The top highest paying niches on YouTube are:

Advertisers pay to display their ads on videos and channels. Their bid can go high or low, depending on the competition among fellow advertisers. The metric YouTube CPM (cost per 1,000 impressions) determines how much advertisers are willing to spend to show their ads on the platform. 

Reports indicate “making money online” is the best niche because creators can make an average CPM of $13.52 up to $22. “Digital marketing” is a close second with an average CPM earning of $12.52 while “personal finance and investments” is at $12.   

Educational content, both for children and adults, has a CPM rate of $9.89 while “Techs, Cards, and Gadgets” creators can see a CMP of $7.31. 

As for the rest of the niches on our list, YouTube channel owners can expect CPM rates around these amounts:

10 noteworthy channels from top-paying YouTube niches

Making money online

Joshua Mayo is a fine example of a successful channel in the “making money online” niche. He joined YouTube in February 2021 and now has 121 uploads so far. 

His video “How To Make Money Online | The Ultimate Guide” video now has over 69,000 views and has an estimated total earning of $95 to $238.

Digital marketing

Next, we have marketing strategist, entrepreneur, and content creator Adam Erhart. According to him, marketing is “the single most important element to business success” and that’s what he mostly covers in his channel. 

One of his videos “Digital Marketing 101 (A Beginner’s Guide To Marketing)” has gained over 479,000 views with an estimated total earning of $652 to $1,630.

Personal finance and investments

UK-based banker and YouTuber Nischa discusses “all things personal finance, self development and business.” Her video “6 life-changing personal finance books you MUST READ in 2023” has over 288,070 views, so far, and an estimated total earning of $392 to $979.

Educational content

Graphic designer and comics illustrator Brad Colbow runs Brad’s Art School on YouTube. He posts fun and informative art videos in animated form, such as “Learning to Draw Digitally for Beginners,” which has 177,000 views and estimated earnings of $240 to $ 601. So far, the channel has 443,000 subscribers.

Tech, cars, and gadgets

Lifestyle

British YouTuber Zoe Sugg started her lifestyle channel in 2012. She is also the author of the book Girl Online. Her video “How Well Do We STILL Know Each Other 8 Years On” has over 866,000 views with estimated total earnings of  $1,178 to $ 2,946.

Fashion and try on hauls

BlueprintDIY joined YouTube in 2011. Her fashion channel focuses on upcycling old clothes “with a creative spin.” Her “DIY Jeans to Crop Top Upcycle + Mother's Day Surprise” video has been viewed over 466,000 times. It has an estimated total earning of $634 to $1,585.

Cooking

AllasYummyFood shares “traditional recipes of Latvian, Russian, Eastern European Food and desserts.” She has 136K subscribers on her channel, so far, where she uploads 2 videos weekly. Her video “How To Make Russian Pelmeni” has over 320,000 views with estimated total earnings of $436 to $1,091.

Fitness and bodybuilding

Beastmode Jones considers bodybuilding as “the discipline that saved (his) life.” His channel aims to motivate viewers to become the “highest version of themselves.”

“How To Train Like A Bodybuilder (Mind-Muscle Connection)” has over 621,000 views and estimated total earnings of $845 to $2,112.

Video games

Irish-French YouTuber Tootsie has built a successful YouTube channel around her love of the game Minecraft. She has over 340,000 subscribers and her video “How To Build An Aesthetic Cozy Minecraft House | Cottagecore Cottage Tutorial” has over 594,000 views, with estimated total earnings of $809 to $ 2,023.

4 types of videos that get a lot of views on YouTube

These days, videos like how-to/tutorials, tech reviews, reactions, and pranks, among others, can get a lot of views on YouTube.

How-to/tutorial videos

How-to/tutorial videos are in high demand online. They can be an effective way to connect with your target audience - and establish your authority in your niche. These days, some users who want to learn a skill (be it simple or complicated) search for information on YouTube instead of Google to find entertaining, and easy to consume instructional videos. 

Viral how-to/tutorial videos on YouTube:

Other promising how-to/tutorial content on YouTube:

Tech reviews

Tech reviews are also among the most popular types of video content on YouTube. As technology continually evolves, people will often turn to the experts for opinion before purchasing smartphones, laptops, and other electronics. Through these tech product reviews, viewers can learn about the features, specifications, designs, and prices of different releases. Plus people love watching tech unboxing videos.  

Viral tech reviews on YouTube:

Other promising tech review content on YouTube:

Reaction videos

Ever noticed how YouTube immediately gets flooded with reaction videos whenever a new movie trailer, song, or challenge trends online? Well that’s because reaction videos are also extremely popular on the platform.

Reaction videos are fairly easy to produce plus they get many views online. Even science agrees that our brains’ mirror neurons bring us enjoyment as we watch strangers (or celebrities) reacting and showing emotion in their videos.

Viral reaction videos on YouTube: 

Prank videos

Although they were much more popular years ago, people today still enjoy watching funny prank videos online. 

It should, however, be noted that YouTube has implemented a site-wide ban on harmful and dangerous pranks starting 2019.

“YouTube is home to many beloved viral challenges and pranks,” the platform clarified in an updated guideline. “That said, we’ve always had policies to make sure what’s funny doesn’t cross the line into also being harmful or dangerous.”

Viral prank videos on YouTube:

Some interesting facts about YouTube viewers and the type of videos they consume:

In their Culture and Trends Report 2022, YouTube shares these statistics about Gen Z YouTube users and what they watch consume online:

How do I choose a niche for my YouTube channel?

Choosing a niche for a YouTube channel can be done by 1) identifying your passion, 2) determining your audience, and 3) assessing your competition. Ideally, you should be able to check these three important factors. Besides, building a YouTube channel from scratch takes time so make sure that you pick the best niche you’ll always be excited about.

Identifying your passion

First off, you want to consider what you are most passionate about. What are your skills and interests? Additionally, what are your favorite hobbies and/or what do you do as a profession? Answering these questions will help you pinpoint which niche is most ideal for you.   

You can also try to zoom in a niche within a niche. For example, you may be a guitarist who plays for fun or does it professionally. If so, starting a guitar-focused music channel can be a terrific idea.

Marty Schwartz does guitar lessons, technique tutorials, gear reviews, and guitar player interviews on his Marty Music channel. He has become one of the most popular guitar YouTubers with over 3.68M subscribers so far.

Determining your audience

Of course, you also want to check if your chosen YouTube niche has an accessible audience. Your video content ideas may be interesting, but if you can’t attract a decent number of eyeballs, it would be hard for you to make any money.

You’ll definitely need to do some research to find out if your niche has a sizable number of potential viewers. Doing keyword research, for instance, will allow you to see if people are searching for particular topics online.  

Assessing your competition

Lastly, you’d want to look up successful YouTube channels in your niche for inspiration. Add your own unique spin in your content to stand out and offer something new. Regardless of your chosen niche, the goal is to connect with your target audience. 

Also, you’ll have to keep in mind that not all popular YouTube niches can be profitable for you. So if possible, try to stay away from overly saturated ones. As a beginner, you may instead want to concentrate your efforts on low competition but high demand niches. 

Pro tip: When choosing a niche, make sure that you comply with YouTube’s Community Guidelines and Monetization Policies. You wouldn’t want to violate any of the existing rules if you’re aiming to target profitable YouTube niches.

How much do YouTubers earn on average?

On average, YouTubers can earn $60,628 yearly in the United States. The revenue can differ depending on the channel’s fan base, views, location, and overall performance. In fact, annual salary for US-based creators can range anywhere from $13,000 to $134,500, reported ZipRecruiter.

Furthermore, Yahoo article also doubles down on these figures, pointing out:

6 ways YouTube can be a great source of making money

YouTube can be a great source for making money online because it offers multiple ways to earn such as ad revenue, channel memberships, premium subscribers, Super Chat, Super Stickers, and Super Thanks. Other popular ways to make money on the platform include creating sponsored content, selling your own merchandise, and launching a YouTube automation channel.  

1. Ad revenue

To get monetized, a YouTuber needs to get over 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 watch hours within the last 12 months. Additionally, the content creator should have an approved Google AdSense account linked to their channel. 

Advertisers pay YouTubers based on clicks and impressions and they earn 55% from Google ad revenues, while 45% directly go to YouTube.

YouTube offers different advertising formats, such as:

• Skippable video ads
• Non-skippable video ads
• Bumper ads
• Overlay ads
• Display ads
• Sponsored cards

2. Channel memberships and premium subscribers

Aside from ad revenue, YouTube creators can also earn from channel memberships and premium subscribers. 

According to YouTube, channel memberships “allow viewers to join (channels) through monthly payments and get members-only perks like badges, emoji, and other goods.” Creators get 70% from membership revenue, minus taxes and fees.   

Meanwhile, YouTube Premium subscribers pay to use YouTube, YouTube Kids, and YouTube Music. Users get to support their favorite creators without seeing ads. Plus they can download videos if they want to watch offline.  

As with ad revenue, YouTube takes 45% from the overall earning while the creator keeps the rest.

3. Super Chat, Super Stickers, and Super Thanks

Next, YouTube Super Chat and Super Stickers allow fans to pay for their live chat or animated messages to be pinned in live chat streams. On the other hand, Super Thanks makes it possible for channel owners to “earn revenue and connect with viewers who want to show extra gratitude for their content.”

For the Supers features, creators get 70% of the total earnings after taxes and fees.

4. Creating sponsored content

Brands will start knocking to offer sponsorship deals once you’ve built a niche community around your channel. Of course, you can also take the initiative and start contacting different companies to see if they’re interested in promoting their products or services to your following.  

Some brands will pay you a lump sum amount for sponsored content. Compared with ad revenue, the great thing about this is that you get to keep the entire pay for yourself because YouTube will not receive any cut from your earnings. 

However, you’d want to inform both YouTube and your viewers when you’re endorsing a brand in your videos. Tick the box that declares “My video contains paid promotion like a product placement, sponsorship, or endorsement.” 

5. Selling your own merchandise

Once you have an established YouTube following, you can explore merchandise selling as one way to generate additional income from the platform. Fans are always more than willing to support their favorite creators by purchasing official products directly from them.

Among the most popular items to sell on YouTube include t-shirts, hoodies, coffee mugs, hats, stickers, ref magnets, and tote bags. Hire a professional to create unique designs for your brand. Then look for local or online sellers that can deliver high-quality merch output.

Mention and promote the products in your videos. Plus don’t forget to include your shop’s link on the description box. 

6. Launching a YouTube automation channel

YouTube automation is recommended for channel owners who want to earn from YouTube but dislike the idea of showing their faces on screen. Instead, you will work with freelancers from Fiverr, Upwork, or other freelancing platforms. You can hire a team of scriptwriters, video editors, and voice over artists to help you create faceless videos for your channel.  

Conclusion

YouTube can definitely be a great way to earn some extra money online. However, if you are looking for a long–term passive income stream, running a lead generation business is a better idea.

In fact, the lead generation business model is a much easier way to create passive income because you don't have to compete with thousands of content creators like you do on YouTube. You simply rank web properties in your local cities and towns and compete with 10-20 local companies for the top rankings on Google. Plus you don't have to be great on video which is another big hurdle of YouTube that holds a lot of people back.

If you're interested, we have a lead generation coaching program where we teach you how to achieve organic ranking and get more fresh leads through proven SEO strategies. In return, your clients will be more than happy to pay you good money monthly.

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