It's mad to think that making a YouTube channel used to be a hobby for most people. After a few years it offered some supplemental income, and then it became a full-time job. As of 2018, there are people out there raking in millions for their video content, and it's pretty hard not to be a little jealous.

Check out the list below to see the world's richest YouTubers, and exactly how much they earned in 2017 alone.

10. Lily Singh

The Canadian vlogger, author and actress is the only woman to make it into the top 10, with her videos amassing over 2 billion views so far. Under the pseudonym "||Superwoman||", she has gained 13 million subscribers since she began her channel in 2010. She offers satirical takes on everyday life, with celebrities such as Selena Gomez and Dwayne Johnson even collaborating with her. In 2017 alone she earned $10.5 million.

[[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7o4uDXft_pU]]

9. Smosh

Ian Hecox is now the only member of the comedy channel, after his collaborator, Daniel Padilla, left back in June 2017. Starting with a website in 2002, they moved to YouTube in 2005, gaining 22.8 million subscribers by January 2018. Last year the sketch show earned them a stunning $11 million.

[[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e1h5TzdTq0o]]

8. Ryan ToysReview

The Verge describes this channel, which currently has 12.9 million subscribers, as "a mash-up of personal vlogs and 'unboxing' videos, a blend of innocent childhood antics and relentless, often overwhelming consumerism". That might sound kind of awful, but the appeal of this one is that Ryan is only six years old.

Despite the fact he keeps his identity and location a secret, he actually has a massive influence on the toy industry - with his top watched video at 1.2 billion views. He posts one video a day, and his true identity is kept private, earning over $11 million in 2017.

[[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tldlt2RhrDw]]

7. Jake Paul

The Paul family have made quite the name for themselves on YouTube, and rarely for the right reasons. Two years younger than the better-known Logan, Jake rose to fame on the now-defunct Vine. By 2017, he was earning $11.5 million a year.

[[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSlb1ezRqfA]]

6. PewDiePie

Out of all the YouTubers making video game let's plays out there, PewDiePie is definitely the best known out there. Felix Kjellberg left university in 2010 to pursue his YouTube career, and ended up doing pretty well for himself. While I personally cannot make it through a full minute of his stuff, there are 61 million subscribers who disagree. He was in first place last year, but is still bringing in $12 million as of 2017.

[[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRyPjRrjS34]]

5. Logan Paul

Former Vine star, YouTube sensation and professional outrage-monger Logan Paul is now probably better known for his countless insensitive videos than the rest of his content. The 'controversies' section of his Wikipedia page is now bigger than the 'career' section, but that hasn't stopped him from raking in $12.5 million last year.

[[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVzU8kGFoJk]]

4. Markiplier

Rising three places this year comes Mark Fischbach, who has 6 billion video views and 20 million subscribers to his name. Specializing in Let's Play videos (usually survival horror games), he made over $12.5 million in 2017.

[[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iOztnsBPrAA]]

3. Dude Perfect

This group of ex-high school basketball players perform sport-related stunts and tricks, with several Guinness World Records to their name. Just in 2017, they made $14 million.

[[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CACAmH4r1fw]]

2. VanossGaming

Evan Fong, better known by his channel name VanossGaming, is one of the biggest names on the video game YouTube scene. The Canadian video game commenter amassed over 8.9 billion video views and 22.5 million subscribers as of March this year, and made $15.5 million last year.

[[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQdxA0g4amM]]

1. Daniel Middleton

Dan started off making videos of himself playing Minecraft and Pokemon, and now has 16 million subscribers and over 10 billion views on his videos on DanTDM. In fact, a recent live tour of his included a show at the Sydney Opera House - which became the second fastest-selling show in the venue's history. He tops off the list with $16.5 million earned in 2017.

[[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GG90TQUd7Ac]]

After doing your 9-5 to make your rent, it's hard not to feel a little resentment to the likes of PewDiePie and the Paul brothers, making thousands from a single video. If you want to know more about DanTDM, check out how he went from working in a grocery store to being the world's richest YouTuber.

For most people, making YouTube videos takes a lot of work and makes little money. What, do you think it's easy to write, produce, edit, upload and promote videos, releasing them at least once a week, plus maintain all of your camera equipment and consistently engage your audience on multiple social media platforms? If so, why don't you quit your job and do it, then? Yes, some types of content take more work than others - say, travel videos compared to beauty vlogs - but they all require effort, and it takes a certain jine se qua to stand out.

That said, there are some people who make a comfortable living producing YouTube videos, a career previous generations would find unthinkable. And just like other segments of the entertainment industry, the people at the top of the top make an obscene amount of money. Once content creators achieve such success, they can afford to hire employees to take over some of the work, which might not seem fair to struggling YouTubers, who are burning the candle at both ends just to break even. But hey, once you make it, you make it!

[[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tldlt2RhrDw]]

Forbes released a list of the ten highest-earning stars on the YouTube, their revenue coming come not just from in-video ads, but from merchandise and sponsorship deals. Half of the list are gaming channels, where personalities play a video game and provide running commentary. The odious, obnoxious vlogger Logan Paul made the list, despite his various controversies. But the highest earning star on the video streaming service is a seven year old boy.

The YouTube channel Ryan ToysReview made an estimated total of $22 million between June 2017 and June 2018, according to Forbes. Ryan does personal vlogs and unboxes toys, reviewing items like Lego, Play-Doh and a "Disney Pixar Lightning McQueen Easter egg surprise filled with cars and planes." His YouTube channel has more than 17 million subscribers and more than 26 billion views. Since last year, Ryan's earnings have doubled, and they will increase further next year, thanks to his own range of collectables, available at Walmart. So, yeah, he makes a ridiculous amount of money to play with toys. FML.

[[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jP4SKI9I4w4]]

Ryan's parents created the channel in 2015, and his family has kept their identity secret. Forbes states that all but one million of their 22 million earnings came from the pre-video advertisements, which is pretty impressive. It shows that the toy market is incredibly lucrative, and Ryan does an excellent job of engaging his audience. It costs nothing to subscribe to a YouTube channel; you could have millions of subscribers, but if they're not watching your videos every week, you're not making anything. Ryan's audience keeps coming back.

“He is definitely the youngest YouTube star we’ve ever seen,” Josh Cohen, an industry analyst and founder of TubeFilter, told the Verge. “It’s the biggest of this genre of programming that is getting billions of views a week on YouTube. Really nobody is talking about it, but it’s crazy once you start scratching the surface." When asked by NBC why he thinks people enjoy watching his videos, Ryan said, "Because I'm entertaining and I'm funny."

[[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwBQYcOm8fY]]

Here's the full list of top-earners on YouTube, if you'd like to seethe with jealousy. (Better start that YouTube channel!)

10. Logan Paul - $14.5 million

9. PewDiePie - $15.5 million

8. Jacksepticeye - $16 million

7. Evan Fong - $17 million

6. Markiplier - $17.5 million

5. Jeffree Star - $18 million

4. Daniel Middleton - $18.5 million

3. Dude Perfect - $20 million

2. Jake Paul - $21.5 million

1. Ryan ToysReview - $22 million

A popular YouTuber has revealed how much money he made from the site after he gained 200 million views.

Garron, a popular creator from Ireland, is no stranger to saying how he really feels - so pulling back the curtain on his earnings comes as no surprise.

Why One Major Creator Walked Away From Donations

Garron had been watching a video by Charlie, also known online as MoistCr1TiKaL, who announced he was switching off all direct financial support from fans.

Charlie explained: "I'm explaining why I'm disabling any and all means of people having the ability to donate money to me. No more super chats, no more YouTube memberships for all intents and purposes. No more bits on Twitch."

He added: "I would much rather you keep your money. Use it for yourself or use it for things you deem important, whether it's charitable causes or what have you. But just stop forking it over to me."

Garron admitted he’d never even turned on YouTube memberships himself — joking that it was definitely not because he didn’t know how they worked.

But what really grabbed his attention wasn’t the moral stance. It was the money.

YouTube can be lucrative if done well. Credit: Future Publishing / Getty

How Much Did Charlie Make On Twitch?

First up: Twitch earnings.

In 2025 alone, Charlie pulled in $55,525.48 from streaming, clocking 614 hours of airtime. Garron immediately did the math, rounding up to 615 hours to account for the extra minutes.

That works out at roughly 90 per hour.

Not bad for playing games and talking to the internet.

But that was just one year.

Between 2019 and 2021, Charlie made $1.285 million from Twitch. Breaking that down hourly, Garron calculated it at 356 per hour — a hefty jump.

Then came the big one.

From 2021 to 2025, Charlie made $4.1 million on Twitch. That works out to around 692 per hour.

Garron acknowledged the grind behind it, noting Charlie streams eight to 10 hours a day. Still, nearly $700 an hour is enough to make anyone rethink their career choices.

The $36 Million YouTube Bombshell

Then came the number that made Garron sit up straight.

Charlie revealed he had earned $36 million from YouTube since joining the platform in 2007.

Memberships alone were bringing in $560,000.

For Garron, that was the moment it all became real. When you’re sitting on tens of millions, switching off donations probably feels like the right time.

Garron’s Own YouTube Stats Revealed

After running the numbers on one of YouTube’s biggest earners, Garron decided it was only fair to show his own receipts.

According to SocialBlade, he currently has:

1. 480,000 subscribers
2. 191 million total views
3. 678 uploaded videos
4. 14 million views in the last 30 days

16,000 new subscribers in the past month

Estimated monthly earnings range from 3.6K to 58K, with yearly projections between 40,000 and 647,000. Garron pointed out how wildly different those figures are, stressing they’re just rough estimates.

So what’s the real number?

How Much Has Garron Actually Made?

Pulling up his lifetime analytics, Garron revealed that since starting his channel in March 2021, he has earned €32,811.58 in total.

He also disclosed that €24,000 of that has been made this year alone — meaning the vast majority of his income has come recently.

There’s one big catch, though.

Most of his 200 million views come from YouTube Shorts — and according to him, they barely pay.

He claimed he earns about 46 cent per Short, and many get demonetized because of his frequent swearing. Occasionally, a Short might earn 12 or 13 euro, but overall, the revenue is minimal.

Longer videos perform better financially, but Shorts dominate his view count.

From €1,400 A Month To YouTube Income

To put it in perspective, Garron compared his YouTube earnings to his previous jobs.

In his first job, he earned 1,400 per month.

His second job paid 1,900 per month, sometimes going over 2,000 with commission. Back in 2018, breaking the €2,000 mark made him feel like he’d “made it.”

At the time, he was paying €620 per month for a room in Galway. After rent, he’d have around €1,500 left — and he felt on top of the world.

Now, a single strong YouTube month can match or exceed what once felt like serious money.

Garron described his YouTube income as feeling like “free money,” explaining that even €200 would have thrilled him.

While €32,811.58 is nowhere near $36 million, the growth this year suggests his channel is heading in the right direction.

Featured image credit: Future Publishing / Getty

I'll admit, I play a lot of video games. So maybe I don't devote my whole life to it, but I usually play a few hours of Mario or Zelda a week, just to take the edge off after a hard day. Sometimes, if I'm playing something I really enjoy, with an engaging storyline or a steep difficulty curve, I might get a bit obsessive, but these days I have to ration my gaming time carefully.

Why? Well, because real life gets in the way. It's just one of many hobbies that I enjoy, and I have to juggle it alongside my job, my social life, family, exercise (yes really) and household chores. When you know how to divide up your week, there really isn't that much time left to fiddle with joysticks.

But if you're a professional gamer, the kind of guy who takes a competitive video game as seriously as a major athlete takes a sport, then gaming can quickly swallow your whole life. Hardly surprising when eSports are bigger than ever, and there's big money to be made via sponsorship deals for playing titles like Call of Duty, League of Legends, and even Super Smash Bros in tournaments.

[[youtubewidget||https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVwdLfjYM6E]]

The sacrifices that pro gamers make to support their lifestyle can be tremendous, but has one of the most famous ones gone too far? YouTuber Douglas ‘FaZe Censor’ Martin is a pro Call of Duty player, who has just revealed that he and his girlfriend - weather forecaster Yanet Garcia - have broken up so he could focus more on video gaming. Garcia, who is known as "The World's Sexiest Weathergirl" boasts 6.5 million followers on Instagram, while Martin has 1.5 million, as well as 2.5 million YouTube subscribers.

In a series of tweets made to his followers, Martin stated: "I appreciate ALL the support, criticism, etc. Being a YouTuber I know that sometimes you'll get challenged by the decisions and moves you make by people online, but that's what I signed up for. I'm excited for the future," and he then later added "COD is life."

[[twitterwidget||https://twitter.com/Censor/status/1012398823094833152]]

The reaction from Martin's followers has been decidedly polarised. One Twitter user wrote: "He just threw away an entire future family for a game that’s going to die in no less than 2-3 years. He’s delusional. [sic]"

However, other people were more supportive, and one person tweeted: "Self-happiness and focusing on what matters to you is more important than a significant other. Sacrifices got to be made in order to achieve your goals and that’s what Doug is doing ... He’s pursuing what he wants to do by making HIMSELF happy and doing what he feels matters. Also, I agree with Doug. You can’t give a relationship less than 110 per cent when you got other priorities. There is only so much time/energy you can put into so many things man. Girls come and go. [sic]"

Personally, I don't think I would ever dump a girlfriend over a video game, no matter how much I love the medium ... unless I was about to be number one in Fortnite. I do have priorities, after all.