Jimmy Donaldson - operating on YouTube as MrBeast, saw approximately seven million new subscribers on his popular YouTube channel in December 2024. In November 2022, MrBeast overtook PewDiePie as the most subscribed YouTuber on the platform. PewDiPie counted approximately 111 million subscribers on YouTube as of June 2024. Most engaging YouTube channels and content As of January 2025, MrBeast counted the largest number of subscribers on YouTube, with an audience of around 343 million viewers. However, other famous YouTube channels were not far behind on the subscribers’ leaderboard. T-series and Cocomelon - Nursery Rhymes followed with 284 and 188 million subscribers, respectively, during the same examined period. When it comes to the most viewed YouTube channels of all time, T-series had the highest viewership, with over 281 billion views as of January 2025. Cocomelon and SET India followed with around 194 and 174 billion lifetime views, respectively. With a viewership of billions of users, content for children and music were the most popular types of videos on YouTube. As of January 2024, Baby Shark Dance was the most watched YouTube video of all time, with around 14 billion views. Puerto Rican song Despacito and children’s rhyme Johny Johny Yes Papa followed, with nine and seven billion lifetime views, respectively. Who uses YouTube? The number of YouTube global users has been continuously growing over the years. Between 2020 and 2029, the number is expected to increase from 608 million to 1.17 billion users. As of July 2024, more than 54 percent of the YouTube audience comprised of men, while women held 45.7 percent of YouTube’s audience share. Over 12 percent of the YouTube global audience were men between the age of 25 and 34 years during the same examined period. The region with the largest number of YouTube users was India, with an audience of approximately 476 million video viewers. The United States and Brazil followed, with around 240 and 150 million users accessing the popular video platform, respectively. As of July 2024, YouTube exhibited the highest penetration rate in the United Arab Emirates, where more than 94 percent of the total digital population used the platform. Israel and United Kingdom followed with YouTube penetration rates of 93.2 and 90.4, respectively.

Jimmy Donaldson - operating on YouTube as MrBeast, saw over 3.06 billion views on his popular YouTube channel in December 2024. In November 2022, MrBeast overtook PewDiePie as the most subscribed YouTuber on the platform. Additionally, MrBeast was the most valued content creator in the United States and Canada during the second quarter of 2022, with an Influencer Media value of 4.9 million U.S. dollars.

What is the most subscribed YouTube channel? MrBeast made the first place in the ranking of the most-subscribed YouTube channels in January 2025. With 343 million subscribers, the U.S. based videographer and internet personality managed to surpass Indian music network T-Series, which held the number one place for several years, and sat at 284 million subscriber as of the examined period. How many hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute? YouTube was launched in 2005 as a platform for sharing user-generated videos such as vlogs, tutorials, or original series. The site grew rapidly and reportedly had 100 million video views per day and more than 65 thousand daily uploads only a year later. As of February 2022, more than 500 hours of video were uploaded to YouTube every minute, up from a mere 24 hours of content uploads per minute in 2010. YouTube Partner Program In the first quarter of 2024, YouTube’s ad revenue amounted to over eight billion U.S. dollars. Through its Partner Program, YouTube also rewards uploaders of popular videos with a share of the advertising revenues the content generates. This, paired with the fact that many users of the video sharing platform tend to have favorite channels that they revisit regularly, has given rise to another phenomenon: YouTube celebrities. Although some of these well-known figures were discovered on the website but then carved a successful career outside of YouTube, for many others the site is their primary platform for delivering content and staying in contact with fans, all while signing lucrative deals or promotional partnerships. Highest earning YouTubers In November 2022, MrBeast surpassed long-standing most subscribed YouTuber PewDiePie, having reached approximately 112 million subscribers. Due to the high number of subscribers and even higher number of views, these out-of-the-box stars not only have millions of fans, but also considerable earnings from their YouTube activities. In 2023, MrBeast was estimated to have earned around 82 million U.S. dollars, topping the ranking of the highest-earning YouTube creators. The ranking also included social media personality Jake Paul and Mark Fischbach, as well as Ryan Kaji from Ryan's World (formerly known as ToysReview), who started his YouTube career reviewing toys at three years old.

In 2023, it was estimated that YouTube Mr. Beast (Jimmy Donaldson) ranked first as the top-earning YouTuber worldwide with earnings of approximately 82 million U.S. dollars. Comedic duo Rhett & Link ranked second, with an estimate of 35 million U.S. dollars earned during the last measured year. Fourth-ranked Ryan Kaji, who goes by Ryan on his YouTube channel, called Ryan's World, is 12 years old and earned 35 million U.S. dollars in the past year, surpassing YouTuber Jake Paul.

YouTube most popular channels and creators Created in 2005, YouTube has become one of the most popular social networks worldwide. In 2023, YouTube had approximately 868 million users worldwide. As of February 2024, the most-subscribed YouTube channels did not only include popular video game commentators or comedy creators, but also children-specific channels, such as nursery rhymes channel Cocomelon, Kids Diana Show, and Like Nastya. Beauty and skincare YouTubers were also among the most beloved content creators for users on the social video platforms, with channels such as Sandra Cires Art and Jeffree Star recording over 15 million subscribers as of March 2024.

Content for children In 2023, U.S. children were estimated to have spent over 80 minutes per day on average watching YouTube content. Despite being based on user-generated content such as make-up tutorials, toy reviews, or comedy sketches, YouTube channels for kids present professional video production values and full-time work commitment to the platform. As of March 2024, Cocomelon had over 177.4 billion views, while the Kids Diana Show had over 100 billion views.

As of January 2025, the ranking of the most popular YouTube channels based on monthly views is dominated by music and children's content. Wiz Khalifa's Music channel was ranked first with a whopping six billion channel views, while Wow Kidz ranked second with over five billion video views in the last examined month. Indian music record channel T-Series -which ranked first continuously in 2021 and 2022, placed third with 2.72 billion video views. Most subscribed YouTube channels When looking at the most-subscribed YouTube channels: Indian music label T-Series was ranked first with 229 million channel subscribers. The video game commentator Felix Kjellberg, aka PewDiePie, ranked seventh, with roughly 111 million subscribers, after being surpassed by Jimmy Donaldson, aka MrBeast in November 2022. As of June 2022, PewDiePie was still the most subscribed gaming-content channel on YouTube, followed by Salvadorian YouTuber Fernanfloo with 45 million global subscribers. Creators' earnings MrBeast was the highest-earning YouTuber in 2021, with 54 million U.S. dollars. Ryan Kaji from Ryan's World was among the youngest content creators making the rankings of the highest-earning YouTubers in 2021, with an estimated revenue of 27 million U.S. dollars. Ryan’s channel was set up by his parents in March 2015, when the young content creator was three years old. MrBeast was also the leading content creator on YouTube based on Influence Media Value, while PewDiePie ranked third with an evaluation of around 3.91 million U.S. dollars.

Few individuals better represent the rise of the YouTube celebrity than Felix Arvid Ulf Kjellberg, operating on YouTube as PewDiePie. The Swedish YouTuber was the content creator with the largest audience on YouTube for several years, until he was surpassed by American YouTuber MrBeast. As of January 2025, the popular creator had around 110 million subscribers. In total, videos on the PewDiePie channel have been viewed approximately 29 billion times. Subscribe to PewDiePie meme The surge in subscriber numbers from the end of 2018 onwards is attributable to PewDiePie’s “Subscribe to PewDiePie Meme“, a demonstration of his immense ability to mobilize his subscribers. In the campaign to overtake T-Series and become the channel with the most subscribers, PewDiePie’s challenge required followers to plaster words to the effect of ‘Subscribe to PewDiePie’ wherever possible, either in the physical or digital realms. Despite the obvious success of the campaign in terms of subscriptions, PewDiePie recently called for the campaign to be stopped following three major incidents. In the first a World War II memorial was defaced in New York City, and in March 2019 a gunman uttered the phrase before opening fire on a mosque in Christchurch, New Zealand, killing 50 people and wounding several more. In April 2019, the gunman who opened fire on a Southern California synagogue, killing one and wounding at least three others, also referred to the campaign.   The rise of the YouTuber Now a decade old, YouTube’s ability to connect content creators with massive audiences has led to the emergence of channels that rival mainstream media outlets in terms of audience size. In some cases, videos can reach 100 million views in just a matter of days . It isn’t just traditional celebrities that are finding audiences either, with channels for kids such as Cocomelon - Nursery Rhymes attracting over 194 billion views, and generating significant revenue in the process.

During the first quarter of 2024, TikTok content recorded an average of 18,173 views, making the platform rank as the most engaging for social and short-form video content. Instagram was the second most popular platform, with its Reels generating 16,152 average views. Facebook short form videos, also called Reels, ranked third. In comparison, YouTube Shorts ranked the lowest based on average video views - approximately 650 as of the examined time. TikTok as a profession: from followers to career goals In 2024, TikTok had an average reach of around 13,000 users on the platform, though accounts’ reach exhibited an upward trend as the follower count increased. Tiny TikTok accounts with up to 500 followers had a reach of 10,000 users, while huge accounts with over 50,000 followers recorded a reach of 71,000 users during the same examined year. As of July 2024, Khabane Lame, who is known for his silent comedy about life hacks, held the crown of the most followed TikToker with around 163 million followers. American social media star Charli D’Amelio and MrBeast followed with over 155 and 97 million followers, respectively. As of September 2023, Charli D’Amelio was the highest earning TikTok creator, with estimated annual earnings of 23 million U.S. dollars. Khabane Lame’s followed with estimated annual earnings of 16.5 million U.S. dollars. But do TikTok users consider content creation as a job? As of March 2024, six percent of the TikTok users in the United States reported considering content creation as a full-time job, while 11 percent reported planning to adopt content creation as a profession. If TikTok had to face a ban in the country, around 30 percent of U.S. TikTok influencers would consider YouTube, and Facebook as their potential alternatives for content creation as of April 2024. Instagram followed, as 15 percent of respondents reported they would adopt the platform in the case of the TikTok ban. Who uses TikTok? As of July 2024, over 54 percent of the global TikTok audience were men, while women comprised around 45 percent of the audience share. Men between the ages of 25 and 34 held the largest share of 19 percent of total TikTok users during the same examined period. Indonesia was the country with the highest number of TikTok users, as around 158 million users based in the region reported accessing the platform as of July 2024. The United States, and Brazil followed with over 120 and 105 million TikTok users, respectively. In terms of TikTok penetration rate, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Malaysia dominated other regions, as virtually everyone based in these countries registered using the famous short-video platform during the same period.

As of January 2025, TikTok creator and comedian Khabane Lame was the most followed content creator on the platform. Lame, who is based in Italy, reached 162.4 million subscribers. Influencer Charlie D'Amelio followed closely in second position with 155.8 million followers. Jimmy Donaldson - operating on YouTube as MrBeast, ranked third, with a total of 107.8 million followers.

TikTok global users Popular video-sharing platform TikTok has gained immense popularity globally. As of April 2024, TikTok had over one billion monthly active users, making it one of the most widely used social media platforms worldwide. Around 45 percent of the total user base on TikTok were women, while approximately 54 percent of the popular social video platform users were men. In addition, TikTok has become a go-to platform for young people. As of July 2024, most of TikTok's global user base consisted of younger age groups, with 18.9 percent of TikTok's users being men aged between 18 and 24 years. TikTok usage and audience Since its launch in 2016, TikTok’s audience has increased significantly. As of July 2024, Indonesia and the United States were the countries with the largest TikTok audiences. Indonesia led with 157.6 million users, followed by the United States with 120.5 million users. The app has managed to catch users’ attention and keep its base entertained. So much so that, as of the second quarter of 2022, global users were spending around 95 minutes daily on TikTok, making it the most engaging among social media apps. Additionally, TikTok has quickly become one of the most popular platforms across different app stores. In September 2022, the video app had almost 24 million downloads on Google Play Store, making it the most downloaded app for Android users worldwide. In contrast, TikTok was the fifth most downloaded app on Apple App Store, with approximately 4.12 million global users downloads in June 2023.

More than three-quarters of the Russian online population aged 16 years and older used the Telegram messenger, thus making it the most-used social media platform among those listed in the ranking. WhatsApp ranked second, with a penetration rate of nearly 74 percent, followed by VK and TikTok. Social media usage in Russia In 2024, the daily time spent on social media in Russia was recorded at roughly two hours and 20 minutes per user on average. After Facebook, Instagram, and X (formerly Twitter) were blocked in Russia at the end of February and the beginning of March 2022, a significant increase in activity was recorded on VK and Telegram. For example, the daily audience on VK increased by almost nine percent, while the number of friends requests and feed views grew by 250 percent and 25 percent, respectively. YouTube From the global perspective, YouTube ranked second after Facebook, which remained the leading social media platform with about three billion active users. The U.S.-based channel MrBeast had the highest number of subscribers on YouTube with around 343 million as of January 2025. India-based T-Series followed with 284 million subscribers as of that month.