The most popular (most liked) comment on YouTube is currently by the San Diego Zoo, posted on the first-ever YouTube video, "Me at the Zoo," which says, "We're so honored that the first ever YouTube video was filmed here!" and has millions of likes, surpassing the previous record holder, "i'm the bald guy," from Billie Eilish's "bad guy" video.
The #1 YouTuber in the world by subscriber count is MrBeast (Jimmy Donaldson), holding the top spot as an individual creator with over 450 million subscribers, surpassing the music label T-Series, which is the most-subscribed overall channel when including companies like T-Series, Cocomelon, and SET India. He's known for large-scale stunts, cash giveaways, and philanthropy, becoming the biggest individual personality on the platform in recent years.
The #1 most viewed video on YouTube is "Baby Shark Dance" by Pinkfong, with over 15 billion views, far surpassing other popular videos like "Despacito" and "Wheels on the Bus," with the top videos consistently being children's songs and music videos.
The Minecraft community has crushed one trillion views on YouTube. Celebrate this huge milestone with a look back at some of the biggest moments in Minecraft history.
The first "YouTuber" was Jawed Karim, one of YouTube's co-founders, who uploaded the platform's first video, "Me at the zoo," on April 23, 2005, making him the first person to post content on the site, which marked the beginning of user-generated video sharing.
100 Million YouTube Subscribers was first achieved by Pewdiepie, one of YouTube's most legendary creators, and then by T-Series, a media company based in India.
The richest YouTuber in the world is Jimmy Donaldson, known as MrBeast, with estimated net worths ranging from $500 million to over $1 billion and reported earnings exceeding $700 million in 2025, thanks to his massive YouTube presence, business ventures like Feastables, and ventures such as Beast Games on Amazon Prime. He leads a list of high earners that includes Jeffree Star, Logan Paul, and Anastasia Radzinskaya (Like Nastya), who also generate significant wealth from branding, merchandise, and other entertainment projects.
To make $2,000 a month on YouTube from ad revenue, you generally need 400,000 to 1 million monthly views, depending heavily on your niche's CPM (cost per mille/thousand views) and RPM (revenue per mille), but many creators report needing 500,000 to 1 million+ views for a comfortable living, with high-value niches like finance potentially reaching it with fewer views and lower-value niches needing significantly more, plus other income streams like sponsorships.
Longer videos can keep the viewer's attention because they have enough time to develop an idea. When viewers are engaged and watch the entirety of a three-minute short, it can lead to higher advertising revenue.
1 billion YouTube views can earn anywhere from a few thousand dollars (for Shorts) to several million (for long-form videos), with estimates often falling between $250,000 and $5 million, heavily depending on the Cost Per Mille (CPM) and viewer engagement, with gaming/music potentially earning $0.50-$1/1000 views and high-engagement content seeing higher rates. The wide range is due to factors like viewer location, ad types, video niche, and if it's a YouTube Short (which pays much less) versus longer content.
Yes, MrBeast (Jimmy Donaldson) became a billionaire in 2024 based on his business value, but he keeps very little cash, reinvesting almost everything into his videos and philanthropy, stating he often has less than $1 million in his personal bank account, per People.com and Forbes https://people.com/mrbeast-net-worth-11879997,. His net worth is estimated at over $1 billion, potentially reaching $2.6 billion by early 2026, but he has said his personal funds are minimal as his wealth is tied up in his media empire and he pays himself only personal expenses.
How Nine-Year-Old Ryan Kaji, YouTube's $30 Million Man, Just Keeps Getting Richer. A crackdown on child advertising clipped Ryan's World revenue this year. Hedging YouTube kept him at the head of the pack.
While both brothers are multi-millionaires, most recent estimates (late 2025/early 2026) suggest Logan Paul is richer, with a net worth around $150 million compared to Jake Paul's estimated $80-$100 million, though Jake earns more in specific boxing years due to high fight purses. Logan's wealth comes from his diverse ventures like WWE and his popular Prime Hydration drink, while Jake's massive income often comes from his lucrative boxing career.
MrBeast recently celebrated reaching 100 million subscribers, prompting a reflection on his first subscriber, Roggan Minoggan, who subscribed in 2011. Minoggan created his YouTube account in 2006 and was the first to support MrBeast's initial channel, Beast5YT.
The "30-second rule" on YouTube refers to the critical first moments of a video, where creators must hook viewers within about 30 seconds to get them to keep watching, as YouTube registers meaningful engagement after this mark, impacting visibility and watch time. It's a key focus for audience retention, with strategies involving dynamic editing (B-roll, angles), emotional hooks, and clear value propositions, but it's distinct from copyright myths about using 30-second music clips.
MrBeast (Jimmy Donaldson) got rich by building a massive audience through extravagant YouTube stunts and philanthropy, then monetizing that attention with a diversified business empire including Feastables snacks, MrBeast Burger, merchandise, and massive brand deals, all while reinvesting profits back into bigger videos and new ventures like his Amazon show Beast Games. He leveraged his audience's trust into a "creator-led" business model, turning YouTube fame into a multi-billion dollar brand.
The most famous 12-year-old YouTuber is Ryan Kaji, the star of "Ryan's World," known for toy reviews and kid-friendly content, who became a household name and built a massive brand with billions of views and significant earnings, despite being a pre-teen.
He now lives in Palo Alto and rarely makes public appearances. Karim took a different route out of the media spotlight. He put his graduate studies at Stanford University ahead of running one of the largest tech companies in the world, which now has more than 122 million monthly active users.