YouTube is still a vital piece of the business sector in the U.S. That’s the main takeaway from the platform’s latest Impact Report, which details its contributions to the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) and workforce.
The Impact Report is an annual collab between YouTube and Oxford Economics. Based on estimates about the value of YouTube-adjacent work, Oxford provides research on the platform’s total contributions to the U.S. economy. YouTube then publishes the findings via its official blog.
This year, the topline numbers are as impressive as always. YouTube’s creator community added $55 billion to the U.S. GDP during the 2024 calendar year, and that industry supported the equivalent of 490,000 full-time equivalent jobs.
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Both those numbers represent increases over previous Impact Reports. YouTube’s U.S. GDP contribution was measured at $25 billion in 2021 and $35 billion in 2022, so that figure is steadily rising by about $10 billion per year, even in the face of challenging economic conditions.
The professionals who are part of that 490,000-strong workforce include creators as well as their associates, such as editors, publicists, and managers. The report also considers the economic impact of platforms like Patreon, Linktree, and Spotter, which creators use to supplement the income they receive from YouTube ads.
Lately, there has been a lot of talk about how those secondary revenue sources are starting to provide more significant portions of creator earnings, but YouTube’s report reminded readers about the power of the humble pre-roll ad. “We launched the YouTube Partner Program in 2007, which laid the foundation of the creator economy as we know it today. At that time, the term creator didn’t even exist — now it’s a dream career for millions of people,” YouTube CEO Neal Mohan wrote in a preamble to the report.
“With more viewers and more advertisers coming to YouTube, the opportunity for creators has never been greater,” Mohan added. “For over a decade, the total amount YouTube has paid creators has grown every single year. And this growth has accelerated the last three years.”
Much of YouTube’s economic growth can be attributed to the continued diversification of the creator business. Each year’s Impact Report highlights categories where YouTube made substantial gains over the previous calendar year. In 2024, for example, the Impact Report noted YouTube’s growing influence in the world of education. After making a concerted push in that area earlier in the decade, and adding in new tools for students in 2024, YouTube is at the top of its class.
90% of teachers who use YouTube said they have employed the platform’s content in their lessons, and 92% of YouTube viewers have watched videos to acquire knowledge or information. Schools are getting the message about the potential educational value of YouTube videos.
For a more thorough analysis of the YouTube creator economy’s year-over-year growth, check out the full Impact Report here. It’s a good time to be making videos on the Google-affiliated hub — and creators have more moneymaking options than ever before.
