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Real data on every business question.

We pull real data on creators, sales, ads and money, then write up what held up and what didn’t. Every study is free, and every one becomes a video.

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2× as many breakout Shorts said a real number in the first 3 seconds$6.19 what a typical long video paid per 1,000 views43× more views per video for small true crime channels than small finance channels67% of channels got more views on their longer videos than their shorter ones3.4× more views per week for channels posting 4–7 times a week than less than once a week7% is the whole gap between the best and worst day to post. The hour barely mattered.74% of viral videos promised something different from that creator’s normal videos1 in 3 viral thumbnails had a bigger face than the creator’s normal ones. Most didn’t.170 words a minute, viral and normal scripts alike⅓ of a long video’s views: what a typical short got on the same channel54% of the time the sharper video won. That’s a coin flip.2,100 views on a typical video for a 5,000-subscriber channel: almost half its subscribers. Million-sub channels get about 7%.2× as many breakout Shorts said a real number in the first 3 seconds$6.19 what a typical long video paid per 1,000 views43× more views per video for small true crime channels than small finance channels67% of channels got more views on their longer videos than their shorter ones3.4× more views per week for channels posting 4–7 times a week than less than once a week7% is the whole gap between the best and worst day to post. The hour barely mattered.74% of viral videos promised something different from that creator’s normal videos1 in 3 viral thumbnails had a bigger face than the creator’s normal ones. Most didn’t.170 words a minute, viral and normal scripts alike⅓ of a long video’s views: what a typical short got on the same channel54% of the time the sharper video won. That’s a coin flip.2,100 views on a typical video for a 5,000-subscriber channel: almost half its subscribers. Million-sub channels get about 7%.

138,645YouTube videos studied

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The studies

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YouTube · Data study

2×

Viral Hooks: What 418 Breakout Shorts Said in the First 3 SecondsBreakout Shorts said a real number in the first 3 seconds about twice as often.Read the study Money · Data study

$6.19

How Much Does YouTube Pay? 82 Creators’ Real RPMs, by NicheA typical long video paid about $6.19 per 1,000 views. Shorts paid 16 cents.Read the study YouTube · Data study

43×

The Best Faceless YouTube Niches for Small Channels (572 Channels Ranked)True crime got 43× the views of personal finance on small faceless channels.Read the study YouTube · Data study

67%

How Long Should a YouTube Video Be? 111,322 Videos Compared Within Their Own ChannelsLonger videos won in 2 out of 3 channels, but only by about a fifth.Read the study YouTube · Data study

3.4×

How Often Should You Post on YouTube? 1,664 Channels and 42,629 UploadsEach video gets fewer views when you post more, but your week adds up to more.Read the study YouTube · Data study

The Best Time to Post on YouTube (24,918 Uploads Say It Barely Matters)The best day beat the worst by about 7%. The hour made no real difference.Read the study

More studies

YouTube · Data study

74%

Why YouTube Videos Go Viral: 1,019 Outliers vs Normal Videos From the Same ChannelIn 74% of pairs, the viral video simply promised something different.Read the study YouTube · Data study

1 in 3

What Makes a YouTube Thumbnail Work? 2,038 Thumbnails From the Same ChannelsViral thumbnails weren’t brighter and didn’t have bigger faces.Read the study YouTube · Data study

170

YouTube Script Writing: 1,888 Viral and Normal Scripts ComparedSame pace, same sentence length, same openings. The viral one was just longer.Read the study YouTube · Data study

⅓

YouTube Shorts vs Long Videos: 586 Channels That Post BothThe typical short got a third of the views of the same channel’s long video.Read the study YouTube · Data study

54%

Does 4K Get More Views on YouTube? 693 Pairs From the Same ChannelsNo. The higher-resolution video won 54% of the time: a coin flip.Read the study YouTube · Data study

2,100

Is YouTube Killing Small Channels? What the Data SaysA small channel’s videos reach a much bigger share of its subscribers than a big channel’s.Read the study

What this is

Questions, answered with data.

Most business advice is a guess dressed up as a rule. We pull the real numbers first (videos, ads, sales calls, cold emails, payouts), then write up what held up and what didn’t.

Every study is numbered, free, and turned into a video on The Business Study on YouTube.

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