February 10, 2026
Subs, ads & salty comments
YouTube's $60B revenue revealed amid paid subscriber push
Internet cheers, skeptics demand costs, and Netflix throws side-eye
TLDR: YouTube made $60B in 2025, beating Netflix, while Google pushes Premium and cheaper tiers. Commenters split between “best acquisition ever” praise and “show us the costs” skepticism, with debate over unfair comparisons and confusion around Google’s 325M paid subscriptions across its services.
YouTube just flashed a jaw‑dropping $60B haul for 2025, and the comments lit up like a fireworks show. The top cheer? “Legendary acquisition” vibes from bradgessler, who admits he thought Google overpaid in 2006 but now calls it an incredible steal. Then the mood shifts: skeptics like ekianjo are chanting “show us the costs”, imagining server bills, creator payouts, and the not‑so‑small price of keeping the world’s biggest video site humming.
The Netflix comparison stirred spice too. Stingraycharles questions if it’s apples to apples—YouTube’s mostly user‑generated content versus Netflix’s Hollywood bill—echoing analysts who say the lines are blurring. Meanwhile, math drama erupts: langarus gripes that the headline oversold paid subs, misreading Google’s 325M paid subscriptions as YouTube money, not across all Google services. Cue reply wars and eye‑roll emojis.
Fans shout “That’s a lot of moolah!” (thanks CHB) while others side‑eye Premium perks like background play being paywalled. Shorts boasting 200B daily views gets the Gen Z stamp, and Ted Sarandos declaring “YouTube is TV” becomes the meme of the day. Creators whisper anxiety about Google’s AI summaries draining clicks, and regulators in the EU and UK circle. Drama, revenue, and a whole lot of opinions—classic YouTube energy.
Key Points
- •YouTube generated over $60 billion in 2025 from ads and subscriptions, exceeding Netflix’s $45 billion revenue.
- •Google highlighted YouTube’s revenue individually for the first time since acquiring the platform in 2006.
- •YouTube’s Q4 2025 ad revenue was $11.38 billion, below Wall Street expectations, but overall performance was called a “fantastic year.”
- •Subscription growth is accelerating via YouTube Premium and new, cheaper Premium and YouTube TV tiers; Shorts averages 200+ billion daily views.
- •Regulators are probing Google’s AI Overviews’ impact on creators and publishers; Ofcom data shows strong UK usage and viewing time.