YouTube Money Calculator
Estimate what your YouTube views could earn from ads, by niche and audience country, for long videos and Shorts.
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How to use the YouTube Money Calculator
Enter your long video and Shorts views per day or per month.
Choose your niche and where most of your viewers are.
Read the monthly and yearly range, and set an income goal to see the views you need.
How YouTube pays creators
YouTube pays from ads once you join the YouTube Partner Program. For long videos, creators keep 55% of the ad revenue their videos earn. Shorts are paid differently: ad revenue from the Shorts feed goes into a shared pool, and creators keep 45% of their share of it. That is why a million Shorts views usually earns far less than a million long video views.
The figure that matters is RPM, revenue per mille, which is what you actually receive for every 1,000 views after YouTube's share. It counts all views, including those where no ad played, so it is lower than the CPM that advertisers pay. You can see your own RPM in YouTube Studio under Analytics and then Revenue.
Why niche and country change the numbers
Advertisers pay more to reach viewers who are about to spend money. Finance, business and software videos attract banks, investment apps and software companies, so their RPM is often several times higher than gaming, music or comedy. Longer videos can also carry more ads, which lifts RPM further.
Where your viewers live matters as much as the topic. Ads shown to viewers in the US, the UK, Canada and Australia earn the most, while the same views from Nigeria, the rest of Africa or South Asia usually earn a fraction of that. If you create from Nigeria for a local audience, choose that region for a realistic figure, and remember that many creators earn more from brand deals, affiliate links and their own products than from ads.
How accurate is this estimate?
YouTube does not publish RPM by niche or country, so the ranges here come from figures creators share publicly, mostly for audiences in the US, scaled down for other regions. Treat the result as a sense check, not a promise. Seasons matter too: RPM usually rises towards the end of the year as advertisers spend more, and dips in January.
Questions
How much does YouTube pay per 1,000 views?
It varies widely. Many creators report an RPM of about $1 to $5 per 1,000 views for general topics with a US audience, and more for finance, business or tech. For mostly African or South Asian audiences it is usually well under $1. Shorts typically earn a few cents per 1,000 views.
When can I start earning from YouTube ads?
You need to join the YouTube Partner Program. For ad revenue, YouTube asks for 1,000 subscribers plus either 4,000 public watch hours in the last 12 months or 10 million public Shorts views in the last 90 days, and the program must be available in your country.
What is the difference between RPM and CPM?
CPM is what advertisers pay per 1,000 ad impressions, before YouTube's share. RPM is what you receive per 1,000 views of your videos, after YouTube's share and counting views with no ads. RPM is the number to use when you estimate your income.
Can creators in Nigeria earn from YouTube?
Yes. The YouTube Partner Program is available in Nigeria, and payments are made through Google AdSense to a bank account. The same requirements apply, and RPM depends on where your viewers are, not where you live.
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