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In this post, we’re going to review 41 YouTube statistics that will expose the importance of video as part of your 2024 marketing strategy.
If you’re already on YouTube, you’ll still want to check this out as we’ve packed it with valuable stats that you can use in your B2B video marketing.
We’ve broken down the stats into 4 sections:
- YouTube User Stats
- YouTube Usage Stats
- YouTube Content Marketing Stats
- YouTube Sponsored Video Stats
(There’s also a recap at the end if you’re in a rush, but we recommend you at least skim through the post. You’ll be mind blown with some of these stats.)
2024 YouTube Statistics Overview
YouTube is now the world’s second-largest search engine with over 5 billion videos viewed each day. YouTube is a platform for content creators, influencers, and B2B brands alike to share compelling stories, introduce new products and services, and provide valuable information such as industry trends, predictions, etc.
A common misconception is that YouTube is only for millennials. But as you’ll find out, older adults, Fortune 500 decision-makers, and executives are now, more than ever, active on YouTube.
In this post, we’ll dive into why you should consider YouTube in your 2024 marketing strategy, how to use YouTube in your B2B marketing, and the types of video content that are most successful.
We’ve done a lot of research and compiled the best statistics from surveys and research studies done by Pew Research Center, Forrester, Nielsen, Think with Google, along with stats from well-known publications such as Forbes, Hubspot, and Tubular Insights.
(Psst… If you want to skip ahead, here’s the table of contents one more time).
- YouTube User Stats
- YouTube Usage Stats
- YouTube Content Marketing Stats
- YouTube Sponsored Video Stats
Let’s get into it!
YouTube User Stats
1) YouTube has 2 billion monthly active users
YouTube has 2 billion users worldwide. However, the only social network that has more monthly active users than YouTube is Facebook. These monthly active users are those who logged in at least once per month. And it’s important to know as there are people who watch videos without using Google Accounts.
2) YouTube users exist in more than 100 countries
Since its launch in 2005, YouTube has launched local versions in more than 100 countries and offers support in 80 different languages covering 95% of the global internet population. YouTube is a global phenomenon and social powerhouse.
3) Baby Boomers and Generation X are YouTube’s fastest-growing demographic
We know this might surprise you, but Baby Boomers (50- to 65-year-olds) and Generation X (36- to 49-year-olds) are the fastest-growing demographic on YouTube. The common myth that YouTube is only for millennials is not true. In fact, YouTube watch time continues to grow among older audiences.
4) YouTube reaches more 18-49 year-olds than any broadcast or network TV station
We’ve all known for a while that TV viewing has been on the decline. In 2016, Google reported that YouTube reaches more 18 to 49-year-olds than any broadcast or network TV station. Not to mention, on average, 8 out of 10 18 to 49-year-olds watch YouTube per month. In other words, YouTube has the reach potential for a significant portion of your B2B target audience. 
Image Source: Mediakix
5) 6 out of 10 people prefer online video platforms to live TV
People may be watching less TV, but that doesn’t mean they’re watching any less video content. Google reported in 2016 that 6 out of 10 people prefer watching videos online to live TV. As TV consumption continues to decline, online video streaming grows every year. If you’ve been advertising on TV, it’s imperative you start planning how to incorporate video and Youtube in your marketing strategy.
Image Source: Blueadz
6) YouTube is becoming more popular with younger demographics
YouTube is getting more popular by the minute with younger age groups. 81% of 15–25 year-olds in the United States are accessing the platform.
Image Source: Hootsuite
7) 96% of online U.S. teens are on YouTube
YouTube is the most popular social site for 12- to 17-year-olds. In fact, 96% of online U.S. teens are on YouTube, according to Forrester Research and Marketing Dive. From a B2B perspective, although your target audience most likely isn’t teens, future executives and decision-makers are today’s teens. And, it’s safe to assume that this younger demographic will value video in the future.
8) Generation X (39- to 53-year-olds) watch more than 1.5 billion YouTube videos per day
To re-emphasize that YouTube is not just for the teens and millennials, Google reported that “Generation Xers” account for over 1.5 billion views per day on YouTube. In addition, 75% of those aged 35- to 53-years-old watch YouTube at least once a month.
Image Source: ThinkWithGoogle
9) 73% of U.S. adults use YouTube
Another survey published by the Pew Research Center in March 2018 revealed that 73% of all American adults use the YouTube platform. That was actually 5% more than the number of adults that said they used Facebook. Whether it’s to find tutorials, watch the news, or a product review, adults are making use of YouTube. The shift in TV to online video content is not just for teens and millennials, but also adults. To maximize your reach, you’ll want to make sure you’re present on YouTube as well.
10) Black millennials’ mobile watch time on YouTube has more than doubled in the last two years
Black millennials’ consumed double the content in the last two years on YouTube, according to research conducted by Nielsen and Google in 2016. If you’re targeting your products or services to black millennials, YouTube is also a great spot.
Image Source: ThinkWithGoogle
11) 90% of users say they discover new companies or products on YouTube
Video can be an increasingly popular tool for getting your brand’s name out there. Though it doesn’t necessarily mean somebody is going to buy your offering, it can help get your name out there. In fact, 90 percent of people say they discover new brands, services, and products on the platform.
11) YouTube users are 3X more likely to watch a tutorial than read instructions
Youtube has become a popular resource for learning how to use a company’s product or offering. In fact, YouTube users are 3X more likely to watch a tutorial than read instructions.
YouTube Usage Stats
12) YouTube is the world’s 2nd largest search engine and second-highest ranked site
According to Alexa, YouTube is now the world’s second-largest search engine after Google. It is also the 2nd most visited site on the web after Google. Since both entities share the same parent company, the common infrastructure between the two sites makes it easy for people to search for relevant content on Google, and then hop over to YouTube.
13) 5 billion YouTube videos are viewed on average every day
According to Ominicore, about 5 billion YouTube videos are viewed on average every single day. How does that translate into hours? That’s about 1 billion hours of YouTube videos consumed every single day. To put it in perspective, an individual attempting to rack up 1 billion hours of YouTube watching would have to find a playlist that was 100,000 years long.
That’s huge.
It comes down to about 8.4 minutes of views per day across all YouTube users (close to Facebook’s 9.4 minutes of daily views). With this many views per day, YouTube is a great place to provide value and share information with a specific group of people who are looking for you.
14) YouTube ranks 3rd for U.S. search share
Back in 2017, Moz and Jumpshot looked at all U.S. searches across leading sites including—Google, Google Images, YouTube. Yahoo!, Bing, Google Maps, Amazon, Facebook, DuckDuckGo, and Google News—in an effort to better understand search behavior. Of these ten sites, YouTube ranked third for search share with 3.71% of searches. That might seem insignificant, but as you’ll see in our next stat, it’s an enormous amount of searches.
Image Source: Moz
15) YouTube generates 3 billion searches a month
See what we mean now? The 3.71% of search share equates to 3 billion searches a month. It’s a clear indication that people are looking for information and content online, specifically on Google and YouTube. This is an opportunity for you as a B2B marketer to provide your audience with relevant content that can be found.
16) Video will account for 82% of global traffic by 2023
Cisco forecasted that internet video will account for 82% of global consumer internet traffic by 2023–up 15% from 2017. That’s insane. This stat alone can make your business case for allocating more budget to video and YouTube B2B marketing.
17) By 2025, half of the viewers (50%) under 32 will not subscribe to a pay-TV service
Forrester Research and Google conducted a study back in 2015, and the results forecasted that 50% of all TV viewers under age 32 will not subscribe to a traditional cable-TV service by 2025. This is a massive shift for all advertisers, including B2B marketers. Generation Z (teens), and millennials alike are likely to drop their cable subscriptions and stick to video streaming services online. We’ve already seen the shift in traditional B2B advertising in TV, radio, and print, but this forecast predicts an even more drastic change by 2025.
Image Source: ThinkWithGoogle
18) More than 70% of YouTube views come from mobile devices
It wasn’t too long ago that YouTube reported that over half of its viewers were tuning into YouTube from their mobile devices. Fast forward to 2020, more than 70% of views come from mobile devices. People are watching videos on their mobile device more than on any other device. Even in the B2B space where typically we see most of the B2B transactions still happening on a desktop, 48% of B2B buyers use their smartphones to watch videos.
19) 500 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute
People are hungry for video. More and more people are creating videos more than ever before by uploading 500 hours of video each minute. Likewise, the number of video hours uploaded every minute grew by 40 percent between 2014 and 2019.
20) People are watching more than 100 million hours of YouTube videos on their TVs every day
Think with Google partnered up with Nielsen in 2015 and reviewed the average time people spent watching YouTube on their TV. Views more than doubled in 2015 versus the 2014 comparison. YouTube disclosed in a 2017 YouTube Earnings Call Webcast that people are watching more than 100 million hours of YouTube on their TVs every day, an increase of 70% since last year.
This further emphasizes the intense usage and popularity of the YouTube platform. Not only are people, including B2B buyers, spending more time on YouTube, but they’re also watching it straight from their TV (instead of TV!).
21) Home mobile YouTube viewing occurs primarily during prime time
In terms of people using their mobile devices at home to watch YouTube videos, most of this viewing occurs during prime time hours. As a B2B marketer, this is a great time to do live streamings on YouTube and maximize your potential reach.
Image Source: ThinkWithGoogle
22) 7 in 10 people default to horizontal viewing when watching videos online
Think By Google released findings that 7 out of 10 people default to horizontal viewing when watching YouTube videos on their phones. This comes into play when you’re creating video content for your B2B audience. You’ll want to make sure that your videos are of good quality horizontally.
Image Source: ThinkWithGoogle
23) 18% of U.S. adults get their news on YouTube
Believe it or not, YouTube ranks 2nd behind Facebook when it comes to what social networking sites U.S. adults use to get their news. In fact, 18% of U.S. adults get their news on YouTube, compared to 45% on Facebook and 11% on X (formerly known as Twitter).
YouTube is a great platform to share news and press releases. Major brands like HP, Microsoft, Cisco, and Adobe are investing in their B2B side and creating this type of content on YouTube.
Image Source: Journalist.org
24) Most of YouTube’s web traffic comes from the United States
According to Alexa’s YouTube visitors are more likely to be in the U.S with 15% of traffic. The runners-up are visitors in India at 9% and Japan with 4.7%.
25) The amount of what is consumed on YouTube is determined by its algorithm
70% of what people consume on YouTube is determined by their algorithm. Research backs this with 81% of American adults saying they watch videos recommended by the algorithm.
YouTube Content Marketing Stats
26) The top 4 content categories watched by YouTube users are comedy, music, entertainment/pop culture, and “how-to”
Comedy, music, entertainment/pop culture, and “how-to” videos are the most popular videos watched on YouTube. As a B2B marketer, you can incorporate some of these categories into your videos to create engaging content. For example, think of the widely popular Old Spice deodorant commercial “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like”.
The commercial was first launched in 2010 before the Superbowl and instantly went viral because of its humor. The company’s sales doubled, its website traffic jumped by 300%, and it became the #1 Most Viewed Sponsored YouTube Channel. For B2B brands specifically, Microsoft, HP, UPS, and Cisco are investing heavily in YouTube video marketing and incorporating content from popular categories as well.
27) The average length of a first page YouTube video is 14 minutes and 50 seconds long
In 2017, Backlinko analyzed 1.3 million YouTube videos to better understand how YouTube’s search engine works and the correlation between ranking factors—such as likes, comments, and shares—with YouTube rankings.
What did they discover?
Longer videos significantly outperformed shorter videos. On average, the length of a first-page YouTube video is about 15 minutes long.
Not to mention, in 2015, Google was granted a patent for an algorithm that uses the average “watch time” as a ranking signal. In short, YouTube wants to promote videos that keep people on YouTube for a long period of time. Creating longer-form videos can help boost your B2B videos on YouTube.
28) 68% of videos on the first page of YouTube are in HD
This stat ties into the quality of your B2B video content. Backlinko’s study of 1.3 million YouTube videos also showed that 68% of videos that rank on the first page of YouTube are in HD.
29) On average, videos that rank on the first page of YouTube have over 4,000 comments
Lastly, in regards to first-page rankings, the Backlinko study also found that video comments strongly correlate with higher rankings. As a B2B marketer, you want to maximize the number of comments on your videos by responding to comments, asking questions, and engaging with your audience on YouTube.
30) 81% of video-viewing occasions get all or most of people’s attention
Everyone is fighting for attention these days with an enormous amount of content being pushed out by advertisers, brands, and companies each day. According to Google, a whopping 85% of video-viewing occasions get most of the peoples’ attention.
If you’re providing relevant and timely B2B video content on YouTube, you’ll have a winning chance of gaining your audience’s attention and getting them locked in, as opposed to other forms of media.
31) 80% of U.S. marketers are confident YouTube videos convert
You might be wondering does YouTube actually work? In a survey conducted by Animoto, over 80% of B2C and B2B marketers agree that YouTube content has the ability to drive views, engagement, and purchases for businesses. Major B2B brands are investing money on YouTube not just for the views, but because it converts.
YouTube allows you to engage with your target audience, answer questions, get them familiar with your brand, and ultimately, drive them to purchase. If it didn’t work, major brands would not be investing in it so heavily.
Image Source: EMarketer
32) YouTube ranks 4th for the most valued social media platform by B2B marketers
According to Clutch and Smart Insights, a publisher and marketing learning platform, YouTube ranks 4th on the most valued social media platform for B2B marketers. In addition, YouTube is the only network where the value is perceived the same whether you’re marketing to B2C or B2B.
Image Source: Clutch.co
33) Views on branded video content have increased 99% on YouTube as of June 2017
Despite the increase in competition on YouTube, views on branded content continue to increase. Without question, the adoption of video marketing for B2B and B2C brands will continue to rise in 2023.
31) Brands that use video marketing grow their revenue 49% faster year-over-year than brands that don’t
Year-over-year increases in revenue from large companies were tracked in a study conducted by the Aberdeen Group in 2015. They found businesses that use a video marketing strategy grow their revenue 49% faster year-over-year than businesses that don’t use video. Meaning, if you want to stay competitive in the next coming years, investing in video marketing is a good move.
34) In the United States, YouTube will make 5.5 billion dollars in advertising revenue in 2020
This number is almost double what the platform made off advertisements in 2016. Statista praises an overall increase in online video watching in the United States.
35) Men speak more than women on YouTube and receive 56% of overall screen time
Researchers found that while marketers tend to create ads that use more males, people watched them less. Likewise, 56% of views were from viewing gender-balanced or women-led ads.
YouTube Sponsored Video Stats
36) From September 16 to 22, 2018 alone, 4,680 brands sponsored 8,964 videos that were directly uploaded to brand partners channels and pages on YouTube and Facebook
Brands are increasingly harnessing the power of YouTube to tell stories on popular YouTube channels. Although YouTube has not released official records on this, Tubular Insight reported that between the 16th and 22nd of September 2018 alone, 4,680 brands sponsored 8,964 videos that were directly uploaded to brand partners’ channels and pages on YouTube and Facebook.
GE’s sponsored video on the popular series “The Slow Mo Guys” YouTube Channel was one of the branded videos during that time frame. Gav and Dan, the two guys behind the channel, and GE launched the “Super Hydrophobic Surface and Magnetic Liquid” sponsored video showing cool liquid physics at 2500fps.
The video was a huge hit and generated more than 8.7 million views to date. This is just one example and it clearly shows that B2B marketers can leverage YouTube sponsored videos to attract new audiences and share compelling stories.
37) Influencers are 92% of the driving force behind branded YouTube videos.
An overwhelming 92% of total views on sponsored videos across all of YouTube were uploaded by individual creators and influencers. B2B brands that are looking to work with influencers to share compelling branded video content need to consider YouTube as one of the top platforms for distributing content.
Image Source: Tubular Insights
38) 51% of B2C and B2B marketers run YouTube video ads
More than half (51%) of B2B and B2B marketers run ads on YouTube, according to an April 2017 survey from cloud-based video creation company Animoto. Along with organic video content, investment in YouTube video ads will grow in 2023 as marketers continue to see results on the platform.
39) Viewers who see TrueView ads are 10 times more likely to engage with the brand on YouTube
You may want to stick to organic video content on YouTube, but TrueView ads have been shown to be beneficial to your B2B marketing strategy as well. YouTube found that viewers who see TrueView ads are 10 times more likely to engage with your brand on YouTube, whether that’s subscribing to your channel, watching more of your videos, or sharing videos.
40) 46% of B2B technology buyers will purchase a product or service after viewing video content
It’s a common misconception that YouTube does result in any conversions or sales. In fact, The International Data Group released that 46% of B2B technology buyers purchase a product or service after viewing video content. Whether you’re creating videos around your products or services, video content can help convert your leads into customers.
41) Over 75% of Fortune 500 executives are viewing online video
More and more B2B buyers are turning to YouTube to make informed purchasing decisions. Forbes reported that over 75% of Fortune 500 executives are viewing videos. This makes YouTube a premier destination for reaching and influencing your target audience.
42) More and more businesses use YouTube as a tool to post video content
As the value of video is becoming more important, more brands are looking to video as part of their marketing. 62 percent of businesses use the platform as a channel to post videos.
YouTube Statistics Recap
Weren’t able to catch them all? Here’s a recap of the top 10 YouTube stats every B2B marketer needs to know:
- 5 billion YouTube videos are viewed on average every day.
- YouTube generates 3 billion searches a month.
- Video will account for 82% of consumer traffic by 2023.
- Baby Boomers (50- to 65-years-old) and Generation X (36- to 49-year-old) are the fastest growing demographic on YouTube.
- The average length of a first-page YouTube video is 14 minutes and 50 seconds long.
- 80% of U.S. marketers are confident YouTube videos convert.
- YouTube ranks 4th for the most valued social media platform by B2B marketers.
- Views on branded video content have increased 99% on YouTube as of June 2017.
- 46% of B2B technology buyers will purchase a product or service after viewing video content.
- Over 75% of Fortune 500 executives are viewing online videos.
In conclusion, YouTube is not just a place for funny cat videos, millennials, and B2C brands. YouTube provides B2B marketers with a ton of opportunities to reach potential customers and provide valuable content in a format that more and more people are consuming. Informational videos, product reviews, entertainment videos through sponsored videos, and “how-to” tutorials are all great ways to get more visibility for your brand, help your customers, and convert new leads into clients. YouTube is looking bright for B2B.
Which stats were you most surprised with? Drop a comment with your thoughts – we’d love to know!
