YouTube is a video-sharing website where users can upload, view, and share videos.
This platform hits the headlines with new statistics, facts, and trends.
If you’re a veteran or newbie in the YouTube arena, discover new and old trends, facts, and statistics to help you understand the platform better.
Most Interesting YouTube Statistics (Editor’s Pick)
- YouTube removed over 5.6 million videos during the 3rd quarter of 2022, with 36% of them removed due to child safety reasons.
- India had the most videos removed from YouTube during the 3rd quarter of 2022, with 1.7 million videos removed.
- 63% of viewers on YouTube use mobile apps to access the platform.
- YouTube is expected to see a 44.05% growth in users by 2028.
- Over 70% of YouTube users watched exercise videos in 2020 during the COVID-19 lockdowns.
- YouTube users upload 500 hours of video content every 60 seconds.
YouTube Usage Statistics
YouTube Viewers Statistics
Ever wonder how many people watch YouTube videos daily, which are the most watched, and other relevant statistics?
1. YouTube has over 2.5 billion active users.
With more than 2.5 billion active users as of 2023, YouTube is second in the global social media market. Only Facebook beats the video-sharing service with 2.9 billion active users.
2. 63% of viewers on YouTube use mobile apps.
Mobile is the number 1 device used to watch YouTube videos, capturing around 63% of YouTube users as of the second quarter of 2021.
3. The most-watched video has hit 12 billion views.
“Baby Shark Dance” is currently reigning at 12 billion views after knocking out “Despasito,” the previous champion, on 11th February 2021.
4. “Butter by BTS” holds the highest number of YouTube views in 24 hours.
“Butter by BTS” hit 108 million views in a day to hold the record of the most viewed video in 24 hours on YouTube. It’s also the fastest video to reach 30 million views in 140 minutes.
5. The first YouTube video has 252 million views.
The first YouTube video, “Me at the Zoo,” posted by Jawed Karim (YouTube co-founder), has reached 252 million views.
6. YouTube is the second-most popular website, with 13.34 billion visits.
As of November 2021, YouTube was the most popular website after Google, with 13.34 billion visits. Facebook and Wikipedia came third and fourth, respectively.
That’s good news for Alphabet Inc., the parent company of both companies.
7. 78% of users prefer YouTube as their main video source.
78% of users use YouTube as their primary video source above any other social media service.
8. YouTube users upload 500 hours of video content every 60 seconds.
As of 2019, YouTube received 500 hours of video content every 60 seconds. That’s equivalent to an average of 30,000 hours of video content uploaded per 60 minutes or a daily upload of 720,000 hours of video content.
9. Over 70% of YouTube users watched exercise videos in 2020.
During the COVID-19 lockdown, more than 70% of users watched home workout videos and exercise tutorials to keep them fit at home. This generated over 5 billion views on YouTube.
10. YouTube users are expected to grow by 44.05% by 2028.
YouTube is expected to continue upward, with its user base expected to grow by 346 million, a 44.05% increase, between 2022 and 2028. Thus, exceeding 1.1 billion users to reach a new peak.
Most Popular YouTube Accounts Statistics
Who are the biggest influencers and needle-movers on YouTube? Dive into the data around the most popular YouTube accounts below.
11. T-Series is the most popular YouTube account.
As of November 2022, the T-Series YouTube account had generated 207.22 billion lifetime views, with “Cocomelon – Nursery Rhymes” coming second with 143.69 billion lifetime views.
12. MrBeast is the most subscribed YouTube individual account.
MrBeast has the most global subscribers (for an individual account), taking the first spot from PewDiePie. As of 2022, this account had hit 116 million subscribers.
Today (in January 2023), MrBeast’s subscribers tally 127 million, while PewDiePie comes second with 111 million subscribers.
13. BLACKPINK is the all-time most subscribed official artist channel on YouTube.
“BLACKPINK,” with 83.8 million subscribers, is the official artist channel on YouTube with the most subscribers. It’s followed by “BANGTANTV,” with 73 million subscribers, and Justin Beiber in the third spot with 70.8 million subscribers.
YouTube Video Statistics
Below are the statistics regarding YouTube videos.
Video Content Removed from YouTube Statistics
Here’s an overview of video content removed from YouTube.
14. YouTube removed over 5.6 million video content in 2022.
During the third quarter of 2022 (July to September), YouTube removed over 5.6 million video content, including those caught by its automated flagging technology. 36% of the videos removed were due to child safety reasons.
15. During the third quarter of 2022, India had the most removed videos on YouTube.
Between July to September 2022, 1.7 million videos were removed from YouTube in India. Thus, making it the region with the highest removals. Indonesia and the United States follow.
16. 36.4% of the videos removed between July to September 2022 had no views.
36.4% of the YouTube video content removed during the third quarter of 2022 had no views. 32.1% of the videos had more than ten views, and 31.5% had between one to ten views.
YouTube Revenue Statistics
YouTube is among the top revenue-generating platforms globally. Below are some of the statistics to prove this.
YouTube Ad Statistics
YouTube covers a more significant percentage of advertisement spending and reach. But let the numbers do the talking.
17. YouTube generated $28.84 billion in ad revenue in 2021.
YouTube made over $28.84 billion from advertising worldwide in 2021, up from $19.7 billion in 2020.
18. YouTube hit 8.6 billion dollars in ad revenue in Q4 2021.
YouTube outperformed Netflix regarding quarterly revenue, hitting $8.6 billion in ad income in the final quarter of 2021.
19. Apple Inc. led United States’ YouTube advertisers in 2020-2021.
Apple Inc. spent the most on YouTube advertising between March 2020 and February 2021, shelling out $237.15 million. Looking at the bigger picture, the video-sharing platform brought in $19.77 billion ad revenue in 2020.
20. 70% of online buyers purchased from a brand they saw on YouTube.
Approximately 70% of consumers bought something from a brand they saw on YouTube. Users between 18 and 64 often use the platform to find new brands.
YouTube Channel Statistics
Learn more about YouTube channel statistics below:
21. YouTube's official channel, @YouTube, has over 35 million subscribers.
The official YouTube channel, @YouTube, has reached 35.1 million subscribers. The channel has registered 3 billion views from 620 videos posted so far.
22. The majority of popular YouTube channels do not produce English-language content.
56% of well-known YouTube channels published at least one video at the start of 2019, and 33% used English when creating the videos. Also, only 17% of the videos posted during the period were made in English.
YouTube Demographics Statistics
Different people of varying ages from multiple countries use YouTube. Below are a few statistics to put that in context.
23. Males make up 53.9% of all YouTube users worldwide.
About 53.9% of YouTube subscribers were male as of April 2022. In contrast, women made up 46.1% of all users.
24. 62% of American Internet users access YouTube every day.
YouTube is reportedly used daily by 62% of US internet users. 92% of users access YouTube weekly, and 98% access it monthly.
25. India has the highest number of YouTube users.
India had the highest YouTube global audience, with almost 467 million subscribers as of April 2022. The United States took the second spot with nearly 247 million YouTube users, almost half of the Indian users.
26. YouTube is accessed by 77% of United States internet users aged 15 to 25 years.
77% of American internet users between the ages of 15 and 25 visited YouTube in the third quarter of 2020. Likewise, 67% of American internet users over 56 visit YouTube.
YouTube Search Statistics
YouTube users search different keywords when looking for their favorite videos. Some of the search statistics include:
27. “WWE” is the top searched keyword on YouTube in India.
“WWE” ranks at the top in India regarding YouTube keywords, with around 764,000 searches. In the United States, “PewDiePie” is the top keyword with 4,571,398 searches, and “BTS” ranks at the position globally with 16,723,304 searches.
28. “Song” has an index of 100, making it the most searched query.
The query “song” topped YouTube’s most popular searches in the third quarter of 2022. “Movie” came second with an index of 62.
Other YouTube Statistics, Facts & Trends
Finally, check out other YouTube statistics, trends, and facts below.
29. Jimmy Donaldson was the highest-earning YouTube star in 2021.
According to estimates, Jimmy Donaldson, aka “YouTube MrBeast,” earned almost $54 million in 2021, making him the highest-paid YouTuber worldwide. Jake Paul, in second place, earned a $45 million estimate.
30. Adelle's “Hello” is the all-time fastest music video to hit one billion views.
“Hello” by Adele is the fastest music video to hit one billion views on YouTube, taking only 88 days to achieve. Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You” and Luis Fonsi’s “Despacito” (featuring Daddy Yankee) tie for the second position, taking them only 97 days to hit one billion views.
31. JuegaGerman is the most subscribed gaming channel in 2022.
JuegaGerman had 46.8 million subscribers as of December 2022, making it the most popular gaming channel on YouTube. Fernanfloo held the second-place position with 45.4 million subscribers.
As of January 2023, JuegaGerman has 47 million subscribers, and Fernanfloo has hit 45.5 million subscribers.
YouTube removed the dislike button count in 2021 after the “YouTube’s Rewind for 2018” video got 20.8 million dislikes, making it the most disliked video of all time.
33. Nike's video became the first to reach one million views.
The first video to ever receive one million views on YouTube was a 2005 Nike advertisement starring Ronaldinho, who played for Brazil’s national soccer team. This video helped popularize the term “viral video.”
34. A total of 1.5 billion people are active on YouTube Shorts monthly.
With over 30 billion daily views and 1.5 billion active monthly users, YouTube Shorts represents a substantial advertising opportunity.
35. YouTube's second-largest live stream ever was SpaceX's Falcon Heavy launch.
SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy launch had over 2.3 million concurrent views, trailing only the Red Bull Stratos jump from 2012, which attracted an absurd 8 million concurrent views.
36. “Luis Fonsi - Despacito ft. Daddy Yankee” is the all-time most-viewed music video.
Luis Fonsi’s “Despacito” ft. Daddy Yankee is the most-viewed YouTube music video, with 8.0 billion views. Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You” comes second with 5.8 billion views.
Final Word
YouTube statistics show that the site is growing amazingly, with over 2.5 billion users globally. The platform also has a diverse global user base, making it well-represented among different backgrounds.
However, YouTube is banned in countries like China, Syria, and Iran. But that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy your favorite music playlist or try out new DIY tutorials.
In that case, learn how to unblock YouTube in your country.
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