how much money does 1 million YouTube views make

How Much Money Does 1 Million YouTube Views Make In 2024

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Baby Shark video on YouTube marks 13.3 billion views, and the other side, “Despacito,” is hitting 8 billion views; as people go crazy for these videos and continue to binge-watch, have you ever wondered what the ballpark on "How much is 1 million YouTube views worth?"

- Let’s see how YouTube monetization works and what made it most popular - because we’ve taken it upon ourselves to research how much will be worth of your video if you’re an established YouTube creator or one just starting.

Launched in 2005, YouTube has seen an explosion in popularity since then. Not only is YouTube incredibly popular (with over 1.7 billion unique visits each month), but it has also been instrumental in the rise to stardom and financial success of many online personalities.

Being a successful YouTube creator takes more than just visiting far-flung places, rubbing elbows with celebrities, and receiving free stuff from brand sponsors. The creativity has to be spot on with continuous efforts and expenses that creators put in to expand the channel, so how much are these efforts worth, and how much money does 1 million YouTube views make? - Scroll down to see.

First, YouTube Pay - How is it based on?

The straight answer to this question is: Yes, YouTube does pay for its creators, not per video view but per ad view on the video. So, each time someone watches or clicks on the ad that google places in your video, you will get paid.  

So, the right question to ask is not “How much money does 1 million video views make,” it should be “How much money does 1 million ad views make?”

Yes, The primary source of earnings for YouTube creators is ad revenue. You will start your monetization journey once you let YouTube run ads on your video. To do so, first, you should sign up for the YouTube Partner Program (YPP)

Minimum eligibility requirements to join the YPP

The YouTube Partner Program is like the VIP club for creators. It checks out creators and gives them access to monetization tools. It's also a way for YouTube to ensure only good quality and copyright-friendly content gets ads so advertisers make the most out of the qualified channel.

To become a YouTube Partner, you must:

  • Follow the monetization rules on your channel set by YouTube
  • Reside in a place where you can access the YouTube Partner Program.
  • Stick to YouTube's Community Guidelines to avoid getting in trouble.
  • Activate your Google account's two-step verification. It's like adding an extra lock to keep your stuff safe.
  • Either create or have an active AdSense account to link to your channel.
  • Hit 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 public watch hours in the previous year.
  • If you're into Shorts, you need 1,000 subscribers and a whopping 10 million views on your Shorts in the last 90 days.

Note: After completing the steps to qualify for YouTube's monetization program, your channel undergoes a review process, typically taking up to 30 days.

Once approved, you can enable monetization in your settings. However, certain features will remain limited based on factors such as your subscriber count or YouTube's moderation restrictions.

You make money when people watch the ads on your videos. YouTube takes a bit of a cut, around 45%, and you get the rest, 55%. Other factors determine the pay, such as CPM and CPC.

  • CPM (Cost Per Mille), or Cost per thousand impressions, reflects how much advertisers pay for 1,000 impressions
  • CPC (Cost Per Click) indicates the payment for each click on an ad.

How Much Does YouTube Pay You for 1 Million Views?

A lot of us are curious about this one! So, it's not a one-size-fits-all answer when you're thinking about how much cash rolls in with 1 million YouTube subscribers. Understand that the amount varies based on several factors. These include

  • Your channel’s location,
  • Your content niche,
  • Your audience demographic,
  • The level of engagement
  • Content length.

It involves a combination of different elements unique to each creator.

According to an interview on YouTubers and their earnings by Business Insider, Kaz Sawyer, who has a YouTube channel about cool challenge videos, makes about $1.61 for every 1,000 views. He's into short-form content and gets extra cash from YouTube Shorts' creators' fund.

Now, there’s Joshua Mayo, a finance expert on YouTube. He is on the high roller end, making roughly $29.30 for every 1,000 views. He adds that his CPM rate shot up when he switched his channel's content niche from lifestyle to personal finance.

So, as per the data from YouTube creators, the answer to the question “How much money does 1 million YouTube views make?” is around $1,700 - $30,000 for each video with 1 million views.

Generally, How many views do YouTubers need to make money?

So, If your channel has videos with competitive keywords and if people don't use ad blockers to bypass ads, you could make six times as much from ads. Here’s a breakdown for your clarity

  • 1,000 Views: If a YouTube channel gets 1,000 ad views, it typically earns $1.5 - $30, with an average of $15 across all industries.
  • 100,000 Views: Reaching 100,000 ad views can typically earn $150 - $3,000, averaging $1,500. Hence, with 100,000 daily ad views, you might make around $45,000 monthly.
  • 10,00,000 Views: If your YouTube channel hits 1 million ad views, you can earn $1,700 - $30,000, with an average of $15,000 across all industries and niches.

Note: The most popular video creators often get millions of views on each YouTube video. For instance, Mr. Beast's "I Survived a Plane Crash" video reached 64 million views in only two months and is one of the top earners on YouTube.

Need More Clarity? Here’s a case study to get a better idea of how much YouTube pays for 1 million views

- Let's take a look at Joseph Hogue's finance-focused channel, “Let's Talk Money.” Since it started in 2017, it's gathered a whopping 31.7 million views. Now, the total ad revenue for the channel is $480,763.

That's some serious cash, especially considering it's making around $15 for every thousand views, which is higher than the usual earnings.

Now, turning our attention to standout videos – "The 10 Best Side Hustle Ideas," published in September 2018 with 1.3 million views, has earned $23,173, equating to $17,825 per million views.

Then, there's "7 Monthly Dividend Stocks That Will Pay Your Rent," premiered in April 2021, boasting 1.2 million views and earnings of $29,511. That's $24,592 for every million views.

So, Joseph's not just talking money; he's making it, too!

Wait, Is Making Money on YouTube Really A Stable Gig?

                                                       (or)

How do you scale your income using YouTube subscribers?

Well, with all the rule changes, new algorithm experiments, and constant updates, many creators have seen their ad revenues take a nosedive. The unpredictability of ad revenue and the dominance of larger creators raise concerns about relying solely on YouTube for income.

With limited control over earnings and opaque revenue calculations, depending solely on YouTube can be risky. For creators, the key is diversification. You must establish multiple revenue streams. And remember, these streams must let you convert your unknown YouTube subscribers into known paying customers.

This is where FreshLearn can help you! The platform allows you to create and sell courses on your domain. With FreshLearn, you're not just creating courses; you're building a brand. It's a game-changer for creators looking to build a more stable and secure financial future beyond YouTube.

But for now, let’s understand why these uncertainties in YouTube pay occur.

What are the Factors impacting YouTubers' pay?

Generally, videos with ads make more money when more people watch them.

But here's the twist - only some see the ads. Some people use ad blockers, and over 80 million YouTube Premium users pay a monthly fee to skip ads altogether. However, creators still get paid based on how much these Premium users watch their videos.

Now, if you're looking to boost your earnings per view, there are a few things you can tweak on your channel.

Ad Types

The type of ads you let show up on your channel matters. There are different ad types, like

  • Skippable
  • Non-skippable
  • Back-to-back
  • Bumper
  • Text banners

You can decide which ads should appear and where they should pop up (before, during, or after your video) through AdSense. These choices also affect how engaged viewers are, and that, in turn, affects how much you get paid per view.

Some ads let viewers skip after a few seconds, while in non-skippable cases, people must watch the whole ad. And your paycheck depends on your CPM and CPC for each ad.

YouTube Ads

Your Channel Niche and Category

What kind of content you make on YouTube can impact how much money you make. For example, topics like finance usually interest more people than broader subjects like beauty or lifestyle.

The larger the audience for the niche, the more bids YouTube charges the advertisers. It's always advisable to pick a niche that has

  • Larger audience
  • More purchasing power

Pick a niche that has a strong demand.

Audience Demographics

Some places worldwide are like gold mines for advertisers because they're great for reaching a specific audience. Advertisers will pay more if they know they'll get top-notch leads from a particular country.

Now, when we talk about how much YouTubers make, especially in the US, the general idea is they earn about $0.01 to $0.03 for each view. That adds up to roughly $10-30 for every 1,000 views.

Certain regions or countries are of high value if ads target a specific audience. For say, TikTok doesn’t make sense for an audience in India, as it is prohibited, but in the US, it counts.

Engagement rate

The engagement rate for your video has a big impact on ad placement. Engagement rates such as,

  • Likes
  • Comments
  • Content shared across social media, etc

They define the scope of the video in your channel. Your pay may differ depending on the engagement metrics; the higher the interactions, the higher the payment you receive

ProTip:

Building up your YouTube page isn't easy. Perform a niche market study, make niche-related content, and create a marketing strategy to spread the word about your new videos. Then, keep checking to see which content is getting the most attention and try to get more of it.

YouTubers in Top Highest Earning List

Now that you know the answer to “How much money does 1 million YouTube views make?” you may wonder if that kind of money can earn. Well, we have that covered.

You'll see that these people are just like you and me—ordinary folks, even kids—who have built a fan base, bringing them millions of dollars.

Mr. Beast

Net worth: $500 million
Subscribers: 232 million
Total Views: 42.4 billion

Best YouTuber

Jimmy Donaldson, known by his YouTube username, MrBeast, had almost a billion views in February 2023. MrBeast surpassed PewDiePie as the YouTuber with the most subscribers in November 2022. But Donaldson makes a lot of money in other ways, too. MrBeast Burger, a ghost-kitchen idea that runs out of current restaurants, Feastables, his 100% organic chocolate bars, and over $500,000 in Mr. Beast merchandise are also his.

Like Nastya official

Net worth: $260 million
Subscribers: 112 million
Total Views: 96.57 billion

Top YuTuber

Like Nastya is Anastasia Radzinskaya, a child YouTuber from Russia. She runs kid-friendly YouTube channels with her parents, such as Like Nastya and Like Nastya Vlog. For example, Nastya's wealth has increased 850% in the last two years.

Like Nastya's platform, it is the fifth most-watched and seventh most-subscribed online. Their wealth comes from ads displayed on YouTube and deals with brands to promote their products through its channel.

Dude Perfect

Net worth: $100 million
Subscribers: 60 million
Total Views: 16.96 billion

Dude Perfect - Best YouTube channel

American YouTube group Dude Perfect makes challenge videos about sports. The group's extreme sports techniques, such as trick shots based on stunts, have made them famous.

They are also a part of the "Stereotypes" series. There, the group primarily mocks sports-related stereotypes. They even released a game for phones that works on both iOS and Android. Cory Cotton, one of their colleagues, penned and released a book called Go Big.

Tip: If you’re curious about how much you can earn as a creator, Google’s Adsense calculator is a good place to start! It uses your location and content niche to estimate your earning potential. And refer to our step-by-step process for creating a YouTube channel to begin with.

How else can you make money on YouTube?

If you’ve come this far to understand how much money does 1 million YouTube views make, you deserve bonus information!

You don't have to solely follow YouTube's pay-per-view program as your only way to make money. You can also diversify your YouTube income streams like successful creators do!

If you want to make more money off of your YouTube studio, here are a few hustle ideas:

36.9% of marketers employ YouTube as their affiliate marketing platform. Influencers and reviewers on YouTube often include product links in their video descriptions. If a viewer clicks on any of those links, learns further about the product, and buys it, the marketer gets a commission (depending on the affiliate program).

Check out this video review of a product. As a well-known YouTube tech reviewer, Marques Brownlee puts affiliate links on all the gadgets he discusses in his videos. He also occasionally places affiliate links to his video tech.

Make money from YouTube Channel

Compared to banner or display ads, the return on investment (ROI) from influencer-produced sponsored content is 11 times higher. YouTube influencer marketing often involves video promotions.

A YouTube influencer can make a video about your product or just a small part. Either the video or its description should indicate that it contains a paid promotion.

Better Ideas is one YouTube channel that frequently sponsors partnerships with various brands. They must disclose these collaborations per YouTube's Ad Policies.

YouTube Sponsored Posts

Youtube Shorts

YouTube Shorts has become popular, with 1.5 billion people checking it out monthly. Shorts are those vertical videos; about 70% of people watch them on their phones. If your audience is all about YouTube and loves their phones, running Shorts ads might be a smart move.

These Shorts ads don't scream "ad" like regular ones. They look a lot like the normal reels. When they pop up in the Shorts feed, you can skip them in a swipe, and the only hint that it's an ad is those tiny letters "Ad" and a little call-to-action button.

YouTube Shots

YouTube Shorts ads have a clear "Call to Action" button, which is easier to find than the CTA buttons under regular YouTube ads, as you can see in the image above. You can change the look of this button and add product feeds to make it more appealing to customers.

Channel memberships

You can offer your subscribers exclusive perks like early video access, discounts, and one-on-one discussions in exchange for a membership fee.

Since YouTube handles channel membership fees, you'll send some of your earnings to the site. Learn more about membership pricing here.

Here, you are looking at Kim Dave, a renowned YouTuber who offers exclusive perks to her channel members at specific costs. She also uses a discount code to attract subscribers to become members.

Youtube Channel Memberships

Patronage through third-party apps

The YouTube channel membership system isn't the only option for rewarding subscribers; you can use third-party apps that offer tools for creators to run a subscription service and sell digital stuff.

This way, creators can earn money regularly by giving special rewards and perks to their loyal subscribers.

Check Patreon, for example; many creators, including those who make videos and podcasts, write, create art and music, share recipes, and more, use platforms like Patreon to connect with their followers.

Merchandise

You can use the amazing subscriber base to sell products and earn money through it; you may also have noticed that some YouTubers have opened a store and made clothes for their loyal fans to buy. Famous YouTubers typically turn their channel into a brand and sell merchandise like t-shirts, bags, caps, and accessories.

Check Ed Bassmaster’s merchandise. You can find the kinds of T-shirts in his store at varied prices displayed for his subscribers to purchase.

Merchandise

Super Chat, Super Stickers, and Super Thanks

Super Chat, Stickers, and Thanks monetize live streams and Premiers, where viewers can tip the creators.

  • Super chat lets viewers pay $1–500 to have their message shown in your livestream discussion.
  • Super Stickers are stickers that pin to your chat stream instead of messages.
  • YouTube Super Thanks lets viewers donate to on-demand videos.

Here’s an example of Super Chat when team Tubebuddy live-streamed on YouTube for International Creator Day.

YouTube Super chat

Re-use your YouTube content on other platforms.

If you want to monetize videos originally published on YouTube, you may share them on other sites. Shorts will do admirably, particularly on paid platforms that cater to short-form videos, such as TikTok.

Although it's an indirect approach to generating money from your YouTube channel, you may as well maximize its potential. You should optimize your videos for your publication platform.

Wrapping Up

With more than 30 billion unique monthly visitors, your 1 million views on YouTube money is an opportunity with varying potential profits of $1,700 to $30,000. If the last decade has taught us anything, YouTube revenue is a fantastic resource for ambitious individuals who want to build their careers on their terms.  

If you’re a YouTube creator or planning to start one, for quality and ease of video making, use Freshlearn. We make things easy. You can upload your cool thumbnails and add captions to your videos from one handy spot. Plus, it has subtitles and captions to ensure everyone can enjoy your videos and stay hooked.

With FreshLearn, you can quickly and easily turn your skills into courses, groups, live workshops, digital downloads, and an online business.
Sign up with us today to begin your YouTube journey!

Sign up with us today to begin your YouTube journey!

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Aishwarya Lakshmi

Aishwarya Lakshmi

I am a freelance B2B SaaS writer who crafts SEO-optimized copies for leading SaaS brands. I use design thinking to create research-driven and value-packed content.