YouTubers with the most subscribers in 2021: PewDiePie, Smosh and more – Business Insider
YouTube has become the de-facto launchpad for the next generation of celebrities, personalities, and big stars.
Well-known names like PewDiePie, Shane Dawson, and Smosh have racked up millions of subscribers over the years by uploading videos on YouTube and forming seemingly personal relationships with their fans. From comedians to gamers to vloggers of all kinds, YouTubers have harnessed the video-sharing platform to build their followings and brands from nothing more than a video camera and a solid internet connection.
To get a closer look into which stars rule YouTube, we looked at the SocialBlade rankings to see which channels have the most subscribers. We focused on independent YouTube creators, disregarding YouTube channels from music artists and record labels, multi-channel networks, and those without a face to the name.
AKA: Ian Hecox and the Smosh cast
Location: United States
Video type: Smosh was started by comedy duo Ian Hecox and Anthony Padilla, and the channel was one of the first YouTube sensations. The channel is known for its various written sketches and comedy series spinoffs. It’s since expanded into other channels dedicated to video games and Spanish language content.
Smosh has been active since 2002, and has grown tremendously since then. One of the founders, Anthony Padilla, left the channel in June 2017. Smosh has expanded beyond Hecox to include other personalities that host the channel’s series and appear on Smosh’s spinoff channels. The Smosh brand was acquired in early 2019 by Mythical Entertainment, a company owned by YouTubers Rhett & Link.
Location: United States
Video type: James Charles came to fame for his beauty content, but he also posts a number of vlogs, musical covers, and activities that bring in a number of other influencers. He’s notably been involved, or tangential, to some of the biggest YouTube and TikTok drama over the course of the past several years.
AKA: Evan Fong
Location: Canada
Video type: VanossGaming is a gaming commentator, but what sets him apart are his compilations of funny moments while he’s playing that are stitched together.
Location: Indonesia
Video type: Atta Halilintar typically posts vlogs, house tours, and interviews with celebrities, the Jakarta Post reported. He was the first Southeast Asian YouTuber to receive YouTube’s Diamond Play Button (awarded for reaching 10 million subscribers) and is Indonesia’s biggest YouTube star.
AKA: Seán McLoughlin
Location: Ireland
Video type: JackSepticEye initially came to fame when PewDiePie mentioned him in a video in 2013. His channel is centered around the Let’s Play-style of video gaming videos with accompanying swear-riddled commentary and charity livestreaming.
AKA: Raúl Álvarez Genes
Location: Spain
Video type: A popular Twitch streamer, AuronPlay‘s YouTube videos are a mix of vlogs, internet commentary, and gaming content.
AKA: Vlad Bumaga
Location: Belarus
Video type: On his channel A4, Bumaga’s videos are comedy-focused, and typically feature vlogs, challenges, skits, and pranks.
Location: United Arab Emirates
Video type: Shfa’s channel, which appears to be run by her parents, is geared towards children and typically involve toys or activities like swimming or having parties. There are also a number of associated channels, including shfa2, shfa gaming, and shfa español, that have amassed thousands to millions of subscribers.
AKA: Ryan Kaji
Location: United States
Video type: Ryan ToysReview — which was just recently rebranded to Ryan’s World — is a family-run channel, but the star of the show is 8-year-old Ryan Kaji, who generated $22 million in revenue in a single year.
AKA: Mark Fischbach
Location: United States
Video type: Markiplier is another YouTuber known for his video game commentary, but he’s recently expanded into sketch comedy. He’s known for his colorful commentary and oft-dyed hair — and he sometimes sports a pink mustache.
AKA: Kimberly Loaiza
Location: Mexico
Video type: Kimberly Loiaza is one of Mexico’s most popular social media stars, and her YouTube videos typically veer towards lifestyle content, challenges, and music. She also runs the channel JukiLop with her partner Juan de Dios Pantoja Nuñez.
AKA: Ajey Nagar
Location: India
Video type: CarryMinati’s videos typically focus on comedy, commentary, and music. He’s one of India’s most popular YouTubers.
AKA: Wendy, Jannie, Emma, and family
Location: United States
Video type: While there’s not much public information available on the family and group behind Toys and Colors, the channel has amassed millions of subscribers with family-friendly videos that show a rotating cast of kids who play with toys and act out different pretend scenarios.
AKA: Pedro Afonso Rezende
Location: Brazil
Video type: Rezende started out as a gaming channel where he posted videos of himself playing “Minecraft.” Since then, he’s moved that content over to another channel, and now focuses mainly on comedy videos and daily vlogs featuring his friends.
AKA: Samuel de Luque
Location: Spain
Video type: His channel, Vegetta777, is known for his gameplay videos for “Minecraft,” “Saint’s Row,” and “Battlefield.” His voiceover style differs from many other YouTube — he creates elaborate narratives and histories for the characters in his video games.
AKA: Lunes
Location: Brazil
Video type: Luccas Neto produces sketches featuring characters and stories aimed at children. He’s the younger brother of comedic YouTuber Felipe Neto.
AKA: Luis Arturo Villar Sudek
Location: Mexico
Video type: Luisito Comunica makes travel vlogs documenting his experiences in cities around the world. In his videos, he focuses on showcasing the cultures and histories of the places he visits.
AKA: Lukas Marques and Daniel Molo
Location: Brazil
Video type: The channel “Você Sabia?“, which translates to “Did You Know?”, present videos with interesting facts and trivia from around the world.
AKA: Rubén Doblas Gundersen
Location: Spain
Video type: El Rubius is a gamer who does walk-throughs, reviews, and more, peppered with funny commentary. He started making videos on his channel, ElRubiusOMG, at age 16, and made it a full-time career at 21.
AKA: Luis Fernando Flores
Location: El Salvador
Video type: Fernanfloo is known for his gameplay videos and wacky antics. His dogs sometimes make appearances in his videos.
Location: Brazil
Video type: Felipe Neto makes comedic videos and vlogs about his daily life, current news, and celebrities. In 2012, his YouTube channel became the first Brazilian channel to hit 1 million subscribers. He released a Netflix original comedy special, “My Life Makes No Sense,” in 2017.
He’s the older brother of another prominent YouTube, Luccas Neto.
AKA: Whindersson Nunes
Location: Brazil
Video type: Whinderssonnunes has been making vlogs and comedic videos since he was 15. He uploads parodies, songs, movie reviews, and videos about his daily life.
AKA: Germán Garmendia
Location: Chile
Video type: Garmendia is Latin America’s biggest YouTube star. His channel, JuegaGerman, first focused solely on video games, but has expanded into comedic content.
He has another channel with a comparable subscriber base — HolaSoyGerman., with 41.2 million subscribers — but he hasn’t posted to it in two years.
Location: Mexico
Video type: Badabun has grown in popularity with its series “Exponiendo Infieles,” where the host interviews couples to see if either person is cheating on the other. The network’s team of Spanish-speaking influencers is also notable for its comedic on-the-street interviews, and a Big Brother-type reality series documenting influencers living in a mansion together.
AKA: Jimmy Donaldson
Location: United States
Video type: MrBeast is known for two types of videos: viral challenges — ranging from “Counting to 100,000 in One Video” to “Last To Remove Hand, Gets Lamborghini Challenge” — to attention-grabbing donation and charity stunts where he’ll dole out thousands of dollars to small Twitch games and waitresses.
AKA: Cory and Coby Cotton, plus three college friends (Tyler Toney, Garrett Hilbert, and Cody Jones)
Location: United States
Video type: The Dude Perfect guys are known for their compilations of trick shots and their Rolodex of famous athletes that appear alongside them in their videos. The channel has expanded into comedy, and the crew is often joined in their videos by a giant Panda mascot.
Location: United States
Video type: The US-based Vlad and Niki channel stars two brothers — Vlad, 7, and Nikita, 5. Videos show the brothers playing with toys and showing off their daily adventures.
AKA: Stacy, Nastya
Location: United States
Video type: The “Like Nastya” channel posts regular vlogs of a Russian-American girl named Stacy playing with toys and going on adventures with her family. Stacy also appears on other popular channels with millions of subscribers: Like Nastya Show, Stacy Toys and Funny Stacy.
Location: United States
Video type: The “Kids Diana Show” follows the antics of Diana and her brother, Roma. The channel features the Russian-speaking kids unboxing toys and going on fantastical adventures.
AKA: Felix Kjellberg
Location: United Kingdom
Video type: PewDiePie is known for his popular videos where he gives commentary while playing video games. His content has expanded into coverage and commentary of internet memes and viral videos.
At one point, the Swedish gamer was locked in a months-long battle for the title of most-subscribed-to YouTube channel with Bollywood music company T-Series. His devoted fanbase took action to ensure his No. 1 spot with an extensive “Subscribe to PewDiePie” campaign that included hacking printers and buying billboard space. However, T-Series beat PewDiePie to the 100-million subscriber mark at the end of May 2019.
Kjellberg has also attracted negative attention for a long history of offensive racist and anti-Semitic remarks, which YouTube has punished him for.
John Lynch, Nina Godlewski, Harrison Jacobs, Maya Kosoff, and Nathan McAlone contributed to earlier versions of this post.
Do you work at YouTube? Got a tip about it? Contact this reporter via Signal at +1 (201) 312-4526 using a non-work phone, email at pleskin@businessinsider.com, or Twitter DM at @paigeleskin. (PR pitches by email only please). You can also contact Business Insider securely via SecureDrop.
Keep reading