Nine Year-Old Ryan Kaji Once Again Leads YouTube’s Top Earners for the Year

Time for your annual reminder that children are earning way more than you, and having more fun doing it also.

Well, one child in particular – Forbes has published its annual listing of the top earners on YouTube, which, once again, is lead by Ryan Kaji, of the ever-popular channel ‘Ryan’s World‘, who is now only 9 years of age.

Kaji’s videos mostly consist of toy unboxings and light-hearted story clips (like this one). And as you can see from the view count, they remain hugely popular on the platform, facilitating extensive monetization opportunities.

According to Forbes, Kaji earned $29.5 million from YouTube clips in 2020, up from $26 million last year, when Kaji was also number one on the Forbes list. Kaji also lead the way in 2018 ($22 million).

That’s an amazing run for Ryan’s World, but while Kaji does make it look simple, and may cause you to question your career choices, he also benefits from slick editing and a dedicated channel strategy, which, you would have to assume, is not masterminded by a child. So you can take some comfort in that.

Others on the 2020 YouTube earnings list include Mr Beast, who just launched a massive project which saw him open up 300 restaurants across America. Long-time favorites Dude Perfect and Rhett and Link are also on the list, along with Blippi, Jeffree Star and David Dobrik. 

Aspiring YouTubers and YouTube marketers can learn a lot from these channels, in regards to key presentation notes, thumbnail usage, titles, video length and more.

But probably the biggest lesson to take from these YouTube stars is consistency. Yes, anyone can create videos and upload them to YouTube, and when you look at something like Ryan’s World, it might feel like anyone could create similar, simple clips without much work. But few people actually do it – few commit the time and effort required to learn video editing, learn the key elements of YouTube posting, and to grow an audience to the point where they can monetize effectively.

Because while making videos is easy, making good videos is hard. It’s like any kind of art – anyone can paint a picture, but it takes passion and commitment to create a masterpiece.

These stars have put in the time, which is why they serve as a good starting point to understand more about what works on the platform, and how you can develop your presence.

You can check out the full Forbes Highest Paid Stars of YouTube listing here.