MrBeast's Top 3 Tips on How to Make Money on YouTube

He's broken the record for the most money made by any YouTube channel in one year.

With over 100 million YouTube subscribers, Jimmy Donaldson, better known as MrBeast, has clawed his way to the top of the pack. Known for recreating the infamous Squid Games, he's donated millions to charity and captured the imagination of viewers around the globe, and he makes big bucks for doing so. Last year, he made an estimated $54 million, the most out of any YouTuber ever, despite ranking behind four other YouTube channels in popularity (measured by subscribers).

But scroll through his long, long YouTube history (10 years and counting), and you realize that even the infamous MrBeast started with a zero-subscription channel, a scrappy snack bag of ideas, and the drive to see them through. He grew his audience from the ground up. And he stopped by YouTube headquarters to give some quick tips to up-and-coming content creators.

Interested in starting a side hustle or growing your business so you can add more money to your bank account? Here are MrBeast's top three tips for how to make money on YouTube.

1. Go above and beyond

MrBeast isn't known for dipping his toes into the content kiddie pool. He built a Willy Wonka-style chocolate factory and gave it away. He's been buried alive, locked in solitary confinement, and handed his 100 millionth subscriber an island. When it comes to creativity and sheer oomph, he goes above and beyond.

Far, far beyond.

Oddly enough, it pays. Despite shelling out millions of dollars on crazy stunts, MrBeast's business empire thrives and continues to grow, even spawning Mr. Beast-labeled food brands. Maybe that's why MrBeast recommends that content creators continue to go above and beyond. Viewers appreciate the effort creators put into creating fun videos.

While it helps to have loads of money you can use to fund wild stunts, expectations are relative to the channel. Viewers don't expect new content creators to have it all figured out. Going "above and beyond" can be as simple as putting in the effort to edit raw footage on a bad day.

2. Delegate

MrBeast has a crew. Spoiler: they're his friends. Bouncing ideas and shooting films with friends helps Mr. Beast keep up the good vibes through years of running a channel. The danger of burning out is a real thing. Content creation often begins as a labor of love, and quiet quitting a channel can quickly turn off viewers -- see the above tip!

Consider starting a channel with friends. If you've already got something good going, rope some friends into it to keep things fresh.

3. Embrace data

MrBeast and his team poke around his YouTube channel numbers to figure out what works and what doesn't. He knows that a lot of creators find data intimidating. Truth is, a creator can start simple. Poking around a graph that shows average view duration is enough to provide valuable insight into what kind of content viewers like watching.

Start small and ramp up. You can branch into other YouTube analytic tools at your speed -- YouTube has many to choose from. Peer into when your viewers are on YouTube, what other channels your viewers watch, and more. It's okay to use whatever tools you find helpful and ignore the rest.

MrBeast grew from zero followers to a subscriber base bigger than the estimated population of Germany. But the craziest thing is his channel is still growing. He still uses the tips that brought him from zero to his first 100 million subscribers -- tips new or growing content creators can use to build their channels from the ground up.