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With impressive earnings of $22 million, a seven-year-old American boy has become this year's highest-paid YouTube star, beating established adults in the business like Daniel Middleton and Jake Paul, according to Forbes.
Forbes' list of "Highest-Paid YouTube Stars 2018" is topped by Ryan of Ryan ToysReview, who makes millions by reviewing everything from toys to cars and Legos through simple home-made videos that are uploaded on his YouTube channel by his parents.
Last year, it was reported that Ryan made $11 million from his YouTube channel, coming in at number 8 on Forbes' 2017 list, but the toy critic is on an up-move. His YouTube channel has attracted a huge following of parents and children who watch Ryan test new toys and share his thoughts on them.
The prestigious US business magazine said his short videos made Ryan one of the most popular influencers online, with 17.3 million followers and a total of nearly 26 billion views since he and his parents launched his main channel, Ryan ToysReview, in March 2015. The Ryan's World toy line was the first to be released in an exclusive partnership with Walmart earlier this year.
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A younger brother of controversial YouTuber Logan Paul, this 21-year-old is also on the list of top social media influencers. Jake Paul became popular for his role as Dirk on the Disney Channel series "Bizaardvark." He is also well-known for his YouTube channel, which has over 17 million subscribers.
In August, more than 800,000 people shelled out $10 each to a watch a pay-per-view boxing match on YouTube in which Paul went head-to-head with fellow YouTuber KSI, CBS Sports reports. Neither star is a professional boxer. Paul earned national attention in July 2017 for his ongoing feud with his neighbors over noise complaints and the unwanted attention his followers brought to his Los Angeles neighbourhood. The Ryan's World toy line was the first to be released in an exclusive partnership with Walmart earlier this year.
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The five-man sports crew known as Dude Perfect makes videos of intricate trick shots and made $20 million doing so in 2018 . The group consists of twins Coby and Cory Cotton, Garrett Hilbert, Cody Jones, and Tyler Toney, who film themselves performing extraordinary tricks. Their "ping pong trick shots" and "real-life trick shots," in which they turn everyday activities into complex manoeuvres, are among their most popular videos. One of their most popular videos was hurling Ping-Pong balls that trigger domino-falls of Oreos, which garnered 175 million views
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Last year’s top earner Daniel Middleton, is at fourth place this year with earnings of $16.5 million. Daniel specializes in Minecraft a game he has been playing on-camera for six years, amassing a following of 20.7 million, who shell out for his tour and merchandise, which includes backpacks, baseball caps and hoodies.
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With earnings of $18 million and once known as the most-followed person on MySpace, Jeffree Star has made a wildly successful transition to YouTube since 2014. Jeffree launched his channel alongside his makeup brand, Jefree Star Cosmetics, uploading a mix of beauty tips, tutorials, and personal vlogs. He has earned more than 11 million subscribers with about 300 videos.