As a YouTube creator, one of the most common questions is “How much money can I make from YouTube?” The amount of money you can earn on YouTube depends on several factors, including the number of views, subscribers, watch time, CPM rate, types of ads, and more. In this article, we’ll break down how YouTube pays creators and estimate potential YouTube earnings based on 1,000 subscribers.
How Does YouTube Pay Creators?
YouTube pays creators through its YouTube Partner Program (YPP). To qualify for YPP, you need:
- 1,000 subscribers
- 4,000 valid public watch hours in the last 12 months
- A linked AdSense account
Once you’re accepted into YPP, you can begin monetizing your YouTube channel through advertisements. Here’s a quick overview of how it works:
- YouTube places ads on and around your videos.
- When viewers watch, click, or interact with these ads, you earn money.
- YouTube pays you your share of the ad revenue through Google AdSense.
The amount you earn depends on your CPM rate, views, watch time, audience, ad types, and more. Let’s break these down in more detail.
CPM Rate
CPM stands for “cost per thousand.” It refers to how much money advertisers pay for every 1,000 video ad impressions. An “impression” counts when an ad is displayed, whether it’s clicked or not.
On YouTube, CPM rates vary based on factors like:
- Video content
- Audience demographics
- Ad types (display, overlay, skippable, etc.)
- Ad demand and inventory
- Seasonality
Average YouTube CPM rates tend to fall anywhere from $2-$7. However, they can be higher or lower depending on the above factors.
Views
The number of views your videos get greatly impacts your revenue. More views = more potential impressions for ads.
However, not all video views are monetized equally. YouTube only counts monetized video views – meaning views on videos running ads – towards your estimated revenue.
Views may not be monetized if:
- The video is not yet approved for monetization.
- Your channel is not in the YouTube Partner Program.
- The viewer is on a non-monetized platform (e.g. YouTube Kids).
- An ad blocker is used.
Getting lots of views is a good start, but you ultimately want views that contribute to your watch time and help serve video ads.
Watch Time
Watch time refers to the total amount of time viewers spend watching your videos. It indicates how engaging your content is.
YouTube shares 55% of ad revenue with creators based on their watch time. The more watch time your channel generates, the more money you can make.
Longer videos tend to have higher watch times. However, quality is more important than length. A 10-minute video that keeps viewers interested from start to finish will generate more revenue than a 1-hour video that people click away from after a few minutes.
Ad Types
There are several different ad formats that run on YouTube. Different ad types have different CPM rates, which affect your estimated revenue. Some common YouTube ad types include:
- Display ads – Graphic ads displayed around your video content. One of the lowest-paying formats.
- Overlay ads – Semi-transparent graphics overlaid on the lower 20% of your video. Also tend to be lower-paying.
- Skippable video ads – Full video ads that viewers can skip after 5 seconds. Moderate CPM rates.
- Non-skippable video ads – Forced video ads that viewers cannot skip. Tends to have higher CPM rates but can annoy viewers.
YouTube controls the types of ads placed on your videos. But creating quality content and building your watch time can help attract higher-paying ad formats.
Audience
Your audience demographics also impact your potential CPM and revenue.
For example, advertisers typically pay more to show ads to viewers in certain age groups and income brackets. Channels attracting 18-45 year olds or those with disposable income often see higher CPM rates.
Your content focus also plays a role. Videos in popular niches like gaming, entertainment, and tech can attract higher ad rates compared to less mainstream topics.
Building a dedicated audience that engages actively with your content results in better monetization over the long run.
What is the YouTube CPM Rate?
As mentioned earlier, average YouTube CPM rates range from $2-$7 per 1,000 impressions. However, your specific CPM rate depends on the factors discussed above.
According to several reports, average CPM rates on YouTube fall around:
- $5 for top creators with mega-audiences.
- $3-$4 for creators with mid-tier audiences of 100K+ subscribers.
- $2-$3 for smaller creators.
These are just broad averages – your channel’s niche, content quality, and audience can result in widely varying CPMs.
YouTube also doesn’t share your exact CPM publicly. But you can estimate it based on your overall ad revenue and views.
How Much Does YouTube Pay for 1,000 Views?
It’s impossible to give an exact figure for how much YouTube pays per 1,000 views. Revenue per thousand views (RPM) varies significantly depending on factors like:
- CPM Rates
- Ad types
- Audience engagement and demographics
- Video length
- Content quality
- Seasonal demand
Based on averages though, most channels tend to earn $2-$4 per 1,000 YouTube video views. Channels with strong engagement and coveted demographics can earn $5 or more, while those with limited appeal may earn less than $1.
For simplicity, let’s assume an average RPM of $3 per 1,000 views. This means with 1,000 subscribers, if you can get 5,000 views on average for each video you upload, you would earn:
- 5,000 views per video
- x $3 per 1,000 views
- = $15 per video
The actual revenue per video can be higher or lower than this example. But it gives you a rough idea of potential earnings per video based on views.
How Much Does YouTube Pay for 1,000 Subscribers?
While YouTube eligibility and monetization are based on watch time and views, subscriber numbers still matter for revenue.
Having 1,000 subscribers is the minimum to get accepted into YPP. But more importantly, higher sub counts tend to correlate with more views and watch time.
A channel with 100,000 subscribers often gets a lot more consistent views per video than one with just 1,000 subscribers. Their popular videos can regularly get hundreds of thousands or millions of views.
More subscribers also means more potential watch time and ad impressions to earn from. Channels with small subscriber counts need to rely on viral one-off videos for income spikes.
To estimate potential earnings from 1,000 subscribers alone, let’s assume the following:
- You have 1,000 subscribers.
- On average, 20% of subscribers view each new video.
- Each subscriber watches 50% of the average video length.
- Your videos average 10 minutes long (600 seconds).
- RPM is $3 per 1,000 views.
Doing some math:
- 1,000 subscribers x 20% = 200 views per video on average
- 200 views x $3 RPM = $0.60 per 1,000 views
- Average view duration is 50% of 10 mins = 5 mins (300 seconds)
- Total watch time = 200 views x 300 seconds = 60,000 seconds
- 60,000 seconds is 1,000 minutes or 16.67 hours
Based on this and the $3 RPM example:
- You’d earn around $0.60 per video from 1,000 subscribers alone.
- Your total channel watch time from 1,000 subs would be about 16-17 hours.
This revenue isn’t much – but it shows the importance of views and watch time for monetization. 1,000 dedicated subscribers is a good start, but successful channels need to scale their audience and viewership over time.
Estimating YouTube Earnings from 1,000 Subscribers
Let’s put this all together to estimate potential YouTube earnings from 1,000 subscribers:
- You have around 1,000 subscribers
- Your videos average 250,000 views each (a high but achievable view count for 1K subs)
- Your channel RPM is $3 per 1,000 views
- You upload 3 videos per week (156 videos per year)
Based on this, your potential annual earnings would be:
- 250,000 views per video
- x $3 RPM
- = $750 per video
- x 156 videos per year
- = $117,000 estimated earnings per year
This example assumes you can consistently get 250,000+ views per video. In reality, earnings will vary significantly based on actual views and RPM rates.
But with strategic audience growth and great content, six-figure incomes are achievable for channels with 1,000 subscribers and beyond.
How to Maximize Your YouTube Earnings
Here are some tips to help maximize your earnings potential on YouTube:
- Focus on watch time and audience retention by making engaging content.
- Join the YouTube Partner Program as soon as you meet the thresholds.
- Experiment with different content formats – e.g. tutorials, vlogs, shorts.
- Optimize your titles, tags, descriptions and thumbnails to get more views.
- Promote your videos actively on social media and other channels.
- Diversify income with affiliate links, sponsorships, crowdfunding and merchandise.
- Analyze your metrics in YouTube Studio to refine your strategy.
- Be patient, consistent, and focus on quality over quantity.
With time and commitment, you can build a sustainable income on YouTube with even a small loyal subscriber base.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are answers to some common questions about YouTube monetization and earnings:
How much does YouTube pay for a million views?
It varies based on factors mentioned, but channels typically earn $2,000-$4,000 per million views. Top creators with great engagement can earn over $5 per thousand views.
Can you make money with 100 subscribers on YouTube?
No – you need at least 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 watch hours in the past year to monetize your channel through the YouTube Partner Program.
How many views do you need to make money on YouTube?
There is no fixed number of views required to start earning. However, most channels need at least 100,000+ views per month to make a decent income through ads alone.
Can you get paid without being a YouTube partner?
YouTube only shares ad revenue with creators accepted into its Partner Program. However, you can potentially earn income through affiliate links, sponsorships and fan donations without joining the program.
How many subscribers do famous YouTubers have?
Top YouTubers have subscriber counts ranging from 1 million up to over 100 million. However, you can build a full-time income long before you reach fame and celebrity status.
Conclusion
Estimating potential income from a YouTube channel is tricky. But in general, earnings directly correlate with your subscriber count, views, watch time, engagement and content quality.
While achieving 1,000 subscribers is the first step to YouTube monetization, you’ll need many more to earn a livable wage. With consistent effort and optimization however, a small loyal audience is all you need to kickstart your YouTube career.
Focus on making great content, expanding your reach, and providing value to viewers. With enough persistence, creativity and patience – YouTube success and income could be within your grasp.