Quick answer: YouTube pays Indian creators about ₹15 to ₹250 per 1,000 long-form views, after YouTube keeps its 45% share. The niche decides where you land: kids ₹15 to ₹35, entertainment ₹25 to ₹60, tech ₹70 to ₹180, finance ₹90 to ₹250. Shorts pay far less, about ₹2 to ₹10 per 1,000. Across the Indian channels we track, a channel with 100K to 250K subscribers gets a median 14.3 lakh views a month, about ₹43,000 to ₹1 lakh from ads. At 1M to 5M it is 88.2 lakh views, about ₹2.6 lakh to ₹6.2 lakh. Brand deals come on top.
What an Indian YouTuber earns comes down to three things: how many views the channel actually gets each month, what the videos are about, and whether brands pay for deals. Subscriber count, the number everyone quotes, is the weakest of the four. Below are measured numbers for each, and where they come from.
1. What YouTube pays per 1,000 views in India
Creators in the YouTube Partner Program keep 55% of the net ad revenue on their long-form videos; YouTube keeps 45%. What reaches the creator per 1,000 views is called RPM. In India it is lower than in the US because advertisers pay less per Indian viewer, and it changes a lot by topic, because advertisers pay far more to reach people deciding about money or gadgets than people watching cartoons.
These are the bands our YouTube analyzer uses for Indian audiences, set from published 2026 reporting (sources at the bottom):
| Niche | Per 1,000 views | 100K to 250K channel, a month | 1M to 5M channel, a month |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finance and business | ₹90 to ₹250 | ₹1.3 lakh to ₹3.6 lakh | ₹7.9 lakh to ₹22 lakh |
| Tech and gadgets | ₹70 to ₹180 | ₹1 lakh to ₹2.6 lakh | ₹6.2 lakh to ₹15.9 lakh |
| Education and how-to | ₹70 to ₹150 | ₹1 lakh to ₹2.1 lakh | ₹6.2 lakh to ₹13.2 lakh |
| Fitness and health | ₹45 to ₹90 | ₹64,000 to ₹1.3 lakh | ₹4 lakh to ₹7.9 lakh |
| Food and cooking | ₹35 to ₹70 | ₹50,000 to ₹1 lakh | ₹3.1 lakh to ₹6.2 lakh |
| Vlogs and lifestyle | ₹30 to ₹80 | ₹43,000 to ₹1.1 lakh | ₹2.6 lakh to ₹7.1 lakh |
| Gaming | ₹30 to ₹60 | ₹43,000 to ₹86,000 | ₹2.6 lakh to ₹5.3 lakh |
| Entertainment and comedy | ₹25 to ₹60 | ₹36,000 to ₹86,000 | ₹2.2 lakh to ₹5.3 lakh |
| Music | ₹20 to ₹45 | ₹29,000 to ₹64,000 | ₹1.8 lakh to ₹4 lakh |
| Kids and family | ₹15 to ₹35 | ₹21,000 to ₹50,000 | ₹1.3 lakh to ₹3.1 lakh |
The two money columns apply each band to the median monthly views we measured for that channel size (14.3 lakh and 88.2 lakh). The same views on a finance channel earn about five times what they earn on a music channel. For rates per single view and per lakh views, see what YouTube pays per 1,000 views in India.
Shorts are different. Ads between Shorts are pooled, split by each channel's share of Shorts views, and the creator keeps 45% of that share. In practice that works out to roughly ₹2 to ₹10 per 1,000 Shorts views in India, a small fraction of long form. Our Shorts earnings calculator does the maths for any view count.
2. Monthly income at 100K, 1M and 5M subscribers
Most answers to this question are a guess. Ours is a measurement. We track YouTube channels every day and keep dated snapshots of their total views. Of the 514 Indian channels we track, 354 have 10K or more subscribers and at least 20 days of history (14 July to 11 October 2026). For each one we took the first and last reading and worked out how many views each one actually gained in a month.
| Subscribers | Views a month (median) | Middle half of channels | Ad income a month | Per day | Channels measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10K to 100K | 7.9 lakh | 3.9 lakh to 21 lakh | ₹24,000 to ₹56,000 | ₹800 to ₹1,900 | 41 |
| 100K to 250K | 14.3 lakh | 3.5 lakh to 35.3 lakh | ₹43,000 to ₹1 lakh | ₹1,400 to ₹3,300 | 29 |
| 250K to 1M | 36.7 lakh | 9.8 lakh to 1 crore | ₹1.1 lakh to ₹2.6 lakh | ₹3,700 to ₹8,600 | 53 |
| 1M to 5M | 88.2 lakh | 28.3 lakh to 3.1 crore | ₹2.6 lakh to ₹6.2 lakh | ₹8,800 to ₹20,600 | 92 |
| 5M and above | 3.6 crore | 1.6 crore to 12 crore | ₹10.9 lakh to ₹25.4 lakh | ₹36,300 to ₹84,700 | 139 |
How to read it: "ad income" multiplies the median views by the general band, ₹30 to ₹70 per 1,000. It is ad income only, before brand deals, and it assumes most views are long form. A channel whose views are mostly Shorts lands well below the range; a finance or tech channel lands above it.
Subscribers predict income badly. A 1M to 5M channel gets about 2.4 times the monthly views of a 250K to 1M channel, not four or five times. And the middle half of channels inside each band is wider than the gap between bands: at 100K to 250K subscribers, one channel in four gets under 3.5 lakh views a month while another in four gets over 35 lakh. Subscribers pile up over years; views are what pays this month.
We left out channels under 10K subscribers. There were only 27 Indian ones with enough history, and a third of them gained almost no views in the period, so a median would describe dormant channels, not small active ones.
3. Brand deals: what we can and cannot show
Ads are only one income line. Sponsored videos, product reviews and integrations are paid separately, by the brand, and for many creators they are the bigger line. We will only quote what we can show.
On our own marketplace, counted on 11 October 2026, YouTube creators list 32 YouTube packages. The most common is a 30-second Short, with 14 listings and a median price of ₹2,000. Long-form videos, product reviews and integrations are listed from about ₹1,000 to ₹28,000. Most creators on the marketplace today are small channels, so treat these as starting prices, not what a 1M channel charges.
To price your own deals, the creator pricing calculator gives a starting rate from your audience size and engagement, and the free rate card template turns it into a quote with usage rights and GST.
4. Other income
- Memberships and Super Thanks: paid by fans directly; small unless the audience is loyal.
- Affiliate links: commission on what viewers buy; matters most for tech and review channels.
- Your own products or courses: how many finance and education creators earn most of their income.
5. When YouTube starts paying you
You earn nothing from ads until you are in the YouTube Partner Program. Per YouTube's eligibility page, you qualify with either:
- 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 public watch hours in the last 12 months, or
- 1,000 subscribers and 10 million public Shorts views in the last 90 days.
The subscriber count is the easy half. 4,000 hours is 2.4 lakh minutes of people watching. At that size ads pay small amounts: even 1 lakh views a month at ₹30 to ₹70 per 1,000 is ₹3,000 to ₹7,000. Brand deals do not wait for the Partner Program, which is why an engaged small channel can earn before it is monetised.
Check any channel's real numbers. Monthly views from its tracked history, an India-specific earnings estimate and a fair brand-deal price. Free, no login.
Check a YouTube channelTurn views into income
InfluencerMetric is a marketplace where brands find and book creators. Connect your channel and your stats show as verified, pulled from YouTube rather than a screenshot. Brands pay into escrow before you start, so you are never chasing an invoice. New to monetisation? Start with how YouTube monetisation works in India.
FAQ
How much does YouTube pay in India?
About ₹15 to ₹250 per 1,000 long-form views, depending on niche: ₹15 to ₹35 for kids content, ₹25 to ₹60 for entertainment, ₹70 to ₹180 for tech and ₹90 to ₹250 for finance. Shorts pay about ₹2 to ₹10 per 1,000 views. That is what reaches the creator after YouTube's 45% share.
How much does a YouTuber with 100K subscribers earn in India?
Across the 29 Indian channels with 100K to 250K subscribers we measured, the median is 14.3 lakh views a month, which is about ₹43,000 to ₹1 lakh a month from ads, or ₹1,400 to ₹3,300 a day. A finance channel that size can make ₹1.3 lakh to ₹3.6 lakh; a kids channel ₹21,000 to ₹50,000. Brand deals are extra.
How much does a YouTuber with 1 million subscribers earn in India?
Our 92 Indian channels with 1M to 5M subscribers get a median 88.2 lakh views a month, about ₹2.6 lakh to ₹6.2 lakh from ads. By niche, that ranges from ₹1.3 lakh to ₹3.1 lakh for kids content to ₹7.9 lakh to ₹22 lakh for finance.
How much does a YouTuber earn per day in India?
Divide the monthly figure by 30. At 100K to 250K subscribers that is about ₹1,400 to ₹3,300 a day from ads; at 1M to 5M, about ₹8,800 to ₹20,600 a day. These assume mostly long-form views.
After how many subscribers does YouTube pay in India?
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.
Do Indian YouTubers earn more from ads or brand deals?
It depends on the channel. Ads pay on every monetised view; brand deals pay per video and depend on the creator's niche, engagement and how many brands approach them. Finance, tech and education channels tend to earn well from both.
Related: Does Instagram Pay for Reels in India? What It Pays (2026).
Related: How Much Do Instagram Influencers Earn in India? Real Numbers (2026).
Updated 11 October 2026: channel measurements refreshed (354 Indian channels with 10K+ subscribers, 14 July to 11 October 2026), per-1,000 rates aligned with the bands our analyzer uses, and brand-deal figures that we could not source were removed.
Sources
- InfluencerMetric YouTube analyzer: daily snapshots of Indian channels, 354 of them with 10K+ subscribers and 20+ days of history, 14 July to 11 October 2026; marketplace package prices counted 11 October 2026.
- YouTube Help: partner earnings overview (55% of net ad revenue on long-form videos)
- YouTube Help: Shorts monetization (45% of the allocated Shorts revenue)
- YouTube Help: Partner Program eligibility
- upGrad: how much YouTube pays in India
- WsCube Tech: YouTube income per 1,000 views in India