What is YouTube RPM?
RPM stands for Revenue Per Mille. It is arguably the most important metric for creators because it represents your actual take-home earnings per 1,000 views. Unlike CPM, which only looks at ad cost, RPM looks at your bottom line.
RPM is holistic: it includes revenue from Ads, YouTube Premium, Channel Memberships, Super Chat, and Super Thanks. It divides this total by your total views, not just the views where ads were shown.
How to Calculate Your RPM
While YouTube Studio tracks this automatically, understanding the manual calculation helps you project future earnings. The formula is:
💡 Real Creator RPM Calculation
Scenario: A creator earns $450 from ad revenue, $50 from Super Chats, and $100 from YouTube Premium. The channel received 100,000 total views during this period.
Step 1: Calculate Total Revenue
$450 + $50 + $100 = $600 total revenue
Step 2: Apply the RPM Formula
($600 / 100,000 views) × 1,000 = $6.00 RPM
This creator earns exactly $6.00 for every 1,000 views across their entire channel. Even if their CPM rate was $12.00, their actual take-home is represented by this $6.00 RPM.
Practical Examples:
- Small Channel: $50 earned from 25,000 views.
($50 ÷ 25,000) × 1,000 = $2.00 RPM. - Mid-Tier Channel: $1,500 earned from 200,000 views.
($1,500 ÷ 200,000) × 1,000 = $7.50 RPM. - Viral Hit: $3,000 earned from 1,000,000 views (often lower RPM due to broad audience).
($3,000 ÷ 1,000,000) × 1,000 = $3.00 RPM.
RPM vs CPM: What's the Difference?
This is the most common confusion among new creators. Here is the definitive breakdown of how they differ.
| Feature | RPM (Revenue Per Mille) | CPM (Cost Per Mille) |
|---|---|---|
| Perspective | Creator's Income | Advertiser's Cost |
| Deductions | After YouTube's 45% Cut | Before Deductions (Gross) |
| View Base | All Views (Monetized + Unmonetized) | Only Monetized Playbacks |
| Includes Supers? | Yes (Super Chat, Stickers, etc.) | No (Ads Only) |
Average RPM by Niche (2026 Benchmarks)
Your RPM is heavily influenced by the industry you create content for. Advertisers pay more to reach audiences interested in high-ticket items like software or financial products.
| Niche / Industry | Average RPM Range |
|---|---|
| Finance & Business | $15.00 - $50.00+ |
| Tech & Software | $8.00 - $20.00 |
| Education & How-To | $5.00 - $12.00 |
| Lifestyle & Vlogs | $2.00 - $6.00 |
| Gaming (General) | $1.50 - $4.00 |
| Entertainment / Comedy | $1.00 - $3.00 |
| Shorts (All Niches) | $0.01 - $0.06 |
Factors That Lower Your RPM
If your RPM is lower than the benchmarks above, one of these factors is likely the cause:
- Ad Blockers: Views from users with ad blockers count towards your total views but generate zero ad revenue, dragging down your RPM.
- Geography: If a viral video gets 80% of its views from low-CPM countries (like India, Brazil, or Philippines), your overall RPM will plummet, even if your content is high-quality.
- Short-Form Content: If you mix Shorts and Long-form content, your "Channel Average RPM" will look very low because Shorts views dilute the metric. Always look at "Video RPM" separately.
- Made for Kids: Content marked as "Made for Kids" has restricted personalized advertising, resulting in significantly lower revenue.
Strategies to Increase Your RPM
- Enable Mid-Roll Ads: This is the easiest win. Make videos longer than 8 minutes and place ad breaks at suspenseful moments.
- Turn on Alternative Monetization: Encourage Super Thanks and Channel Memberships. Since RPM calculates total revenue, a single $50 Super Chat can skyrocket the RPM of a video with low views.
- Target Higher Value Topics: Within your niche, find the "expensive" sub-topics. If you are a gaming channel, review high-end PC hardware (Tech RPM) instead of just playing free mobile games.
- Improve Audience Retention: Longer watch time means more ad inventory can be shown per viewer, directly increasing the revenue per view.
How to Qualify for YouTube Monetization in 2026
Before you can start tracking your channel's RPM, you must qualify for the YouTube Partner Program (YPP) and link an AdSense account. Here are the latest 2026 requirements:
- Subscribers: Minimum of 1,000 subscribers.
- Watch Time: 4,000 public watch hours in the past 12 months OR 10 million valid public Shorts views in the past 90 days.
- Account Status: No active Community Guidelines strikes and 2-step verification enabled.
- Location: Residence in a country where the program is available.
Once you meet these criteria, YouTube will manually review your channel to ensure it follows all monetization policies. After approval, you'll be able to track your real RPM and optimize your total YouTube earnings.
RPM vs CPM: Why the Difference Matters
Understanding the gap between your RPM and CPM is the key to channel growth. If your CPM is high but your RPM is very low, it usually means your audience is skipping ads or using ad blockers. Creating more engaging "unskippable" moments or adding sponsors can help bridge this gap and increase your total revenue per view.
Frequently Asked Questions
Disclaimer: The figures and usage examples provided in this calculator are for educational purposes. Actual earnings vary based on audience demographics, niche, time of year, and platform policy changes. We do not guarantee specific results.