How to Increase Your YouTube RPM: 9 Strategies That Actually Work

If you're not sure how RPM differs from CPM, start with our RPM vs. CPM explainer. In short: RPM is what you earn per 1,000 views after YouTube's share, across all views and all YouTube revenue sources. That's the number these strategies aim to move.

1. Start by reading your own revenue report

In YouTube Studio, open Analytics → Revenue and look at:

• RPM by video: which videos earn the most per view, and what they have in common (topic, length, audience).
• Revenue sources: how much comes from ads versus YouTube Premium, memberships and Supers.
• Geography: in the advanced report, where your monetized views come from.
• Shorts vs. long-form: a growing share of Shorts views will lower your overall RPM, which isn't necessarily a problem if total revenue grows.

Most of the strategies below only make sense once you know which of these is holding your RPM back.

2. Use mid-roll ads where the video naturally allows it

Videos that are 8 minutes or longer can include ads during the video (mid-rolls), which usually increases the number of ads per playback. You can let YouTube place them automatically or choose positions yourself at natural breaks.

The caveat: don't stretch a 5-minute idea into 9 minutes just to unlock mid-rolls. Padding lowers retention, and lower retention means fewer views and less ad time overall. Make videos as long as the content needs.

3. Keep your content advertiser-friendly

A video marked with limited ads (the yellow icon) can earn a fraction of a fully monetized one. YouTube's advertiser-friendly content guidelines describe what leads to limited ads: for example strong profanity (especially early in the video), graphic violence, adult content, and certain sensitive or controversial topics without educational context.

• Read the guidelines once, carefully — many creators lose revenue over things they didn't know were restricted.
• If you're eligible for self-certification, rate your videos honestly. Accurate ratings build a track record that YouTube relies on.
• If you think a video was limited by mistake, request a human review.

4. Cover topics advertisers want to be next to — within your niche

Advertisers pay more when the viewer is close to an expensive decision. Within almost any niche there are topics with higher commercial intent: buying guides, comparisons, reviews, software tutorials, "how to start" videos. A gaming channel covering hardware and setup, or a cooking channel reviewing kitchen equipment, often sees higher RPM on those videos.

Don't abandon your audience to chase CPM; a topic your viewers don't want will lose you more in views than it gains in RPM. Our CPM by niche guide explains which topics tend to attract the most ad demand.

5. Understand your audience's geography

Ad prices vary a lot by country. Viewers in the US, Canada, Australia, the UK and parts of Western Europe typically generate more ad revenue per view than viewers in many other regions. You can't change where your viewers live, but you can:

• Make content relevant to the audiences you want (local prices, products, services and examples).
• Add accurate captions and translated titles so viewers in other languages can find and follow your videos.
• Consider multi-language audio if it's available to your channel and your content travels well.

6. Plan around seasonality

Ad demand typically rises from October through December as advertisers spend on holiday campaigns, then falls sharply in January. Two practical implications:

• Schedule some of your strongest, most commercial videos (gift guides, reviews, "best of the year") for the fall.
• Don't panic about a January drop; compare with the same month last year instead of with December.

7. Check your ad settings

For each video, the Monetization section in YouTube Studio lets you review ad placements such as pre-roll, post-roll and mid-roll. Make sure ads are on for all eligible videos, including older ones that still get views — it's common to find old uploads that were never monetized.

8. Grow the non-ad revenue that RPM includes

RPM includes more than ads. Channel memberships, Super Chat, Super Stickers, Super Thanks and YouTube Premium revenue all count. A small, loyal audience can raise RPM noticeably through memberships and Supers, especially on live streams. YouTube Premium revenue depends on how much Premium members watch your content, which again rewards videos people actually watch.

9. Balance Shorts and long-form deliberately

Shorts are great for discovery and can bring new subscribers, but they're paid from a shared pool and usually earn much less per view. Many creators use Shorts to attract viewers and long-form videos to monetize them. Watch your RPM for each format separately, and judge Shorts by what they do for your channel overall.

What doesn't work

• Buying views or watch time. It violates YouTube's policies, can get you removed from the Partner Program, and bought traffic doesn't generate real ad revenue anyway.
• Stuffing mid-rolls. Too many interruptions drive viewers away, which costs more than the extra ads earn.
• Misleading packaging to chase high-CPM topics. It damages retention and trust.

Beyond RPM: income per viewer

RPM only measures YouTube revenue. Many creators earn more from sponsorships, affiliate links, products or services than from ads. These don't change your RPM, but they can multiply what each viewer is worth to your business. To estimate your YouTube income at different RPMs, try the revenue calculator.

Frequently asked questions