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Since its creation in February 2005, YouTube has become one of the most popular websites to go to. Today it creates billions in revenue for Google and plays host to millions of people and their videos. It has become so popular since its inception that some of its users have made a living by constantly posting videos and gaining millions of followers to watch those videos. You’d be hard pressed to find someone today who doesn’t regularly watch videos. I myself am a fan of MightyCarMods, a couple of Australian guys working on cars and having fun. Those who have made a living off of YouTube range from Gamers to make-up artists. But the very best have earned fortunes not unlike those of professional athletes. Here’s the top ten richest YouTubers in 2018.
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10. Lilly Singh – $10.5 Million
Known as iisuperwomanii on YouTube, she is the only woman to crack the top 10. The Canadian born star started her channel in 2010 and has since amassed 13 million subscribers and over 1 billion views. Her channel includes music videos, sketches and all sorts of comedic entertainment. Because of her popularity, Singh has seen screen time in movies like “Bad Moms,” and on the Disney channel show “Bizzardvark,” as well as often collaborating with celebrities, like James Franco and Selena Gomez, for her videos. She will lay a role in HBO’s upcoming “Farenheit 451” adaptation.
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9. Smosh – $11 Million
Even if you’d never seen their videos, like me, it was difficult not to know who Smosh was. At three different times during their time on YouTube, they were the most subscribed to channel. Created by Anthony Padilla and Ian Hecox in 2002 as its own website, they joined YouTube right away. Soon their channel grew to never before seen heights as it exploded in popularity. Their channel produced all kinds of sketch videos, culminating in nearly 23 million subscribers as of 2018. In june of 2017, Padilla announced that he was leaving Smosh to pursue other ventures. With Hecox going at it alone, Smosh is still growing.
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8. Ryan Toysreview – $11 million
If you’re in college and why you couldn’t have found a way to make a bunch of money while doing nothing, I would skip over this one. In just over three years, Ryan has grabbed 14.1 million subscribers and has over 22 BILLION views on his videos. How, you might ask? He, uh, opens toys, plays with them and gives his review. He’s also six years old and has more money than most of us will ever make. Figures.
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7. Jake Paul – $11.5 million
When it was announced that the app, Vine, was shutting down, the youth went into a bit of a panic. It had quickly become a smash hit and gave birth to stars, not unlike YouTube. Once the app shutdown, most of those stars made a leap to YouTube. Several kept their success going, including the Paul brothers. First up is the younger brother, Jake Paul. With 14 million subscribers to entertain, his posts range from music to vlogs and even sketches. He was a regular on the Disney channel show “Bizzardvark” but was let go due to a supposed “bad boy” persona. Now he spends his time on YouTube only.
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6. Felix Kjelberg – $12 Million
In 2010, Kjelberg dropped out of college and started his own YouTube channel. Under the name PewDiePie, Kjelberg took the internet by storm with his video-game commentary. In August of 2013, PewDiePie became the most subscribed to channel on YouTube. He has held that title since then, other than a 46 day span where YouTube’s own channel surpassed him. He currently has over 63 million subscribers and 17 billion views. In 2016. Time magazine named him one of “The World’s 100 Most Influential People” for that year.
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5. Mark Fischbach – $12.5 Million
Starting in 2012 with his channel Markiplier, Fischbach has grown to become one of the most successful YouTubers out there. Like PewDiePie, Fischbach specializes in video-game commentary, a well as vlogs. He is known for playing mostly horror type games, setting him apart from his fellow game commentators. The YouTube personality has gained over 20 million subscribers since forming his channel and has nearly 10 billion views.
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4. Logan Paul – $12.5 Million
Like his brother Jake, Logan is a former Vine star. Since moving to YouTube, he has seen himself caught in a few precarious situations. From showing a real body hanging from a tree in a Japanese forest or tasering dead rats, he certainly has some… interesting videos, to say the least. But throughout all of the controversy, he has remained incredibly popular, with just over 21 million total followers, and nearly 4 billion views since 2013. Say what you will about him, but he’s making money and lots of it.
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3. Dude Perfect – $14 Million
Throwing some balls in hoops is how it started, and now they are the 7th-most subscribed channel on YouTube. The guys from Dude Perfect, Coby and Cory Cotton, Garrett Hilbert, Cody Jones, and Tyler Toney are all former high school basketball players who went to Texas A&M. There they met and started making videos of trick basketball shots. From there, their popularity exploded, resulting in several mobile games and even their own T.V. show. They hold several Guinness world records as well, the setting of which helped them reach over 30 million subscribers and 5 billion views.
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2. Evan Fong – $15.5 Million
As gaming becomes even more popular as the days go on, so do its stars. Known as VanossGaming on YouTube, Fong has become one of the most successful channels on the site since joining in 2011. His channel features video game commentary and group play with other YouTube gamers. Along with his regular videos, Fong is also a part of the animated YouTube Red show “Paranormal Action Squad.” His success and popularity among YouTube is shown by his nearly 23 million subscribers and nearly 10 billion views.
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1. Daniel Middleton – $16.5 Million
Known as DanTDM on YouTube, the 26-year-old has more than YouTube to thank for his success. He started his channel in 2012 and has since gained over 19 million subscribers and 12 billion views. Middleton’s videos mainly focus on the game Minecraft, of which he produces a new one each day. Other than his videos, he has a New York Times Best Selling graphic novel and has been featured on several YouTube series and Netflix shows. Middleton is the perfect example of what can happen when you start making internet videos.
