All twenty-two

ENTRY 06 / 22 RANK 5

YouTube

growing

Program
2/2
Audience
2/2
Trend
1/2
Stability
2/2
Total
7

1 min read read 26 Oct 2026 5 sources cited

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YouTube is a social video-sharing platform. On Jul 26, 2023, more than 2 billion logged-in users per month were watching Shorts [[51]](#src-51). On Sep 16, 2025, YouTube announced more than $100B paid to creators, artists and media companies since 2021 [[49]](#src-49), in Q2 2026 YouTube ad revenue reached $11.06B, up 12.6% year over year [[111]](#src-111), and in 2026 a YouTube executive told Variety that YouTube pays out "more than half" of its revenue to rights holders [[50]](#src-50). The YouTube Partner Program works in tiers: 500 subscribers and 3,000 watch hours (or 3 million Shorts views) unlock channel memberships, Super Chat and Shopping, then 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 hours (or 10 million Shorts views) unlock ad revenue sharing and Premium [[48]](#src-48). In October 2026, it is the oldest and best-documented program on this list, with no announced break in 2026.

Cited here 5

  1. [48]"Join the YouTube Partner Program", date not stated.<a id="src-48"></a>YouTube for Creators
  2. [49]"YouTube says it has paid creators more than $100 billion over last 4 years", Sep 16, 2025.<a id="src-49"></a>CNBC
  3. [50]"YouTube Exec Counters Netflix Rivalry Talk, Highlights Platform's Reach", 2026, approximate date.<a id="src-50"></a>Variety
  4. [51]"Google says 2B+ logged-in monthly users are watching YouTube Shorts", Jul 26, 2023.<a id="src-51"></a>Techmeme (TechCrunch)
  5. [111]"YouTube Ad Sales Increase 13% in Q2 2026: Alphabet Earnings Results", Jul 22, 2026.<a id="src-111"></a>Variety