YouTube Money Calculator: Long Videos & Shorts by Niche
Estimate YouTube ad earnings from monthly views, with Shorts and long videos counted separately and RPM ranges by niche.
- Estimated ad revenue per month
- -low to high estimate
- From long-form videos
- -at the niche median: -
- From Shorts
- -Shorts pay far less per view
- Per year at this pace
- -monthly estimate x 12
The low RPM is higher than the high RPM. Swap them to get a sensible range.
This niche estimate is based on fewer than ten channels in the study, so treat it as a rough direction only.
Everything you already do here stays free, with the same limits.
Estimates, not a promise. Real RPM depends on where your viewers live, the season, video length and how many views carry ads. Your own RPM is shown in YouTube Studio under Analytics, Revenue. You only earn ad revenue after joining the YouTube Partner Program.
See what 167 Shorts actually did in practice: We made 167 YouTube Shorts with AI.
What this tool does
Enter your monthly long-form and Shorts views above to see a low-to-high estimate of YouTube ad earnings, using RPM ranges by niche from published 2026 data. It estimates how much ad revenue a YouTube channel could earn from its monthly views. Long-form videos and Shorts are counted separately, because they are paid in very different ways, and every answer is shown as a low-to-high range rather than one number.
How to use it
- Pick the niche closest to your channel. This fills in a typical long-form RPM range for that niche.
- Enter your long-form views per month and your Shorts views per month.
- If you already know your RPM from YouTube Studio, type it into the RPM boxes instead. The niche switches to Custom.
- Read the monthly and yearly estimates. They update as you type.
How the estimate works
Earnings = views ÷ 1,000 × RPM. For example, 100,000 long-form views at an RPM of $2.33 is 100 × $2.33 = $233. The calculator runs this for the low and the high end of the range, for long-form and Shorts separately, and adds them up.
The long-form presets use the median and the typical range (the middle half of channels, from the 25th to the 75th percentile) from a study of real YouTube Analytics data from 300 monetized channels between May 2025 and May 2026. Niches marked with a warning had fewer than ten channels in that study.
The Shorts range of $0.03 to $0.10 per 1,000 views is the range a creator analytics company reports for most creators. Some niches, music in particular, can be higher.
Why published RPM numbers disagree
Search for "YouTube RPM by niche" and you will find ranges that differ by several times for the same niche. Many tables quote CPM (what advertisers pay) under an RPM heading, mix Shorts with long-form, or come from a handful of creator screenshots taken in the busy fourth quarter. We picked sources that state how they measured, and we still show a range, not a single figure. Treat the result as a rough planning number.
Sources
Rates last checked: 3 Oct 2026.
- Long-form RPM by niche (median and 25th to 75th percentile): AIR Media-Tech, Which YouTube niche makes the most money in 2026, last updated 1 July 2026.
- Shorts RPM range: vidIQ, YouTube Shorts monetization in 2026, reviewed 15 August 2026.
- What RPM and CPM mean: YouTube Help, Understand ad revenue analytics.
- How Shorts revenue sharing works, including the 45% creator share: YouTube Help, YouTube Shorts monetization policies.
These are estimates for learning and planning. YouTube does not publish RPM by niche, and your own numbers in YouTube Studio are the only ones that count.
Free, Pro and Pro+
| Free | Pro | Pro+ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saved scenarios | — | Yes | Yes |
| Side-by-side comparison | — | Yes | Yes |
| CSV export | — | Yes | Yes |
| Result quality | The same on every plan | ||
| Server tools paid with credits | With a credit pack | With a credit pack | 300 credits every month |
Pro+ credits pay for server tools: fast speech to text and fast auto subtitles. A credit pack (150 credits, valid for 12 months) works on any plan. Compare plans.
Use this in your workflow
- We Made 167 YouTube Shorts With AI: Our Workflow and What Got ViewsThe views side of this estimate: how we made 167 Shorts with AI and which ones passed 1,000 views.
Frequently asked questions
How much do YouTube Shorts pay per 1 million views?
Enter 1,000,000 as your Shorts views per month above to see the range. Shorts usually pay a few cents per 1,000 views, so a million Shorts views earns far less than a million long-form views.
How much does YouTube pay per 1,000 views?
It depends heavily on the niche and the audience. In one study of 300 monetized channels, the median long-form RPM across all niches was about $2.30 per 1,000 views, from about $0.33 for kids content to about $10.22 for education and science. Shorts usually pay a few cents per 1,000 views.
What is RPM?
RPM (revenue per mille) is what you earn per 1,000 views after YouTube's share, counting every view, including views that showed no ad. It is the number to use for earnings. CPM is what advertisers pay per 1,000 ad impressions, before YouTube's share, so it is always higher.
Why are Shorts counted separately?
Shorts are paid from a shared pool of Shorts Feed ad revenue, and creators keep 45% of what is allocated to them. Per view this comes to far less than long-form videos, so mixing the two would make any estimate meaningless.
Is this what I will actually earn?
No. It is an estimate from published ranges. Your real RPM can be well outside the range because of where your viewers live, the time of year, video length and how many of your views carry ads. Check your own RPM in YouTube Studio once you are monetized.
Do I earn money from views before joining the Partner Program?
No. Ad revenue is only shared with channels in the YouTube Partner Program, so views before you join do not earn ad revenue.
Does this include sponsorships or affiliate income?
No. The calculator only covers ad revenue. Sponsorships, affiliate links, memberships and your own products are separate and, for many channels, larger.