Top 10 Richest Youtubers in 2017

Video streaming has become incredibly commonplace within the last decade- why wouldn’t anyone want to watch a clip at the click of a mouse? Not only is it more convenient than television, which requires you to catch a show at a specific time, but several platforms also allow you to create, and share your own videos- some sites even allow you to broadcast live!

With the massive growth of the internet, it’s not surprising to know that there are countless video-streaming sites available; the most popular probably being that of Youtube. A robust video platform,

Youtube is undoubtedly one of the most-viewed websites online. Let’s take a look at some statistics- since it first went online, over 1,300,000,000 people have used the site. In fact, over five billion video clips are watched every day! As if that wasn’t impressive enough, 300 hours worth of video are uploaded onto Youtube every minute- just imagine all of the content that has been posted in the time that it has taken you to read this paragraph!

Founded in February of 2005 by three former Paypal employees, Jawed Karim, Chad Hurley, and Steve Chen, Youtube began as a technology startup. Interestingly enough, it’s initial headquarters were located above a Japanese restaurant and pizzeria in California. The first video entitled, Me at The Zoo was uploaded onto the site on April 23, 2005; it featured co-founder Karim visiting the San Diego Zoo. From there, Youtube was opened to beta testers prior to being made available to the public. Quickly attracting users with its convenience and ease of use, over 65,000 new videos were posted every day by July of 2006.

Since then, Youtube has become the second-most visited website worldwide according to various third-party analytic sites. In November of 2006, Google bought the video-streaming platform for a whopping $1.65 billion; it currently operates as one of its many subsidiaries.

Packed full with functionalities, Youtube allows its users to upload their own videos onto his or her own channel. Of course, uploaders are also capable of earning advertising revenue through advertisements placed on their videos- assuming that it contains original content. This is where the Top 10 Richest Youtubers come into play- most of these individuals have attracted such a massive following that their videos effortlessly draw in thousands and thousands of dollars, from their high view count. As their channel and overall presence grows increasingly popular, it’s not uncommon for them to also receive various endorsement deals from companies- which only increases the amount that ultimately they earn from Youtube.

Now that we’ve gone over some of the basic stuff, let’s get to the real topic- who are the top 10 richest Youtubers at the moment? What kind of content do they share and upload onto their channels? How many subscribers have they accumulated over the years? Hold on tight, for we’ll be going over the answer to all these questions- and more.

The Richest Youtubers in 2017 – Complete List

#1: Michelle Phan- Net Worth: $50 Million

Currently the richest user on the platform, Michelle Phan first started her channel in 2006, with various makeup tutorial videos- at the time, she was still supporting herself as a waitress at a restaurant. Incredibly talented, it didn’t take long for her to amass a sizable following on the site.

Michelle’s big break came in 2009 and 2010 when two of her “Lady Gag Eye Makeup” tutorials went viral- she was subsequently made an advertising partner on Youtube. Shortly afterward, it was announced that she had become Lancome’s global spokesperson.

Since the mid 2000’s, her channel has grown immensely- nowadays, she has well over 8,800,000 subscribers- an amount that is only going up with time. To date, she has accumulated more than 1.1 billion views across her videos. Additionally, her success on Youtube has also led her to embark on various business endeavors- for instance her monthly beauty product subscription service and her own line of cosmetics.

#2: Pewdiepie- Net Worth $18 Million

The first Youtuber to reach 10 billion lifetime views, Pewdiepie is most well known for his game play videos and vlogs. Hailing from Sweden, he joined Youtube back in 2010- in fact, he has since given up his university degree to play video games full-time. Although his parents were livid at the time, his decision has proved to be the right one- currently, he has over 47,000,000 subscribers on Youtube; this also makes him the most subscribed star on the site.

At the beginning, Pewdiepie was working at a hot dog stand in order to finance his videos- he sure has come a long way since then. Listed as one of the Most Influential People in the world by Forbes, he has also created his own app which undoubtedly helps to bring in the dough. Interestingly enough, the Youtuber himself doesn’t seem to be too obsessed with the income- in fact, he has donated millions of dollars for various charitable causes over the years.

#3: Smosh- Net Worth $11.8 Million

Smosh is currently a duo that consists of two individuals- Ian Andrew Hecox and Daniel Anthony Padilla. In 2003, Padilla created the channel after wanting a platform to share his flash animations to; it wasn’t until later on that he was joined by Hecox. Since then, their page has grown to include lip sync videos, game play videos, short skits, etc. In 2010, they uploaded a Pokemon Theme Song Music Video which quickly propelled them into fame after going viral; the video has been viewed over 24 million times during its lifetime.

Currently, the two sit at 22,000,000 subscribers, making them the seventh most-subscribed-to channel on the site. Overall, their videos have been viewed well over six billion times across the globe!

#4: Markiplier- Net Worth $5.1 Million

At just twenty eight years of age, Markiplier has made himself to be one of the richest users on Youtube. Born on June 28, 1989, he started his own channel in 2012 in his early twenties. Currently, he is best known for his let’s play videos, most of which feature his unique game play commentary which involve screaming, yelling, cursing, and even crying. Initially a biomedical engineering student at the University of Cincinnati, he ultimately chose to drop out of college to pursue Youtube full time.

Aside from his Let’s Play series, Markiplier also uploads various other comedy videos and vlogs. To date, he has accumulated over 16,000,000 subscribers- making him the owner of the 22nd most subscribed to channel on Youtube. His videos have been viewed over 6 billion times combined since the launch of his channel.

#5: Grace Helbig- Net Worth $5 Million

Hailing from New Jersey, Grace Helbig started her Youtube Channel in the fall of 2007, in attempts to keep herself entertained by recording daily vlogs while house-sitting for a family. A talented personality, she has since created a second channel called My Damn Channel, in which she hosts the popular comedy show DailyGrace.

Since she first rose to fame on Youtube, she has been featured in a number of TV commercials- even talk shows.

Grace has also authored two handbooks, Grace & Style: The Art of Pretending You Have It and Grace’s Guide: The Art of Pretending to be a Grown-up.
Since the start of her Youtube career, her channel has accumulated over 3,000,000 subscribers as of March 2017. Associated with the Fullscreen Network, her videos have been viewed more than 254,000,000 times.

#6: Roman Atwood- Net Worth $4.5 Million

Born on May 28, 1983, thirty three-year-old Roman Atwood rose to fame with his comedic vlogs, through which he narrates his life on a daily basis. An avid video producer since high school, he founded his Youtube Channel in 2009. Aside from his popular vlogs, he has also created a secondary channel in which he uploads various pranks- some of the most popular ones include the “Killing My Kid Prank”, the “Plastic Ball Prank” and “Anniversary Prank”. Altogether, the three videos have been viewed 2.2 billion times.

In the eight years that he’s been on Youtube, Roman Atwood has attracted over 12 million subscribers on his channel; his videos have also earned over 3.3 billion lifetime views. The second Youtuber to receive two Diamond Play Buttons, he has also created a film called, Natural Born Pranksters.

#7: Jenna Marbles- Net Worth $2.9 Million

Prior to her rise to fame, Jenna Marbles worked multiple jobs to make ends meet including at a salon and as a bartender. Obviously, she has come a long way since.

The New Yorker first launched her Youtube Channel in 2009. Just a year later, she hit it big after releasing the video “How to Trick People Into Thinking You’re Good Looking” which quickly went viral within the first week.

Mostly known for her comedy videos and vlogs, Jenna currently has a subscriber count of over 17,000,000 as of 2017- making her the owner of the 20th most-subscribed Youtube channel. Also noteworthy is the fact that she owns the second most popular female-operated Youtube page.

#8: Rosanna Pasino- Net Worth $2.5 Million

Born on June 8, 1985, Rosanna Pasino’s original dream was to become an actress. In addition to her love for acting however, she is also a talented baker. In the spring of 2010, she started her own channel, Nerdy Nummies as a means of sharing her passion for baking, after being encouraged to do so by fans. Since the launch of her page, she has uploaded more than 100 videos as part of her Nerdy Nummies series.

As of March 2017, Rosanna Pasino has over 8,200,000 subscribers- she also averages an approximately 75,000,000 views per month across her videos. In 2015, she also authored a New York Times Best Seller cookbook, The Nerdy Nummies Cookbook.

#9: Lilly Singh- Net Worth: $2.5 Million

Possibly the first Canadian to hit our list, Lilly Singh is better known by her Youtube handle, llSuperwomanll. The winner of multiple Teen Choice Awards, she uploads a variety of videos onto her channel (which was founded in October of 2010), such as rants, blogs, skits and various other videos of comedic nature. Just recently, she also came out with her first book entitled, How to Be a Bawse: A Guide to Conquering Life.

A vlogger, comedian, author, and motivational speaker, Lilly has just recently reached the 11,000,000 subscriber mark as of January 2017.

One of the Top 100 most subscribed channels on Youtube, she has accumulated over 1.7 billion view counts across all of her videos. Aside from Youtube, Lilly has also appeared in various films such as Dr. Cabbie (2014), A Trip to Unicorn Island (2015), Ice Age: Collision Course (2016), and Bad Moms (2016).

#10 Hank Green- Net Worth: $2 Million

Responsible for the very first Youtuber convention, VidCon, Hank Green and his brother started their youtube channel, Vlogbrothers in 2007. At the time, they used the platform to showcase their project, Brotherhood 2.0. A few years after getting started on the video-streaming site, they launched a second channel- Crash Course, which provides a variety of educational videos based on high school curriculum. In 2012, he also co-created the web series, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries which is done in the style of vlogs.

In addition to all that he’s accomplished on Youtube, Hank Green has also put forth a number of studio albums such as So Jokes (2008), This Machine Pwns N00bs (2009), Ellen Hardcastle (2011), and Incongruent (2014). Currently, vlogbrothers is just shy of the 3 million subscriber mark at 2,900,000 subscribers. Their videos have been viewed over 677,000,000 times online to date.

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Also See: The Top Richest Celebrities In Nigeria

Source: gazettereview