Nine-year-old Ryan Kaji has grown into the highest-paid YouTuber in 2020, leaving his adult competition behind for the third year in a row, in part. Kaji, has earned nearly $ 30 million from his YouTube channel.
Ryan Kaji, with the real surname Guan, is the 9-year-old creator behind the “Ryan’s World” YouTube channel, called “Ryan Toys Reviews.” Kaji’s YouTube tour began in March 2015, after his mother created a channel for him at his request. Five years later, Kaji estimated a total of $ 26 million in 2019, according to Variety. The figure includes his YouTube revenue and brand deals for toys and clothing.
Today, Kaji and his family are the exhibitors behind nine YouTube channels with over 40 million people. “Ryan’s World,” its main channel, currently has 27.6 million subscribers with more than 43 billion views, according to YouTube. The channel is specifically for Kaji toy reviews, science experiments and craft projects. Other family channels have educational content and lively events.
Kaji is also involved in TV creation and content streaming. He signed a contract with Nickelodeon to create the “Ryan’s Mystery Playdate” show. The third season passed in September.
The content of Kaji and his family has sparked some controversy. Their videos apparently failed to properly sponsor sponsors, which is a big problem on the platform and not just in content aimed at children. Following a complaint from Truth in Advertising, a nonprofit watchdog, the family may oppose an investigation by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.
Some families have also complained about the impact of Kaji channels on their children, saying they set unattainable expectations.
“My kids expect our family to be like Ryan’s family,” Benjamin Burroughs, an assistant professor at the University of Nevada, told the Guardian.
“They’re opening a new toy every day. So this regular purchase that’s rooted in those messages is for kids.”
According to Forbes industry magazine, the top 10 Youtube employees generated revenue of $ 211 million between June 2019 and June 2020. Kaji remains in the same position as the main earner.
- Ryan Kaji, $ 29.5 million
- Mr. Beast, aka Jimmy Donaldson, $ 24 million
- Perfect Dude, a group of five friends – Coby Cotton, Cory Cotton, Garret Hilbert, Cody Jones and Tyler Toney, $ 23 million
- Rhett and Link, $ 20 million
- Markiplier, Mark Edward Fischbach famous for his games, $ 19.5 million
- Preston Assement, $ 19 million
- Nastya, a six-year-old Russian girl, $ 18.5 million
- Blippi, Stevin John, $ 17 million
- David Dobrik, $ 16 million
- Former singer Jeffrey Lynn Steininger, $ 15 million