subscribers. In simple words, you can provide paying subscribers access to exclusive content and sneak peeks into your upcoming videos. To be eligible, you should not have a "for kids" channel, and you should live in one of the available locations.
We recommend pricing your channel membership based on your audience demographics. If your audience is mainly young adults or teenagers, don't price the subscription at $50. Instead, keep it at a reasonable price that they can afford. For business and finance channels, the audience might have a higher purchasing power, so you can raise the price.
Make sure you provide enough value for people to want to subscribe to your channel. For example, you can offer behind-the-scenes content, early access to videos, exclusive live streams, bloopers, or Q&A sessions.
Take Anna Yakimenko as an example. She's a Milan-based fashion consultant who provides exclusive live streams, tailored fashion advice, and merchandise discounts to subscribers. Her personalized and value-filled offerings have helped her double her YouTube earnings.
Indirect Earnings
In-platform earnings aren't the only path to YouTube monetization. You can also earn indirectly by using the platform to generate leads, increase website visitors, promote products, or build an email list.
That's exactly what HubSpot uses YouTube for. For example, the company creates YouTube videos to inform subscribers about new product updates. They also add their product links in the video descriptions so that viewers can check out these features in real time.
HubSpot also uses YouTube to build its email list and generate website traffic. Take this video as an example where the company provides snippets of its State of Customer Service 2024 report. The brief overview of the report hints at its insightful findings, which prompts viewers to visit their website and provide their email addresses for the full report.
How Much Money Can You Make on YouTube?
This is a common question with no easy answer. While the money calculator above can give you a good estimate of your potential earnings, it is important to remember that your actual earnings may be different.
Here are some considerations to keep in mind:
- The number of views your videos get
- The engagement level of your audience
- Your video topics
- Your monetization method
- The country you are in
With these considered, keep in mind that you will also need to factor in the cost of production when calculating your earnings. For example, if it costs you around $100 to produce a video, you will need to make sure that your earnings exceed that amount before you can start making a profit.
In addition, your earnings will also depend on the type of ads that you choose to run. Video ads tend to pay more than banner ads. However, they can also be more intrusive and annoying for viewers.
With that said, you will need to experiment with different types of ads to see which ones work best for your channel. The more video views you have, the more money you can make. However, you will need to strike a balance between ad revenue and user experience.
Why Should You Consider Monetizing on YouTube Creator?
Being on YouTube can be extremely profitable. Not only can you make money from your videos through ad revenue, but you can also make money through sponsorships, channel membership, influencer marketing, and affiliate marketing.
So, why should you consider monetizing?
Well, for one thing, it can be a great source of passive income. Once you've chosen a niche and set up your channel, and your videos are getting a decent number of views, you can start to see the money rolling in without having to do much work. We have a detailed guide on other passive income ideas, too.
Another reason to monetize is that it allows you to build a brand and an audience. If you can grow your channel and get a lot of views, you can use your platform to promote your other businesses or products. You can also use your YouTube channel as a way to build relationships with other influencers in your niche.
And finally, it's just plain fun! Making a new video and seeing it do well is a great feeling, and knowing that you are making money from doing something that you love is even better.
Which Factors Determine Your YouTube Earning Potential?
Quite a few factors determine how much you can earn through YouTube. While some of these factors are related to the platform’s inherent payment model, others depend on your content quality and niche selection.
1. CPM vs CPC
CPM or Cost Per Mille (Thousand) is the amount of money that an advertiser pays you for every one thousand views of their ad. So, if an advertiser paid you $5 CPM, then you would earn $5 for every 1,000 views of their ad.
CPC or Cost Per Click is the amount of money that an advertiser pays you for every click on their ad. So, if an advertiser paid you $5 CPC, then you would earn $5 for every person who clicked on their ad.
As you can see, CPM and CPC are two very different things. The earning capabilities with each one are significantly different as well.
2. Estimated Earnings Per Subscriber
YouTube videos nowadays are edited to encourage you to like and subscribe to the channel, and for good reason. The more subscribers you have, the more money you can make from your videos. That's because, with a higher number of subscribers, your videos are more likely to show up in the search results and the related videos section.
Also, subscribers are more likely to watch your videos all the way through, which means that you will have a higher chance of getting those precious ad views. Moreover, subscribers tend to be more engaged with your content and are more likely to comment on and share your videos. All of this contributes to higher video view counts, which in turn translates into more money for you.
3. Estimated Variance Based on Video Engagement
Even if you don't have enough subscribers to make a significant amount of money from your videos, you can still earn some cash if your video content gets a lot of views. That's because YouTube earnings are based on the number of ad views that your video receives. The more engaged they are, the more money you can make from your videos.
How do you know how engaged people are with your videos? There are a few key indicators:
- Watch time – This is the total amount of time that people have spent watching your video. The longer they watch, the more engaged they are.
- Viewer retention – This is the percentage of people who watch your video through to the end. The higher the retention rate, the more engaged your viewers are.
- Click-through rate – This is the number of people who click on the adverts that are shown in your video. If you have a high click-through rate, it means that your viewers and followers are interested in the products or services that are being advertised.
All of these factors contribute to your overall estimated earnings per view. The more engaged your viewers are, the more money you can make from your videos.
Also, see our Live Subscriber Counter for YouTube.
4. Monetization Methods Used
Your monetization strategy will also help determine how much money you make on YouTube. For example, if you only rely on ad revenue, you may not make as much money compared to someone who uses other monetization methods, such as sponsorships, merchandise sales, and memberships in conjunction with ad revenue.
The key to maximizing your earnings is to diversify your income streams. But whatever you do, it should cater to your audience. A beauty guru selling tech affiliate products or a gaming channel promoting makeup brands isn't the way to go.
Stay audience-centric in everything you do. Use audience insights tools to learn more about your subscribers and what they want to watch.
5. Content Niche
Like every other platform, some niches on YouTube are more profitable than others. It may be because of sponsorships, brand deals, or the ad rates in that niche. Some niches known for their high earnings potential are:
- Gaming
- Beauty and fashion
- Personal finance and investing
- Health and wellness
- Technology and gadgets
- Travel vlogs
- Fitness
However, this doesn't mean that other niches cannot make a ton of money on the platform. You just need to be a little creative with your content and monetization methods. If ad revenue isn't faring too well for you, tap into merch and memberships to boost your income.
6. SEO and Discoverability
The more views you get, the more money you make on YouTube. That's no surprise. So, the discoverability of your content also impacts how much you can make on the platform.
Maybe you've shot a stellar video with an Oscar-worthy script. But what if you've not used the right keywords in the title and descriptions? What if your video has no tags or has tags that are too broad? Your content won't be discoverable, and you'll miss out on potential views and earnings.
Work on your channel's SEO and use YouTube SEO tools to optimize your videos for search and suggested videos. While you're at it, don't forget to create a compelling thumbnail. Since it's the first thing most people see, it should be enticing enough to get them to click. You can use YouTube thumbnail makers to make custom thumbnails for your videos. Here's a fun fact from Google: ''90% of the best-performing videos have custom thumbnails.''
Steps to Follow to enable Monetization of Your Videos
You cannot just post a video on YouTube and hope it earns you cash - this would not work even if you were lucky enough for the video to go viral. There are a few steps you have to do before YouTube allows you to monetize your videos
- Enable your account for monetization. This is ticking a monetization option in your YouTube account, and agreeing to the YouTube monetization agreement
- Connect your channel to an AdSense account. Either create a new AdSense account or attach this YouTube channel to an existing account you have
- Review video criteria and ad formats. YouTube will only allow you to monetize what they consider “advertiser-friendly” videos. This means you cannot charge for videos showing violence or nudity, and in particular, you agree that your videos are not breaking any copyright laws (you need to be particularly careful when using background music). You also get to choose which types of ads you want, e.g. display ads around your video, overlay videos, skippable video ads, or a number of other types)
- Set up the videos to monetize. You need to go into each video you want to monetize and set the ad formats you want to use. You also get to choose which types of ads you want, e.g. display ads around your video, overlay videos, skippable video ads, or a number of other types).
- Wait for YouTube to review your channel. After you have done all this, YouTube will check that everything is in order. Once you have been accepted for monetization by YouTube, get busy making and promoting videos.
Note that this process can take a few weeks, so do not expect to see any money rolling in straight away. If everything goes smoothly, you should start seeing ads on your videos within a few weeks.
Once you have done these steps, and been accepted for monetization by YouTube, get busy making and promoting videos. You will need to create a large collection of well-promoted videos to start making any decent level of income. If you need inspiration, look for it in our selection of YouTube video ideas for creators.
How to Grow Your YouTube Account to Maximize Earnings?
When your YouTube account is in its infancy, you might feel like you're not making much money at all. But as your subscriber count grows, so will your earnings. Here's how to get there.
Specialize In a Niche
Many people are reluctant to carve out a niche for themselves and try to do whatever the popular YouTubers are doing. But that doesn't work due to a lack of authenticity. Simon Cowell, the famous judge on American Idol, advises against it. He says,
''You have to be original. The people creating a buzz on YouTube are taking risks, and they're doing something different. I like it when 15-year-olds come on and tell me what to do rather than the other way around.''
Choose a niche and stick to it. That way, your subscribers know what to expect from you and will keep coming back for more. Brands will also start to see you as an authority in that space and reach out to you for sponsored posts and long-term partnerships.
Look at The Gardening Channel With James Prigioni. It's a YouTube channel that's solely dedicated to gardening, and it has over 1.4 million subscriptions. That wouldn't be possible if Prigioni was making gardening content one day and comedy content the next.
Optimize Your YouTube Profile
Think of your YouTube profile as a formal introduction to your channel. It can't be empty or poorly crafted. Start by adding a high-quality profile picture and a catchy banner that represents your channel's brand. Then, write a short bio that explains what your channel is about and what viewers can expect from your videos. Include links to your other social media profiles or websites so viewers can connect with you on other platforms.
Correa Art, an art-related YouTube channel, ticks all these boxes. They have added a to-the-point bio along with links to their Etsy shop and Instagram channel. Their profile picture is also quite aesthetic, which goes right with their niche.
Source: youtube.com
Our social media optimization tips will provide you with further guidance in this regard.
Create a Consistent Posting Schedule
When you remain consistent with your content, you can expect high audience engagement. One, it helps viewers know when to expect new content from you. Two, the algorithm favors channels that have a consistent posting schedule. If you're quick in content creation, you can use YouTube scheduling tools to schedule your videos for the week in advance and spend your time on community engagement or creating future content.
Steve Aoki, a YouTuber, recommends posting 3 to 4 videos a week. He explains,
''On my YouTube channel, I put up 3-4 videos a week, and I spend a lot of money to maintain that content. When I travel, I travel with a videographer and a photographer no matter what.''
If it's not possible to post too many videos, you can opt for 1 to 2 videos per week, along with a few Shorts.
Also, check our guide on the best times to publish YouTube videos to maximize content exposure.
Engage With Your Community
YouTube isn't a one-way street where you just upload videos and forget about it. It's a platform to connect with your audience and build a community. That's what Shane Dawson, one of the most successful YouTubers, does.
He says,
''To me, YouTube isn't just, 'Watch my videos!' It's, 'Let's have a conversation and get involved in each other's lives.' I want to make [my fans] feel like they have a reason to have a YouTube account because they can comment and have a voice.''
Community engagement can be as simple as liking or responding to comments. You can also ask your viewers for feedback in the comment section and engage in discussions with them.
Or be creative with your community engagement. For example, Drew Gooden shouts out his favorite comment on his last video at the beginning of his new video. This does two things: make his viewers feel special and encourage more comments.
If your audience is interested in them, you can also host live streams. Use them to answer questions and interact with your fans in real time.
Learn how to live stream on YouTube from our guide.
Promote Your Videos
There are two main ways to promote your videos. For starters, you can share your videos on other social media platforms such as Instagram and X. You can also embed your videos in relevant blog posts or articles on your website.
Another way to promote your videos is through collaborations with other YouTubers. For example, if you're a beauty YouTuber, you can create a collaborative video with a fellow beauty guru where you do each other's makeup. It brings you more exposure since their audience is already interested in the type of content you create.
Use YouTube Analytics
Don't just blindly post videos and hope for the best. Use YouTube Analytics to see which videos are doing best. Then, analyze your strategy for those videos and see what you did differently. For example, you may have used certain tags or created a custom thumbnail.
Regular analysis of your content performance will reveal patterns and best practices that help get more eyes (and comments!) on your comment.
If you need deeper insights, use one of the free YouTube analytics tools from our guide.
Put Our YouTube Money Calculator to Use
Monetizing on YouTube can be a great way to make money, but it's not easy. You need to create great content that will appeal to a large audience, and you need to do it consistently. But if you can manage to do all of that, the rewards can be very lucrative.
By using our YouTube money calculator, you can estimate how much money you can make from your channel based on several factors, including the number of subscribers, the number of views, and the level of engagement of your viewers.
No matter what, remember that YouTube is not a get-rich-quick scheme. It takes time, effort, and dedication to build a successful channel. Do not expect to start making thousands of dollars overnight. But, with this tool, you could plan and track your progress to see how much advertising revenue and other income you could potentially earn.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much can you make on YouTube?
You can use our YouTube Money Calculator to estimate your estimated daily and monthly earnings on YouTube. It factors your video view count, engagement, and various other metrics into its calculations. You do need at least 1,000 subscribers to your YouTube account for this tool to work. Four main factors affect your YouTube earnings potential:
- CPM vs. CPC
- Estimated gross earnings per 1,000 views
- Estimated earnings per subscriber
- Estimated variance based on video engagement
Who is the highest-paid YouTuber?
According to the latest analysis by Target Internet, Jimmy Donaldson (MrBeast) is the highest-paid YouTuber, earning roughly $54 million per year. Jake Paul is in second place with an annual earning of $45 million, while Mark Fischbach (Markiplier) makes $38 million per year.
How do you increase your YouTube earnings?
There are multiple ways you can make money on YouTube. However, all require that you first build a sizable, engaged audience, so that needs to be your primary goal before you try to monetize your channel. Some of the ways you can increase your YouTube earnings include:
- Promoting affiliate links in your videos
- Joining up as a YouTube Partner and earning money from ads
- Offering paid memberships to your subscribers
- Selling merch
- Directing subscribers to your website as leads
Why are my YouTube earnings decreasing?
There are several reasons why your YouTube earnings could be decreasing, and much of it has to do with the quality of your channel content. For a start, YouTube periodically changes its rules. Check to see that ads still appear on your videos, and you haven’t lost the right to have them there. Secondly, check to see that you are still producing the types of content your fanbase love. Thirdly, your content may simply be out of season currently, e.g., snowboarding videos in summer.
Is YouTube good for earning money?
YouTube can be a highly lucrative way to earn money, but you have to work hard to ensure success. For a start, you need at least 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 watch hours over the last year before you become eligible to join the YouTube Partner Program. Once you reach that minimum, you can begin to receive ads on your videos. However, you can also earn money in other ways, such as selling merchandise, fan funding, and working with brands as an influencer or affiliate.
Do YouTubers still get paid when you skip ads?
YouTubers generally don’t get paid if you skip ads, although there are some exceptions. Traditionally, advertisers pay YouTube per engagement (usually somebody watching an ad for at least 30 seconds). If a viewer skips before this time, YouTube doesn’t charge the advertiser or pay the YouTuber. If they click on the ad, the YouTuber gets paid. There are now non-skippable bumper ads of six seconds, charged on a CPM basis, i.e., per thousand views. They count if a viewer watches for at least 2 seconds.
