YouTube Revenue Calculator
Estimate what a video or a month of uploads earns from YouTube ads. Enter your views and CPM and see the payout after YouTube's 45% share.
Inputs
YouTube keeps 45% of ad revenue on long-form video.
Result
$1,210
estimated ad revenue per month
500,000 views produce about 275,000 monetised views, $2,200 of gross ad revenue and $1,210 paid to you — an effective RPM of $2.42.
- Monetised views
- 275,000
- Gross ad revenue
- $2,200
- Your share
- $1,210
- Effective RPM
- $2.42
- Average per video
- $151
- Annualised
- $14,520
Formula
- monetised views = views × monetised playback rate
- gross revenue = (monetised views ÷ 1,000) × CPM
- your payout = gross revenue × revenue share
- RPM = (payout ÷ total views) × 1,000
Methodology
YouTube sells ads against only part of your traffic. Viewers with ad blockers, viewers on Premium, and videos that get limited ads all reduce the share of views an advertiser actually pays for — that is the monetised playback rate, typically 40-70% for long-form content.
CPM is what the advertiser pays per thousand monetised impressions. YouTube keeps 45% of long-form ad revenue and passes 55% to the creator, which is why the payout is always well below the headline CPM figure.
Every figure here is an estimate. Real earnings move with your niche, audience country, season, advertiser demand and how a platform is paying that month, so treat the result as a planning range rather than a promise.
Example calculation
- A channel gets 500,000 views in a month with a $8 CPM and a 55% monetised playback rate.
- Monetised views: 500,000 × 0.55 = 275,000.
- Gross ad revenue: 275 × $8 = $2,200.
- Creator share: $2,200 × 0.55 = $1,210 for the month, an RPM of about $2.42.
Frequently asked questions
How much does YouTube pay per 1,000 views?
Most channels see an RPM between $1 and $6 per 1,000 total views once YouTube's cut and unmonetised views are removed. Finance, software and business channels sit at the top of that range; entertainment and gaming usually sit at the bottom.
Why is my real revenue different from this estimate?
Advertiser demand changes weekly, your audience country mix shifts CPM heavily, and seasonality can double December rates versus January. This calculator gives a central estimate, not a guarantee.
Does this include sponsorships and memberships?
No. It covers YouTube ad revenue only. Use the sponsorship rate calculator for brand deals and the Patreon income calculator for memberships, then add them together.
What revenue share should I enter?
55% for long-form video, which is YouTube's standard split. Shorts use a different pool-based model — use the Shorts revenue calculator instead.
Do I need to be in the YouTube Partner Program?
Yes, ad revenue only starts once you are accepted, which currently requires 1,000 subscribers plus 4,000 watch hours or 10 million Shorts views.
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