Forbes has once again confirmed what the majority has suspected about YouTube’s king of virality, MrBeast (real name: Jimmy Donaldson), with a topline breakdown of his earnings. But how much money does MrBeast make these days?
As previously revealed, the man’s been making serious bank for some time now (US$54 million / AU$75 million back in 2021).
Based on the most recent figures, the 25-year-old content pioneer has taken home an unprecedented US$82 million (AU$128.5 million) in 2023 alone.
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For context, that’s more than double his closest competition in the same space: Rhett & Link, PrestonPlayz (Preston Arsement), and Ryan’s World (Ryan Kaji) — all of whom pocked US$35 million (AU$55 million) apiece.
The rankings are closely followed by vlogger-cum-professional boxer Jake Paul at US$34 million (AU$53.3 million), Markiplier (Mark Edward Fischbach) and FuckJerry (Elliot Tebele) at US$30 million (AU$47 million), followed by Jacksepticeye (Sean McLoughlin) at US$27 million (AU$42.3 million).
“With more than 300 million followers, MrBeast’s fan base is nearly as large as the US population,” reads Forbes’ outline of the Kansas native.
“MrBeast’s power and popularity stem from his high production videos and stunts that include surviving in Antarctica for 50 hours and building a Wonka chocolate factory.”
“The YouTube titan, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, has used his massive clout to earn a fortune in digital ad dollars — and build a real-world empire. Beast-based brands include Feastables snack bars and the MrBeast Burgers restaurant chain, plus Donaldson’s sprawling merch line.”
While US$82 million (AU$128.5 million) is undoubtedly more cold hard cash than most of us will ever touch, back in 2021, a far more compelling question than “How much money does MrBeast make in a year?” was answered: how much money does MrBeast spend in a year?
During an interview with fellow YouTubers Colin & Samir, he offered the duo a rare behind-the-scenes look into his finances, which indicated the overarching strategy involved re-investing the revenue directly into what we click/see/hear/talk about around the watercooler.
At the time, Donaldson’s monthly content creation expenditure was in the airspace of US$4 million (AU$6.3 million), bringing his total annual video budget to a jaw-dropping US$48 million (AU$75.2 million).
Nowadays, MrBeast spends between US$7 million and US$8 million (AU$11 and AU$12.5 million) a month making videos across his various channels — meaning the total annual video budget has been revised to US$84 to US$96 million plus (AU$131.7 to AU$150.5 million plus).
“You go from making money, spending money to making money, losing money,” said Samir Chaudry.
To which Jimmy Donaldson responded: “On some videos… then other videos I have to make money to make up for it,” before admitting he often finds himself in the red, if not operating on razor-thin margins. Unsurprisingly, this is also the reason why MrBeast’s net worth (likely) won’t be an awfully large number. Despite the consistent stream of revenue.
How can MrBeast possibly justify spending this much money?
As you will have gathered, what’s being described is an ecosystem wherein blockbuster-scale effort is rewarded with sustainable returns.
Around the time of his interview with Colin & Samir, the main MrBeast channel alone generated approximately 700 million views in the 28 days prior (i.e. the combined population of the US, Brazil, Russia, and Japan). But what was even more impressive was the channel’s staggering 70% audience retention rate in each upload.
“I only want money so I can make better videos, so I can grow my channel… I don’t care about making money, I don’t care about time, I just want to make the best videos on the planet.”
Bloomberg atomised your run-of-the-mill MrBeast video (the “secret code” to viral video making) into a potent blend of the three most popular YouTube genres:
- “There’s the outrageous challenge, such as staying inside a block of ice for a day or being the last one to leave a vat of ramen noodles.”
- “There’s the celebrity guest appearance: Donaldson often works with other marquee YouTubers, including his favourite, the scientist Mark Rober.”
- “And there’s the reaction video — MrBeast has a posse of blundering childhood friends who participate in his stunts and generally play the role of hypemen.”
RELATED: The $150 Million MrBeast Lawsuit Explained
Throw in a dash of cultural zeitgeist — like the incredibly successful, real-life Squid Game challenge with an equally real US$456,000 cash prize; which has racked up over 504 million views since November 25th, 2021 — and you’ve practically got yourself a personal ATM.
“The videos take months of prep. A lot of them take four to five days of relentless filming. There’s a reason other people don’t do what I do,” added Jimmy Donaldson.
“The beauty of YouTube is double the effort isn’t double the views… it’s like 10X. The first million subscribers you get will take years, but the second will come in a few months.”
“Once you know how to make a video go viral, it’s just about how to get as many out as possible. You can practically make unlimited money.”
Check out the Forbes confirmed list of the highest-paid content creators in 2023 below.
The Highest-Paid Content Creators In 2023 (According To Forbes)
NOTE: All $$$ = USD
- MrBeast (Jimmy Donaldson): $82 million
- Rhett & Link | PrestonPlayz (Preston Arsement) | Ryan’s World (Ryan Kaji): $35 million
- Jake Paul: $34 million
- Markiplier (Mark Edward Fischbach) | FuckJerry (Elliot Tebele): $30 million
- Jacksepticeye (Sean McLoughlin): $27 million
- Matt Rife: $25 million
- KSI (Olajide Olatunji): $24 million
- Charli D’Amelio: $23 million
- Logan Paul: $21 million
- Emma Chamberlain | Alex Cooper: $20 million
- Brent Rivera: $17.5 million
- Khaby Lame: $16.5 million
- Amouranth (Kaitlyn Siragusa): $15 million
- Huda Kattan | Zach King | Bailey Sarian: $13 million
