YouTube has become an increasingly popular way for content creators in Kenya to earn money. With over 1 million new users joining YouTube every single day, there is a massive audience that Kenyan YouTubers can tap into. However, one of the most common questions asked is – How Much Does Youtube Pay You For 1 Million Views In Kenya?
The answer is not straightforward as YouTube earnings depend on many factors. But in this post, we will give you an estimate on YouTube CPM rates in Kenya and how much YouTubers can expect to earn from 1 million views.
What Is YouTube CPM?
CPM stands for Cost Per Thousand. It refers to how much money advertisers pay YouTube each time an ad is displayed 1,000 times on videos. A portion of this CPM money is shared with the YouTubers who display these ads on their videos.
The CPM rates vary depending on your niche, audience demographics, what country the views are coming from, etc. Popular niches like gaming, entertainment, tech, and music tend to have higher CPM rates than educational or “boring” content. Similarly, developed countries like USA, Canada, UK have higher average CPM compared to developing nations.
What Is The Average YouTube CPM In Kenya?
Based on the experience of top Kenyan YouTubers, the average YouTube CPM in Kenya ranges from $1 to $5. However, most fall in the $2 to $3 range.
So if your video has 1 million views and has an average CPM of $2, here is how much money you can expect to earn:
1 million / 1000 = 1000 (number of monetized ad views) 1000 * $2 (average CPM) = $2000
So with 1 million views and a $2 CPM, you can expect to earn around $2000 from YouTube. The actual earnings also depend on your RPM which accounts for view duration, impressions, etc.
Note that 1 million views sounds like a huge number. But for top creators in Kenya, this is achievable within months or even weeks in some cases.
Factors That Influence Your YouTube Earnings
While we used a $2 average CPM estimate above, your actual YouTube CPM and earnings per million views depend on several factors:
● Niche & Audience – Gaming/music/entertainment niches earn a lot more than educational or informational content geared towards serious viewers. Similarly, viewers from developed countries and younger audiences drive more ad revenue.
● Watch time – If viewers watch your videos longer, advertisers pay more to show ads. This increases your RPM and earnings per view. Videos over 10 minutes get the highest RPM generally.
● Ad types – Display ads pay less than video ads you can skip after 5 seconds. Using both ad formats increases your overall earnings.
● Ad density – Having too many ads annoys viewers. But having too few means lost earnings. Striking the optimal balance is important.
● Content quality – Well researched, high quality, original videos keep viewers engaged for longer. This results in higher ad rates and more money for your videos.
● Seasonality – Ad rates and YouTube earnings fluctuate by season and month depending on advertiser demand. Q4 (Oct to Dec) tends to have the highest CPM rates globally.
As you can see, 1 million views can result in widely varying YouTube earnings in Kenya depending on these optimization factors.
How Much Do Top Kenyan YouTubers Make?
To give you a more realistic estimate, here’s a breakdown of how much money some top Kenyan YouTubers make from YouTube:
- Njugush (Timothy Kimani) – With over 632,000 subscribers, Njugush makes around Ksh. 1,000,000 per month from YouTube, primarily through his comedic content.
- Crazy Kennar (Kennedy Odhiambo) – Crazy Kennar, known for his humorous skits, has around 604,000 subscribers and earns between Ksh. 600,000 to Ksh. 1,500,000 monthly.
- Mungai Eve – Mungai Eve, who focuses on celebrity interviews and entertainment, has about 744,000 subscribers. She earns between Ksh. 700,000 to Ksh. 1,500,000 each month.
- Diana Bahati – With a subscriber count of 779,000, Diana Bahati makes between Ksh. 400,000 to Ksh. 1,000,000 per month.
- Otile Brown – As a leading Kenyan artist with over 1.34 million subscribers, Otile Brown earns around Ksh. 4,000,000 per month.
- The WaJesus Family – This couple, known for their lifestyle and relationship content, has 562,000 subscribers and earns about Ksh. 200,000 per month.
As you can see from these top creators, once you build your subscriber base and viewership, YouTube income can be highly lucrative in Kenya even with 1 million total video views.
Building Your YouTube Channel For Long Term Profits
Simply uploading videos and expecting millions of views overnight rarely works out. Building an audience and profitable YouTube channel takes time and effort. Here are some tips:
● Commit to a niche – Create videos around topics you are passionate about that serve a specific audience. This helps build loyal viewers over time.
● Be consistent – Upload videos regularly, at least once a week to begin with. This trains YouTube to push your content so more viewers discover you.
● Focus on watch time – Structure videos to keep viewers watching with good pacing. Use attention-grabbing thumbnails and titles that make viewers want to click and watch the full video.
● Interact with viewers – Building a community that engages with your channel via comments helps promote videos further through YouTube’s algorithm.
● Optimize SEO – Use relevant keywords and optimize video titles, descriptions and tags to help surface your content in search results.
● Promote outside YouTube – Share your videos on social media to drive more viewers to your channel. Collaborate with others in your niche to expand your audience.
The YouTube game is a marathon, not a sprint. But with consistency, optimization and community building – hitting 1 million views and earning good income from YouTube is definitely achievable for Kenyan creators. I sincerely hope you find this “How Much Does Youtube Pay You For 1 Million Views In Kenya?” article helpful.
