There is no one answer to this question, but there are 3 main things that determine how much YouTube pays you.
In this case, we will remove (Viewers’ location) and assume 90% of your viewers are from South Africa. Below is a table summary of how much YouTube pays in South Africa, depending on the video topic (Niche).
Topic (Niche) | Estimated RPM (Pay per 1K Views) | Estimated Pay per 100k Views | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Finance & Investing | R110 – R160 | R11,000 – R16,000 |
 | Tech & Software | R60 – R95 | R6,000 – R9,500 |
 | Business & Marketing | R55 – R90 | R5,500 – R9,000 |
 | Education / Tutorials | R40 – R70 | R4,000 – R7,000 |
 | Health & Fitness | R35 – R65 | R3,500 – R6,500 |
 | Lifestyle & Vlogs | R18 – R45 | R1,800 – R4,500 |
 | Gaming | R15 – R35 | R1,500 – R3,500 |
 | Entertainment/Comedy | R10 – R30 | R1,000 – R3,000 |
 | Shorts (All Niches) | R0.20 – R1.50 | R20 – R150 |
To summarise: YouTube pays between R10 to R110 per 1,000 views (RPM) in South Africa depending on the type of videos you publish.
YouTube Earnings Calculator
Use this YouTube Earnings Calculator to get a realistic estimate of your monthly and yearly income in Rands (ZAR). See how your videos could perform over 12 months and plan your content strategy with real numbers.
Estimated Monthly Earnings
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How to Use the YouTube Earnings Calculator
- Pick your niche
- Choose video type
- Set daily views
- Adjust engagement. Higher likes/comments mean more people watch the video till the end, resulting in higher earnings.
- Check your estimated earnings
How Much YouTube Pays In South Africa
YouTube pays between R10 to R110 per 1,000 views (RPM) in South Africa, depending on the type of videos you publish. Finance & Investing is the highest paying niche, while Entertainment/Comedy is the lowest.
There are 5 ways to earn money directly from YouTube, so you are not only reliant on the ad revenue.
But you must first qualify for the YouTube Partner Program (YPP) by reaching 1000 subscribers and 4000 watch hours for the past 12 months on all your videos combined.
Ad Revenue (YouTube Partner Program)
Ad revenue is the main and most common way YouTubers make money. This income comes from ads shown on your videos after you join the YouTube Partner Program (YPP).
How Ad Revenue Works
When someone watches your video, YouTube may show:
- Ads before the video
- Ads during the video
- Ads after the video
Advertisers pay YouTube, and YouTube shares 55% with the creator.
Channel Memberships
Channel memberships allow your viewers to pay monthly to support your channel.
How Channel Memberships Work
- Viewers pay a monthly fee (e.g. R29, R59, R99)
- Members get special perks like:
- Badges
- Custom emojis
- Members-only videos
- Members-only live chats
YouTube takes a cut, and you receive the rest.
Super Chats & Super Stickers
Super Chats and Super Stickers are used during live streams.
How Super Chats Work
- Viewers pay money to highlight their message
- Their message stays visible longer
- Popular during Q&A, gaming, and live shows
Many people forget about this income source.
What Is YouTube Premium Revenue?
Some viewers pay for YouTube Premium to:
- Watch without ads
- Download videos
- Play videos in the background
When Premium users watch your content, you earn money based on watch time.
Merchandise Shelf (via YouTube)
The merchandise shelf lets you sell your own products directly under your videos.
What You Can Sell
- T-shirts
- Hoodies
- Caps
- Mugs
- Digital products (via external links)
Merchandise works best with loyal fans, not just high views.
How Much South African YouTubers Earn (Realistically)
Truly speaking or writting😂 we will never know exactly how much a specific South African YouTuber earns, unless they choose to show us themselves.
The following table shows you realistic numbers on how much some South African YouTubers earn, including proof from them.
YouTuber’s Name | Total Views | Earnings | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | B.A Pusha | 4M | |
 | Marshall Mashaba | 3M | |
 | FAITH | 3M | |
 | MmaMohau Unchained | 505.8K | |
 | MB TV | 440.6K | |
 | STEFAN VAN DER MERWE | 118K |
YouTuber B.A Pusha
- Niche: E-commerce & Entrepreneurship
- Earnings: R256 807.22
B.A Pusha is a South African entrepreneur known as the “Queen of E-commerce.” Her YouTube channel teaches people how to start and grow online businesses, especially dropshipping.
YouTuber Marshall Mashaba
- Niche: Business, Passive Income & Digital Marketing
- Earnings: R409 160.70
Marshall Mashaba focuses on passive income, side hustles, and online business. He is well known for his “Built From Nothing” interview series, where he speaks to successful entrepreneurs.
YouTuber Faith
- Niche: Education
- Earnings: R76 501.89
Faith’s channel is dedicated to academic excellence, specifically focusing on South African literature, history, and language studies for high school students (Grade 10–12).
YouTuber MmaMohau Unchained
- Niche: Homemaking & Rural Lifestyle
- Earnings: R12 934.61
MmaMohau Unchained is known for her homemaking and village-life content. Her videos show rural living, home building or renovations, and daily household routines.
YouTuber MB TV
- Niche: Lifestyle & Social Commentary
- Earnings: R10 387.03
MB TV focuses on community-based content and everyday South African life. The channel features street interviews, lifestyle vlogs, and social commentary.
YouTuber Stefan Van Der Merwe
- Niche: Business, Marketing
- Earnings: R12 670.91
Stefan Van Der Merwe creates content around business and marketing. He is known for sharing lessons from his journey, including starting clothing brands, importing products, and building businesses like b.Active.
Ways to Make Money on YouTube
Besides money paid directly by YouTube, many creators earn more income outside the platform. Which is:
- Affiliate Marketing
- Brand Deals & Sponsorships
- Selling Courses or Digital Products
These methods tend to pay 2 to 4 times what you will earn directly from YouTube.
YouTube VS TikTok Witch One Pays More
Obviously, when comparing the two, YouTube pays more money than TikTok. YouTube is one of the highest-paying long video platforms you can find. But the comparison is unfair, so to make if you don’t only focus on YouTube shorts.
When comparing YouTube Shorts vs TikTok earnings to determine which one pays more. Here is a proven comparison of YouTube with 1M vides And TikTok with 1M vies which one pays more.
- YouTube Shorts has an RPM of $0.09
- While TikTok has an RPM of $0.52
- Looking only at RPM, you can tell that TikTok pays more than YouTube Shorts
- 1 Million Vies with YouTube Shorts, you earn $95.29
- 1 Million views with TikTok, you earn $511.5
I have divided by 2 the earnings for TikTok since the image has 2 million views, which is double compared to the number of views on YouTube. Other than that the RPM (Revenue Per Mille) is the same thing. With an RPM of $0.53, TikTok Pays $0.53 per 1000 views, while Youtube shorts RPM of $0.09 pays $0.09 per 1000 views
Conclusion
Looking at the realistic numbers, it’s clear that YouTube earnings in South Africa vary a lot. Some creators earn over R400,000 from a few million views, while others earn under R80,000 with similar views.
This shows that niche, audience location, and RPM matter more than views alone.
If you are on YouTube and have already started to earn money, you might need to invest it. Here is a beginner’s guide to investing in stocks in South Africa.
FAQs
YouTube pays between R10 to R110 per 1,000 views (RPM) in South Africa, depending on the type of videos you publish/Niche
If you are in the finance niche and get an average of 15K views per month, you can make between R1 000 to R2 000
Once you reach the minimum requirements for the YPP, the application takes 1 to 2 weeks.
Yes, but you need to create content on the high-paying niche since even with low views, you can still make a decent amount
I am a YouTuber myself, and I make R300 per month with an average of 12K monthly views. I haven’t done a video on it yet, but I will soon. My channel name is deguru
My niche is Education/Investing
I am a YouTuber myself, and I make R300 per month with an average of 12K monthly views. I haven’t done a video on it yet, but I will soon. My channel name is deguru
My niche is Education/Investing