YouTube Marketing Statistics for 2026: Ad Revenue, Shorts, Influencer Performance, TV Viewing, B2B, and Ad Format Benchmarks

In 2026, YouTube is the most commercially powerful video marketing platform on earth, the second most visited website globally, the second largest search engine after Google, and the only social platform that reaches a majority of American adults across every age cohort under 65. YouTube’s annual ad revenue reached USD 36.1 billion in 2024, up from USD 31.5 billion in 2023, and Q4 2024 alone generated USD 10.4 billion in ad revenue, a record. YouTube Premium crossed 125 million paid subscribers in January 2026. And YouTube’s potential ad reach of 2.53 billion users represents nearly half of all social media users worldwide, based on the Digital 2025 Global Overview Report.

The platform’s marketing relevance in 2026 is characterized by three structural developments. First, YouTube has become a television: it reached 12.5% of all U.S. TV viewing in May 2025, surpassing Netflix, Disney+, and every other streaming service, with more than 1 billion hours of content watched on TV screens daily. Second, Shorts has become a performance channel: YouTube Shorts generates over 200 billion daily views as of 2025, has an average engagement rate of 5.91% — the highest of all short-form video platforms, outperforming TikTok at 5.75% and Instagram Reels at 5.53% — and Shorts ad spend by advertisers grew 20% to 25% year-over-year in 2025 as monetization rates more than doubled in the prior 12 months according to Alphabet’s Q1 2024 earnings call. Third, YouTube’s long-form content maintains compounding discovery advantages that short-form platforms cannot replicate: 70% of what people watch on YouTube is surfaced by its recommendation algorithm, YouTube Shorts that link to longer videos achieve a 4.5% CTR driving channel retention, and one in three marketers who used Shorts reported a 15% to 25% boost in web traffic.

For advertisers, the cost structure is compelling. The average CPV is USD 0.02 to USD 0.03, average CTR is 0.65%, average CPM is approximately USD 3.50, and a mobile YouTube ad is 84% more likely to engage prospects than a TV ad. Ninety percent of video marketers used YouTube in 2024, more than any other platform. Seventy-eight percent found it effective. And 98% of users say they are more likely to trust creators on YouTube than on other platforms, creating a structural premium for influencer-integrated marketing on the channel.

This article compiles 75+ YouTube marketing statistics organized across nine thematic sections, drawn from the latest figures published within the last two years by primary data providers including Alphabet earnings reports, Sprout Social 2025 Index, Wyzowl Video Marketing Statistics 2025, Digital 2025 Global Overview Report, Sprout Social Influencer Marketing data, Dash Social H1 2025 benchmark study, Sixth City Marketing, Magic Hour, Zebracat, Loopex Digital, Marketing LTB, HubSpot State of Marketing, and Think with Google. Every statistic is atomic, individually sourced, and linked directly to its original study or publication.

Scope and Methodology

Includes only publicly available YouTube marketing statistics relevant for 2026.
Based on the latest figures published within the last two years.
Sources include primary research, first-party platform data, institutional studies, and industry benchmark reports.
Each statistic is listed separately with its original source and study context.
No estimates, forecasts, interpretations, or recommendations are included.

Key YouTube Marketing Statistics for 2026

YouTube’s annual ad revenue reached USD 36.1 billion in 2024, up from USD 31.5 billion in 2023, making YouTube the sixth-biggest digital ad platform in the U.S. and one of the two largest video advertising channels globally, based on Alphabet’s financial reporting cited in Sprout Social YouTube Stats 2025.
YouTube’s potential ad reach totals 2.53 billion users, nearly half of all 5.24 billion social media users worldwide, based on the Digital 2025 Global Overview Report cited in Sprout Social YouTube Stats 2025.
YouTube reached 12.5% of all U.S. TV viewing in May 2025, surpassing Netflix, Disney+, and every other streaming service, based on Nielsen data cited in Loopex Digital YouTube Shorts Statistics 2026.
YouTube Shorts generates over 200 billion daily views as of 2025, up from 70 billion in March 2024, based on platform data cited in Loopex Digital YouTube Shorts Statistics 2026.
YouTube Shorts has an average engagement rate of 5.91%, the highest of all short-form video platforms, outperforming TikTok at 5.75% and Instagram Reels at 5.53%, based on Statista data cited in Loopex Digital YouTube Shorts Statistics 2026 and HubSpot Video Marketing Statistics 2025.
85% of U.S. adults reported using YouTube in 2024, making it the most widely used online platform, surpassing Facebook at 70%, Instagram at 50%, and every other social media application, based on Pew Research Center data cited in Magic Hour YouTube Marketing Statistics.
90% of video marketers used YouTube in 2024, more than any other platform, and 78% of marketers say YouTube marketing has been effective, based on Wyzowl’s Video Marketing Statistics 2025 cited in Teleprompter.com Video Marketing Statistics 2025 and Magic Hour YouTube Marketing Statistics.
98% of YouTube users are more likely to trust creators on YouTube than on other platforms, based on platform trust data cited in Sixth City Marketing YouTube Statistics.
47% of YouTube users engage with brands at least once a week, and one in three interacts with brand content daily, based on Sprout Social data cited in Magic Hour YouTube Marketing Statistics.
Brands using a Shorts-first funnel report up to 20% higher conversions, and 64% of creators say Shorts improved performance of their long-form content, based on AWISEE analysis cited in AWISEE YouTube Shorts Statistics 2025.
YouTube influencers collectively generated 28.4 billion engagements in the U.S. in 2024, one of the highest influencer engagement totals of any platform, based on Sprout Social Influencer Marketing data cited in Sprout Social YouTube Stats 2025.
Over half of U.S. marketers plan to use YouTube for influencer marketing in 2025, based on Sprout Social data cited in Sprout Social YouTube Stats 2025.

Platform Scale and Audience Statistics

YouTube has more than 2.85 billion monthly active users globally in 2026, with 122 million daily active users, based on user data compiled by RecurPost YouTube Statistics 2026 and Magic Hour YouTube Marketing Statistics.
As of February 2026, India leads the world with 500 million YouTube users, and the United States follows with 254 million, based on February 2026 platform data cited in Colorwhistle YouTube Marketing Statistics 2026.
Singapore leads globally in YouTube penetration at 95.3% of the population, followed by Israel and Saudi Arabia at 93.8%, Canada at 89.4%, and New Zealand at 90.2%, based on February 2026 penetration data cited in Colorwhistle YouTube Marketing Statistics 2026.
YouTube is available in more than 100 countries and supports 80 languages, covering 95% of the global internet population, based on Foundation Marketing data cited in Sixth City Marketing YouTube Statistics.
84% of Gen Z-ers have a YouTube account, making YouTube one of the best platforms for reaching younger audiences, based on the 2025 Sprout Social Index cited in Sprout Social YouTube Stats 2025.
76% of consumers are on YouTube, based on the 2025 Sprout Social Index reported by Sprout Social YouTube Stats 2025.
Roughly 54% of YouTube users are male and 46% are female, with the largest demographic being 25 to 34 year olds, based on demographic data cited in Sixth City Marketing Video Marketing Stats.
U.S. users spend nearly 35 minutes daily on YouTube in 2024, projected to reach 37 minutes by the end of 2025, while globally users spend an average of 27 hours of monthly engagement on the platform, based on Statista and Sprout Social data cited in RecurPost YouTube Statistics 2026.
Users spend an average of 29 hours per month on the YouTube mobile app globally, and YouTube is the most-used mobile app by total time spent, based on Hootsuite data cited in Sixth City Marketing YouTube Statistics.
YouTube Premium crossed 125 million paid subscribers in January 2026, up from 50 million in 2021, with the milestone doubling achieved in just two years, based on platform milestone data cited in RecurPost YouTube Statistics 2026.
There are over 113.9 million YouTube channels on the platform, with only 14 channels having more than 100 million subscribers, and MrBeast leading globally with over 392 million subscribers, based on Hootsuite and Viewstats data cited in Sixth City Marketing YouTube Statistics and Magic Hour YouTube Marketing Statistics.

Engagement and Content Format Statistics

Consumers are now slightly more likely to interact with short-form video at 52% than long-form at 48%, a shift from previous years, based on the Social Media Content Strategy Report cited in Sprout Social YouTube Stats 2025.
On-demand YouTube video views increased 121% while Shorts views declined 20% in the first half of 2025 compared to the prior six months, indicating audiences are rewatching longer video more while Shorts growth normalizes, based on Dash Social’s benchmark analysis of 630 global brand accounts from January 1 to June 30, 2025 published by Dash Social YouTube Benchmarks 2025.
Average watch time per YouTube video increased from 64% to 86% in H1 2025 for On-Demand content, while retention for Shorts remains at 99%, based on Dash Social’s analysis of 630 brand accounts from January to June 2025 published by Dash Social YouTube Benchmarks 2025.
On-Demand videos generate nearly six times more views than Shorts per post, while Shorts drive significantly more likes, comments, and shares per view, based on Dash Social’s H1 2025 benchmark analysis published by Dash Social YouTube Benchmarks 2025.
70% of YouTube content consumed is determined by the platform’s recommendation algorithm, not search or subscriptions, based on Foundation Marketing data cited in Sixth City Marketing YouTube Statistics.
Video content with how-to themes achieves an average engagement rate of 74% among 3 to 5 minute videos, compared to a general average of 43% for the same length, based on Wistia’s 2024 State of Video Report cited in HubSpot Video Marketing Statistics 2025.
YouTube channels with between 100,000 and 1 million subscribers have the highest engagement rate at 3.47%, based on Influencer Marketing Hub data cited in Sixth City Marketing YouTube Statistics.
37% of users rely on YouTube and TikTok to stay in the loop on trends, with YouTube content having a longer shelf life than TikTok content, giving brand videos more time to make an impact, based on the 2025 Sprout Social Index cited in Sprout Social YouTube Stats 2025.
83% of consumers want to see more videos from brands in 2025, based on Wyzowl data cited in Magic Hour YouTube Marketing Statistics.

YouTube Shorts Statistics

YouTube Shorts generates over 200 billion daily views in 2025, up from 70 billion in March 2024 and 30 billion in 2021, representing a 567% increase in daily views over four years, based on platform data cited in Loopex Digital YouTube Shorts Statistics 2026.
YouTube Shorts’ average engagement rate of 5.91% outperforms TikTok at 5.75%, Instagram Reels at 5.53%, and Facebook Reels, based on Statista Q1 2024 data cited in HubSpot Video Marketing Statistics 2025 and Loopex Digital YouTube Shorts Statistics 2026.
Shorts that link to other videos have a 4.5% CTR, driving channel retention and audience migration from short to long-form content, based on AWISEE analysis cited in AWISEE YouTube Shorts Statistics 2025.
72% of YouTube users watch Shorts at least once per week, and the average Shorts session lasts 14 minutes and includes 12 to 18 videos, based on platform data cited in Loopex Digital YouTube Shorts Statistics 2026.
The average Shorts viewer retention rate is 73%, compared to 52% for long-form YouTube videos, and 42% of Shorts viewers watch the full video when it is under 20 seconds, based on Zebracat research published by Zebracat YouTube Shorts Statistics.
Shorts between 50 and 60 seconds in length generate the most views and highest completion rates, with longer Shorts at this range achieving a 76% average completion rate, based on Zebracat and DemandSage research cited in Zebracat YouTube Shorts Statistics.
Brands that combine Shorts with long-form videos grow their channels 41% faster than those using only one format, and Shorts with a CTA in the caption or comments gain 22% more engagement, based on AWISEE analysis cited in AWISEE YouTube Shorts Statistics 2025.
Shorts with trending audio in the first 5 seconds receive a 21% algorithmic reach boost, and Shorts with polls or Q&As see 26% higher engagement, based on Zebracat research published by Zebracat YouTube Shorts Statistics.
Shorts monetization accounted for 22% of YouTube’s total ad revenue distribution in 2025, up from 15% in 2024, and advertiser spend on Shorts grew 20% to 25% year-over-year, based on Zebracat data and Alphabet Q1 2024 earnings cited in Zebracat YouTube Shorts Statistics and HubSpot Video Marketing Statistics 2025.
Since October 2024, YouTube allows Shorts up to 3 minutes in length, and in up to 40 markets advertisers can book First Position on YouTube Shorts, meaning their ad is shown first when users open the Shorts feed, based on Alphabet Q3 2024 earnings call data cited in HubSpot Video Marketing Statistics 2025.
1 in 3 marketers saw a 15% to 25% boost in web traffic from YouTube Shorts, while half reported gaining new subscribers, based on Adobe research cited in Magic Hour YouTube Marketing Statistics.

Ad Revenue and Advertising Format Statistics

YouTube generated USD 10.4 billion in ad revenue in Q4 2024 alone, a record quarter, based on Alphabet’s Q4 2024 earnings report cited in Colorwhistle YouTube Marketing Statistics 2026.
YouTube’s average ad CTR is approximately 0.65% across all campaign types in 2025, the average view rate is 31.9%, and the average CPV is approximately USD 0.026, based on 2025 benchmark data compiled by Marketing LTB YouTube Ads Statistics 2025.
The average CPM on YouTube is approximately USD 3.50 in 2025, with finance and business niches commanding CPMs as high as USD 4.50 on Shorts placements, based on benchmark data compiled by Marketing LTB YouTube Ads Statistics 2025 and Zebracat YouTube Shorts Statistics.
The average CPC on YouTube is approximately USD 0.49, and the average conversion rate for YouTube ads varies widely from 0.05% to 0.5% for ecommerce and 40% to 60% for optimized lead-gen campaigns, based on benchmark data compiled by Marketing LTB YouTube Ads Statistics 2025.
A mobile YouTube ad is 84% more likely to engage prospects than a TV ad, and 70% of YouTube videos are watched on mobile devices, based on WordStream and SocialPilot data cited in Sixth City Marketing Video Marketing Stats.
44% of the top YouTube ads in 2024 were not traditional ad lengths, reflecting a shift toward custom creative formats beyond the standard 15, 30, and 60-second slots, based on Hootsuite data cited in Sixth City Marketing YouTube Statistics.
Viewers who see TrueView ads are 10 times more likely to engage with the brand on YouTube than those who don’t see the ad, based on Foundation Marketing data cited in Sixth City Marketing YouTube Statistics.
51% of B2C and B2B marketers run YouTube video ads, and brands that use video marketing grow their revenue 49% faster year-over-year than those that don’t, based on Foundation Marketing and Aberdeen Group data cited in Sixth City Marketing YouTube Statistics.
YouTube pays out approximately 68% of AdSense revenue to creators, and YouTube creators collectively earned an estimated USD 3.1 billion from Shorts alone in 2024, based on platform revenue sharing data cited in Colorwhistle YouTube Marketing Statistics 2026 and Zebracat YouTube Shorts Statistics.

TV Screen and Long-Form Viewing Statistics

YouTube reached 12.5% of all U.S. TV viewing in May 2025, making it the single most-watched video service on television screens in the United States, ahead of Netflix, Disney+, and all other streaming services, based on Nielsen data cited in Loopex Digital YouTube Shorts Statistics 2026.
More than 1 billion hours of YouTube content are watched on TV screens daily, reflecting the structural migration of YouTube audiences from mobile to the living room, based on WordStream data cited in Sixth City Marketing Video Marketing Stats.
59% of social media users think YouTube advertisements are more relevant than ads on TV and streaming services, based on Notta research cited in Sixth City Marketing Video Marketing Stats.
CTV and OTT inventory on YouTube typically commands higher CPMs than mobile or desktop placements due to greater viewer attention and passive, lean-back consumption, based on platform inventory analysis published by Marketing LTB YouTube Ads Statistics 2025.
Companies that use long-form videos including live streams alongside short-form videos are more likely to achieve greater impact on consumers’ ad recall and brand awareness, based on Think with Google research cited in Sixth City Marketing Video Marketing Stats.
61% of respondents use YouTube Shorts to discover short-form content and 56% use YouTube to discover long-form content, making YouTube the only platform that leads in both content discovery categories simultaneously, based on Think with Google research cited in Sixth City Marketing Video Marketing Stats.

Influencer Marketing Statistics

YouTube influencers collectively generated 28.4 billion engagements in the United States in 2024, making YouTube one of the most engaged platforms for influencer content, based on Sprout Social Influencer Marketing data cited in Sprout Social YouTube Stats 2025.
Over half of U.S. marketers plan to use YouTube for influencer marketing in 2025, with YouTube becoming a top choice for influencer campaigns due to long-form content’s lasting impact, based on Sprout Social data cited in Sprout Social YouTube Stats 2025.
YouTube is the third most popular platform for influencer marketing content globally, and 92% of the driving force behind branded YouTube videos are influencers, based on Mediakix and Tubular Insights data cited in Sixth City Marketing YouTube Statistics.
98% of users are more likely to trust creators on YouTube than on other platforms, making creator-led content the strongest trust mechanism available to brands on the platform, based on Hootsuite-reported data cited in Sixth City Marketing YouTube Statistics.
33% of surveyed brands used YouTube for influencer marketing campaigns, and 85% of people say a video convinced them to buy a product or service, based on Influencer Marketing Hub and Sprout Social data cited in Sixth City Marketing YouTube Statistics and Sprout Social Social Media Statistics.
Shorter Shorts under 20 seconds achieve 42% full-video completion, while 76% of top-earning Shorts creators make more money from brand deals than ad revenue, based on Zebracat research published by Zebracat YouTube Shorts Statistics.
65.3 million YouTube creators are active globally, supporting an ecosystem of influencer partnerships, brand integrations, and creator-first ad products that brands can access beyond direct ad buys, based on Hootsuite data cited in Sixth City Marketing YouTube Statistics.

B2B Marketing Statistics

YouTube is becoming a bigger priority for B2B brands, with nearly a third at 31% ramping up their efforts on the platform over the past year, based on Sprout Social data cited in Sprout Social YouTube Stats 2025.
23% of B2B marketers are still not using YouTube, representing an untapped competitive edge for brands willing to invest in the channel, based on Sprout Social data cited in Sprout Social YouTube Stats 2025.
YouTube was ranked the top-performing video marketing channel by marketers in VidCo’s 2024 State of Video Marketing Report, ahead of website, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, email, X, and television, based on the VidCo 2024 State of Video Marketing Report cited in HubSpot Video Marketing Statistics 2025.
Short-form social videos drive the highest ROI among video formats for B2B marketers at 41%, followed by brand storytelling at 38% and testimonials at 34%, based on Sprout Social data cited in Sprout Social Social Media Statistics 2026.
YouTube’s searchability and long content shelf life give it a distinctive advantage in B2B marketing over short-form platforms: YouTube videos discovered through search continue to drive traffic and leads months or years after publication, while TikTok content cycles within days, based on platform longevity analysis cited in Sprout Social YouTube Stats 2025.
Brands that use video marketing grow their revenue 49% faster year-over-year than those that don’t, based on Aberdeen Group research cited in Sixth City Marketing YouTube Statistics.
93% of marketers report that video has helped them increase brand awareness, 85% say it helped generate leads, and 83% say it helped increase sales, based on Sprout Social survey data cited in Sprout Social Social Media Statistics 2026.

References

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