With over 2 billion active users every month, YouTube is a massive platform that offers incredible opportunities for content creators around the world, including South Africa. But How Much Does YouTube Pay In South Africa? really. Most popular South African YouTubers earn R80,000.00 to R100,000.00 a month. But with a small YouTube channel, these numbers are just a dream.
As a Content creator, you have the opportunity to showcase your skills and earn money for it. So In this article, I will break down the different ways to monetize your YouTube channel, reveal my actual earnings on YouTube, and explore factors that can significantly impact how much you earn. Take in mind that I will only mention South African successful YouTubers, Not Mr. Beast, PewDiePie, Like Nastya, or Dude Perfect.
How YouTube Pays Content Creators
YouTube monetization primarily works through ads shown on your videos. Once you’ve joined the YouTube Partner Program (YPP), ads begin appearing on your content, and you earn a portion of the revenue generated. However, several factors can affect your earnings, including your niche, audience demographics, and the type of ads show
YouTube Partner Program (YPP) Requirements
Before you can be able to earning money from YouTube you need to apply for the YPP YouTube requires your channel to have at least 1,000 Subscribers and 4,000 public watch hours in the last 12 months.
Ways To Earn Mony On YouTube
Factors That Affect YouTube Earnings in South Africa
There are several things that can affect how much money a South African YouTuber makes. These include the CPM (Cost Per Thousand Impressions), Audience Location, and Content-Type. Advertisers might pay more for ads shown to a certain group of people, and viewers who watch more ads can help generate more revenue.
- The average CPM in South Africa varies but typically ranges between R8.50 to R53,79 depending on the niche
- Viewers from countries like the U.S. tend to generate higher ad revenue compared to local audiences.
- Educational, financial, and tech content usually command higher CPMs due to advertiser demand.
Finally, the quality of a YouTuber’s videos can also make a difference. If the videos are high-quality and keep viewers interested, they are more likely to make money from ads
How Much Does YouTube Pay In South Africa
So, how much do South African YouTube creators actually earn? The earnings can vary widely depending on the niche, channel, and audience demographics. However, according to a report by Social Blade, the average earnings of the top YouTube creators in South Africa range from R1,826.00 (R1.8K) to R1,402,918.66 (R1.4M) per month.
Creators in niches like Finance, Technology, Health and Fitness, and Real Estate tend to earn more due to having a high CPC (cost per click). CPC refers to the amount of money advertisers are willing to pay per click on their ad. Additionally, creators with large audiences and high engagement rates tend to earn more than those with smaller audiences and low engagement rates.
I myself own a YouTube channel that recently got monetized with YouTube ads. It currently has 2k subscribers, but only gets 10k views a month. With this amount of views, my channel makes around R400 a month. I post 4 videos a month about 2 to 6 min long, The videos off low content videos
How To Make More Money On YouTube
To maximize your earnings, focus on:
Top 5 High Earning YouTubers in South Africa
This list will only focus on high-earning solo YouTubers
1. Ghost Hlubi YouTube Earnings
Ghost Hlubi is a popular South African influencer and content creator known for his fancy lifestyle.
- Niche: Entertainment
- YouTube channel: Ghost Hlubi
- Estimated Earnings: R380,000 – R570,000 per month
2. Joseph Dary YouTube Earnings
Joseph the relationships reviewer, goes around finding love partners to exchange their phones and expose one that I cheating.
- Niche: Entertainment
- Youtube Channel: Joseph Dary
- Estimated Earnings: R190,000 – R380,000 per month
3. Mihlali Ndamase YouTube Earnings
Mihlali Ndamase is a leading beauty and lifestyle influencer in South Africa. Her YouTube channel features makeup tutorials, skincare routines, and lifestyle content, appealing to a broad audience interested in fashion and beauty.
- Niche: Beauty and Lifestyle
- YouTube Channel: Mihlali Ndamase
- Estimated Earnings: R190,000 – R380,000 per month
4. Noel Deyzel YouTube Earnings
Bodybuilder Noel Deyzel gained popularity among the physique and bodybuilding community and later went on to become a fitness influencer. He’s generated a reputation for spreading positive messages through his content, and through his platforms, he continues to share tips about dieting and working out
- Niche: Fitness and Bodybuilding
- YouTube Channel: Noel Deyzel
- Estimated Earnings: R100,000 – R380,000 per month
5. Sasha Domnikov
Sasha Domnokon is a young successful YouTuber who has grown to 300K subscribers over 4 years simply posting skits pranks and entertainment videos.
- Niche: Entertainment
- YouTube Channel: Sasha Domnikov
- Estimated Earnings: R190,000 – R380,000 per month
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 only.
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 Milion 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) the use very 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
FQs About Making Money on YouTube in South Africa
The average earnings per view can range from R0.5 to $56 depending on the niche and audience.
Focus on creating content that attracts international viewers, especially from high-CPM countries like the U.S. or U.K.
You need at least 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 watch hours in the past 12 months.
Focus on affiliate marketing by promoting products in your niche and using platforms like Patreon for direct support from your audience. Create engaging, value-driven content to build trust and encourage clicks.
Conclusion
It’s not too late to be a YouTuber, Just create a channel and start posting. But if you want to earn R10,00 to R100,000 per month you have to Create high-quality videos that keep viewers engaged and coming back for more. Use SEO tools to improve search rankings and attract more viewers. Also, consider the length of your videos, as longer videos tend to generate more ad revenue.
If you want to learn about more ways to make money just visit my YouTube channel and subscribe if you like the content. If you are sly you can also try creating a website to earn money with ads too.
