Digital 2022: YouTube’s Ad Reach Passes 2.5 Billion
Our latest analysis reveals that ads on YouTube now reach more than 2½ billion users each month, up by a hefty 11.9 percent (+271 million users) over the past 12 months.
What’s more, these figures only account for users in around 75 of the world’s larger economies, so there’s a very good chance that the total reach of YouTube ads is considerably higher than these published figures suggest.
The available data indicate that YouTube ads now reach roughly 1 in 3 people on Earth, with that figure rising to 37.7 percent of adults aged 18 and above.
However, if we focus on those countries for which data are available, an even more impressive story emerges.
YouTube ads now reach more than three-quarters of adults aged 18 and above across most of the Western world, and more than 90 percent of that cohort in a total of 14 countries.
YouTube’s top countries
At 467 million, India has by far the largest absolute number of YouTube users.
However, the platform’s relative reach in the country is still quite modest, and the latest figures indicate that YouTube ads currently only reach 37 percent of adults aged 18 and above.
These low relative reach rates are largely a function of the country’s internet access though, and the latest numbers indicate that YouTube ads now reach roughly three-quarters of the country’s total connected population.
Meanwhile, YouTube ads now reach close to a quarter of a billion Americans, with the reach rate amongst adults aged 18 and above approaching 80 percent.
YouTube’s most popular content
YouTube search activity reveals that music has become the heart of the platform, with 11 of the top 20 search terms in the past year relating directly to music.
It’s worth noting that the rankings published in Google Trends rely on dynamic sampling, so featured terms and rankings can vary considerably from one use to the next, even for the same sample period.
As a result, we’ve seen a few different terms appear in these top 20 rankings during our analysis – especially relating to movies and video games – but the overall popularity of music seems to be a consistent theme.
The popularity of music on the platform is evident in the top 20 YouTube channels too.
Indian record label T-Series currently tops the global rankings, with more than 200 million subscribers, and an eye-watering 176 billion total channel views.
Zee Music Company, BLACKPINK, Justin Bieber, HYBE Labels, and BANGTANTV (the “official” YouTube channel for K-Pop sensation BTS) also make the top 20 channels ranking.
However, despite claiming the top spot in the individual video rankings (see below), Korea’s Pinkfong doesn’t quite make the top 20 ranking of YouTube’s most-subscribed channels, and currently sits in 22nd place.
Most-Subscribed Channels on YouTube January 2022 DataReportal
Top YouTube videos of all time
Meanwhile, music’s popularity on YouTube is even clearer in the ranking of the platform’s all-time most-viewed videos.
Nursery rhymes and children’s songs have become hugely popular on YouTube in recent years, with Pinkfong’s “Baby Shark” becoming the first YouTube video to pass 10 billion total views earlier this month.
Three other children’s songs also make the top 10: ”Johny Johny Yes Papa”, “Bath Song”, and “Phonics Song with Two Words”.
Psy’s Gangnam Style has dropped out of the top 10 for the first time this year, but Luis Fonsi’s Despacito still claims second spot in the latest rankings.
Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You”, Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth’s “See You Again”, and Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars’s “Uptown Funk” all make the top 10 too.
The remaining two spots in the top 10 are claimed by children’s TV shows, and it’s interesting to note that both of these shows feature dialogue in Russian.
Want to learn more about how YouTube compares with other social media and video streaming platforms? Check out our full Digital 2022 Global Overview Report by clicking here.
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