How much does YouTube pay per 1,000 views in 2026?

It depends on the niche. Creator take-home RPM (after YouTube's 45% cut) ranges from about $0.80 per 1,000 views for music to $8 for science & technology in 2026. YouTube Shorts pay far less, around $0.05 per 1,000 views. Use the calculator to estimate by niche and audience region.

How much money is 1 million views on YouTube?

At a typical $2 creator RPM, 1 million long-form views is worth roughly $2,000 to the creator. High-RPM niches like finance or tech can reach $8,000+, while music or Shorts can be a few hundred dollars or less.

How much does 1 billion views pay on YouTube?

At a $2 creator RPM, 1 billion views is about $2 million in estimated ad earnings. A music video (~$0.80 RPM) would be closer to $800,000, while a high-RPM niche could exceed $8 million over the video's life.

How are these YouTube earnings estimated?

We multiply views by a niche-specific 2026 RPM (revenue per 1,000 views) that is already net of YouTube's 45% revenue share, then scale by audience region. Actual earnings vary with advertiser demand, watch time, ad formats, YouTube Premium splits, and seasonality.

Free tool

YouTube Money Calculator

Estimate how much a YouTube video or channel earns from its views, using 2026 creator RPM data by niche and audience region (net of YouTube's 45% cut).

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Total views

Niche / category Format

Audience region

Shorts use a flat ~$0.05 RPM regardless of niche.

Estimated creator earnings for these views

at an effective $0.00 RPM

Per 1,000 views

Per 1M views

Per 100M views

Per 1B views

Estimate only. Actual revenue varies with advertiser demand, watch time, ad formats, YouTube Premium splits, and seasonality. RPM figures are creator take-home, after YouTube's 45% share.

How much does YouTube pay?

YouTube pays creators a share of ad revenue, measured as RPM - revenue per 1,000 views, after YouTube keeps 45%. In 2026 that creator RPM ranges from about $0.80 for music to $8 for science & technology, with most general content landing near $2. YouTube Shorts pay dramatically less - around $0.05 per 1,000 views.

That means a long-form video with 1 million views earns roughly $2,000 in a typical niche, 100 million views around $200,000, and 1 billion views about $2 million over the video's life - higher in finance or tech, lower in music. Use the calculator above to estimate for any view count and niche.

See real billion-view earnings → Highest-earning videos 2026 →