What is YouTube?

YouTube is a true American success story. It began as the brainchild of Chad Hurley, Steve Chen and Jawed Karim: three PayPal employees that wanted to create a platform where users could post and share video clips. As a startup, YouTube attracted users and funding fairly quickly and was snatched up by the almighty Google roughly a year and a half after it was launched for $1.65 billion.

When a video social network has over a billion users that spend amazing amounts of time on it daily, there is no shortage of aspects of and facts about YouTube that can be measured and reported. I have been collecting YouTube stats and facts for about 10 years now in this curated collection.

YouTube History

• 2005 – YouTube launched
• 2006 – Google purchases YouTube for $1.65 billion
• 2010 – YouTube began streaming cricket matches
• 2011 – YouTube gets a major site redesign
• 2015 – YouTube Kids launched
• 2015 – YouTube Premium launched (as YouTube Red)
• 2017 – YouTube gets a major site redesign

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YouTube User Count

How many people use YouTube?

2 billion logged-in monthly YouTube users

Last updated 2/26/21

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How many people watch YouTube in the US?

180.1 million

Last updated 1/27/17

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Number of countries YouTube has users in:

90 countries

Last updated 11/29/17

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Number of YouTube Music / YouTube Premium paid subscribers:

50 million subscribers

Last updated 9/2/21

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YouTube Revenue Totals

YouTube revenue from ads (annual):

• FY 2019: $15.1 billion
• FY 2018: $11.15 billion
• FY 2017: $8.15 billion

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Additional YouTube Statistics

How many YouTube videos are uploaded every minute?

500 hours worth

Last updated February 2020

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Average daily views of YouTube Shorts:

15 billion daily views

Last updated 11/8/21

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Number of people in the US that watch YouTube and YouTube TV on their TV screen monthly:

120 million people

Last updated 3/10/21

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How many videos on YouTube are captioned:

1 billion

Last updated 2/16/17

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Percentage of the Earth’s population that use YouTube monthly:

about 25%

Last updated 5/7/18

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Percentage of YouTube traffic from mobile:

70%

Last updated 2/26/21

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Estimated YouTube valuation:

$140 billion

Last updated 3/5/19

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Number of times the YouTube app has been installed from the Play Store:

5 billion installs

Last updated 12/3/18

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YouTube overall reaches more 18-34 and 18-49 year-olds than any cable network in the U.S.

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Average amount of YouTube video content watched daily:

1 billion hours per day

Last updated 5/12/18

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Average time spent on YouTube per mobile session:

60 minutes

Last updated 5/12/18

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How many videos are uploaded on YouTube every day?

576,000 hours worth

Last updated 11/5/17

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Percentage of US Internet users, aged 13-17 (teens) that use YouTube:

85%

Last updated 5/31/18

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Number of subscribers of YouTube Music and Google Play Music combined:

15 million subscribers

Last updated 6/27/19

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Type of YouTube content most preferred by Millennials:

Videos uploaded by people

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What is the most-viewed YouTube video ever?

Despacito

Last updated 2/25/19

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How many people in India watch YouTube?

245 monthly active users

Last updated 8/28/18

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Number of revenue-earning YouTube users in the US:

1.8 million

Last updated 2/1/18

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Number of markets that YouTube TV is available in:

100 markets

Last updated 3/12/18

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Number of YouTube TV subscribers:

2 million

Last updated 2/3/20

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Number of people that watch gaming videos and streams on YouTube each day:

200 million

Last updated 9/18/18

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YouTube’s share of the video game live streaming market:

19.5%

Last updated 7/12/19

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Number of countries YouTube Music is available in:

60

Last updated 7/18/19

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Top 5 top-earning YouTube stars (based on income):

1. 1. Ryan Kaji | Ryan ToysReview ($26 million)
   2. Dude Perfect ($20 million)
   3. Anastasia Radinskaya ($18 million)
   4. Rhett and Link ($17.5 million)
   5. Jeffree Star ($17 million)

Last updated 12/18/19 (source)

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Average amount of YouTube content that is watched on TV screens daily:

250 million hours

Last updated 5/3/19

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Amount of gaming content viewed on YouTube in 2018:

50 billion hours

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Video with the most YouTube views in its first 24 hours:

Taylor Swift’s “Look What You Made Me Do” (43.2 million views)

Last updated 8/29/17

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Number of installs of the YouTube for Android TV app:

10 million

Last updated 2/4/18

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60% of Americans aged 35-54 visit YouTube for music-related content at least once a week.

Last updated June 2018

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29% of Americans aged 55+ visit YouTube for music-related content at least once a week.

Last updated June 2018

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Oldest video to get 1 billion YouTube views:

November Rain (Guns N Roses)

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Top 5 most subscribed-to YouTube channels:

1. 1. T-Series
   2. YouTube Movies
   3. Music
   4. PewDiePie
   5. Gaming

Last updated 5/27/20 (source)

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Most popular YouTube channel (based on views):

LEGO

Last updated 7/27/20

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10 Most-viewed YouTube videos of all time (as of 6/18/19):

1. 1. Despacito (Luis Fonsi)
   2. Shape of You (Ed Sheeran)
   3. See You Again (Wiz Khalifa)
   4. Recipe for Disaster (Marsha and the Bear)
   5. Uptown Funk (Mark Ronson)
   6. Gangnam Style (Psy)
   7. Sorry (Justin Bieber)
   8. Sugar (Maroon 5)
   9. Baby Shark Dance (Pinkfong)
   10. Roar (Katy Perry)

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Percentage of YouTube’s daily views that come from outside the U.S.:

80%

Last updated 5/12/18

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Number of YouTube channels with more than 100,000 subscribers:

170,000 channels

Last updated February 2020

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Number of downloads for the YouTube Kids app:

50 million downloads

Last updated 7/8/18

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Number of video views for YouTube Kids in its first year:

10 billion views

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Number of YouTube channels with at least 250,000 subscribers:

43,770

Last updated 1/7/19

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Top 10 YouTube title keywords that get the most views:

1. 1. Fortnite
   2. ASMR
   3. Slime
   4. Rainbow
   5. Prank
   6. Worst
   7. NFL
   8. Makeup
   9. Moment
   10. Wrong

(source) Last updated 1/7/19

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Most-watched YouTube creator of 2019:

PewDiePie (4 billion views)

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Top 5 most disliked videos on YouTube (as of  8/11/19):

1. 1. YouTube Rewind 2018 (YouTube)
   2. Baby (Justin Bieber)
   3. It’s Everyday Bro (Jake Paul)
   4. Can this video get 1 million dislikes? (PewDiePie)
   5. Despacito (Luis Fonsi)

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Percentage of YouTube users that watch it to help make a purchase decision:

68%

Last updated 6/16/20

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Number of videos removed by YouTube in H1 2021 for violating community guidelines:

15.9 million videos

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Number of sexually explicit videos removed by YouTube in H1 2021:

120,000 videos

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The top two reasons viewers watch YouTube are:

1. 1. To relax
   2. To feel entertained

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Recent YouTube News

• YouTube Kicks Off Upfront Week With Research Asserting Its Bond With Viewers Is Tighter Than That Of TV, Streaming Or Social Media, 05/16/2022
• YouTube Shorts Hits 30 Billion Views Per Day, 04/28/2022
• YouTube Ad Revenue Tops $8.6 Billion, Beating Netflix In the Quarter, 02/02/2022
• YouTube’s big plans for 2022 include less-toxic comments, more shopping, 02/10/2022
• YouTube Giving Creators More Ways To Make Money, 02/14/2022
• YouTube is the Main Stream: Our NewFronts and Upfronts approach, 02/24/2022
• YouTube previews 5 new upcoming livestream features, borrowing from TikTok, Twitch, and Instagram, 03/28/2022

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Please note that some of these numbers are easier to find than others. A few of these YouTube statistics come from their own reports, but some are based on news reports and not official company tallies. No information contained on DMR should be relied upon to make investment decisions. Basically, this is the best I can find and I don’t guarantee anything to be 100%.

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