YouTubers bring in record-breaking paydays

Future. From Jake Paul to Markiplier, Youtubers are cashing out record-breaking paychecks. MrBeast led the pack, racking up 10 billion views and earning $54 million alone in 2021 — the most ever in history by any YouTuber. To put that in perspective, SoundCloud’s annual revenues were just over $200 million in 2020, showing that YouTube creators are becoming bonafide rivals to full-blown businesses. 

Getting the bag

YouTubers collectively earned nearly $300 million last year, up 40% from 2020. 

• Tailing behind MrBeast’s $54 million, social media personality Jake Paul came in at a close second, reeling in $45 million in 2021. 
• Next up was podcast host and filmmaker Markiplier, who brought in $38 million last year.
• Meanwhile, Rhett and Link, duo hosts of Good Mythical Morning, have grown their brand into a veritable empire, boasting a $30 million payday last year. 

Secondary sales

One important thing to note here — most of these earnings are driven by projects separate from their YouTube videos. In other words, no one’s making millions purely from views. 

For example, MrBeast’s massive payday is largely driven from side projects like MrBeast Burger, Jake Paul’s earnings are owed mostly to his boxing endeavors, and Markiplier’s cashflow come mainly from his merch sales.