How much do the VTubers Make | Famous VTubers’ Income
As you start watching VTubers and jump into the virtual fantasy worlds designed by your favorite content creators, a few important questions might pop up in your head: “how much do the VTubers make?” and “how do the VTubers make money?“. Well, we’ve been wondering exactly the same thing!
Here we examine the net worth of some of your favorite Vtubers later in this article, and briefly explain their sources of income. So sit tight, and let’s quench our thirst for answers.
How much do the VTubers Earn?
According to Playboard, in 2021, all the nine top earning Youtube accounts made anywhere between US$700,000 and US$1.7 million each through Super chat, and you will be amazed by the fact that all of them were VTubers.
The following video contains the full breakdown of the ways of earning for an Average VTuber and how much each method pays them:
Now let’s talk about the individual VTuber’s net worth and how much do they make yearly.
Uruha Rushia
Uruha Rushia works for Hololive and has made around $1.7 million in Super Chat alone in 2021. They’ve made around $3.2 million in revenue since the channel was made. She is the top earner in Super Chats in 2021.
Kiryu Coco
Kiryu Coco made around $1.5 million, came in 2nd in 2021 through Super Chat, and made about $3 million over the span of time since they made their youtube channel. As you can imagine, her net worth is quite high!
Yukihana Lamy
3rd place went to Yukihana Lamy, who earned almost $1 million through Super Chat in 2021 and $1.7 million in total.
Usada Pekora
She made about $900k in 2021 through Super Chat and roughly $2.3 million since the channel went live for the first time.
Kanata Amane
Kanata Amane earned about $900k in Super Chats in the year 2021 and earned $1.7 million in total.
Marine Houshou
In the year 2021, Marine Houshou made about $880k in Super Chats and about $1.9 million in total.
Nene Momosuzu
2021 was a good year for Nene Momosuzu, as she made $740k in that year which is around 75% of her lifetime income, which is approximately $1.1 million.
Takanashi Kiara
Takanashi Kiara came in at 8th place with $721k in the year 2021 and a $1.2 million lifetime.
Watame Tsunomaki
She earned around $650k in 2021 through Super Chat and made approximately $1.4 million in her YouTube lifetime.
Kuzuha
The NIJISANJI-affiliated VTuber made $621k in the year 2021; with that, he comes in at number 10. He made roughly $1.6 million in Super Chat in his YouTube lifetime.
Ironmouse
She is an honorary mention as she is one of my favorite VTubers, so I had to include her. On YouTube, she makes around $30k to $48k yearly, which isn’t a lot, but most of her income comes from twitch, where she makes around $288k per year.
Now, after reading about the earnings of all of these VTubers, you might be thinking of how these guys make money. Well, we’ve got you covered.
How do the VTubers make money?
Well, this is a tricky question, as most of the VTubers are signed to famous VTuber agencies like Nijisanji Project and Hololive Productions or work as an indie team. That means a percentage of the money they receive as Super Chat, membership, or Endorsement goes to the production houses.
They also work for the agencies on a salary basis, so even if they don’t make any money, they still are paid a specific, agreed-upon amount.
Still, for the sake of full clarification, let’s take a deeper dive into all of the revenue streams that a VTuber has.
The YouTube Partner Program
This is the most common source of revenue for any VTuber or even a simple YouTuber. Almost every VTuber that streams on youtube earn through the good old YouTube Partner Programme, i.e., through ads. Although this is the most effortless way to earn, it pays the least amount of money per viewer compared to the other streams of revenue.
Memberships
This is the safest form of revenue generation for the VTubers out there as it insures the Vtubers from the cancel culture, and if their content is appealing enough, then the income stream keeps consistent. In this form of revenue stream, the content consumers pay a periodic fee for the value that Vtuber provides and enjoy ad-free entertainment.
Endorsements
In this method, the VTubers earn their income by announcing any particular brand they have landed a deal with in their video. This is the method that makes most of the money for the VTubers.
Super Chat
When the users are compelled by the content that the VTuber provides, they often make a small donation, or sometimes even a big one, to that particular VTuber. This also makes a large portion of the revenue for the Vtubers, so be generous next time when you watch your favorite VTuber and donate.
Merchandise
Merchandise (or mostly known as “Merch”) is also an excellent way for the VTubers to capitalize on their audience. The fans of the VTuber often spend a lot of money on Merchandise sold by the VTuber. Merchandise usually includes shirts, sweaters, mouse pads, etc., often arranged through a third-party retailer and sometimes through youtube’s merch shelf.
Affiliate Programs
VTubers can also make money by signing up for different affiliate programs that are related to their content. This way, they make a commission on every sale made through their referral links.
Patreon
Patreon and similar services are another way for the VTubers to make extra money. It works the same way that the membership functions, but there is a minimum requirement of 30,000 subscribers by youtube in order for membership to work. And that is where Patreon comes in and fills the need of small VTubers for getting a steady revenue stream.
Wrapping it up
We have covered the earnings of the top 10 VTubers and how they make money. They earn anywhere between US$700,000 and US$1.7 million. If you are suddenly interested in becoming a VTuber after reading those numbers, you, my friend, are not at fault; those numbers are very attractive. Follow us and stay tuned for our next blogs, where we will discuss how to be a VTuber.
