Ordinary people making millions from social media

Lovemoney


Highest paid YouTubers and more

Boasting legions of admiring fans, the most successful social media stars are raking it in big-time, thanks to massive ad revenues, paid product placements, lucrative book deals and money-making merchandise. From cult beauty and fashion gurus and mysterious toy unboxers, to geeky gamers and cheeky pranksters, we reveal the regular people turned mega-influencers who are making millions from YouTube, Instagram, Twitter and Twitch.
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Tanya Burr (Pixi2woo), net worth $1.9 million (£1.5m)

Tanya Burr, 27, was working on a beauty counter at a department store in Norwich, England when she started posting celeb copycat make-up tutorials on YouTube in 2009. Fast-forward to 2017 and the British beauty and style vlogger has 3.7 million YouTube subscribers and 2.46 million Twitter followers, not to mention a book deal and cosmetics line.
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Bethany Mota (Macbarbie07), net worth: $2.5 million (£2m)

Californian haul queen Bethany Mota posted her first YouTube video in 2009 to help boost her confidence after being bullied at school. Now one of social media's most popular stars, the 21-year-old fashion, beauty and lifestyle guru has millions of fans, her own clothing range and has even appeared as a contestant on hit US TV show Dancing with the Stars.
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Brian DiFeo (@bridif), net worth: $3 million (£2.4m)

Amateur photographer Brian DiFeo, 40, joined Instagram in October 2010, a few weeks after its launch. One of the first people to recognize the earning potential of the picture-sharing site, the New Yorker soon built up a dedicated following, landed his first paid gig for Puma in 2011, and founded The Mobile Media Lab in 2012, the only creative agency devoted to Instagram advertising.
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Alfie Deyes (PointlessBlog), net worth: $3 million (£2.4m)

Now a well known celeb in the UK, 23-year-old Alfie Deynes began vlogging on his PointlessBlog YouTube channel back in 2009 while he was still at school. The London-born vlogger's viral and gaming videos, and collaborations with fellow vloggers and stars like Arianna Grande have garnered him a humongous social media following and three big-money book deals.
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Zoe Sugg (Zoella), net worth: $3.76 million (£3m)

YouTube's power couple, Alfie Deynes has been dating 26-year-old fashion and beauty vlogger Zoe Sugg aka Zoella since 2014. Rocking a whopping 11.6 million YouTube subscribers and 7.46 million Twitter followers, the internet sensation, who lives with her boyfriend in a $1.3 million (£1m) house in Brighton, England, has made most of her money from her beauty line and book deals – her debut novel Girl Online was the UK's fastest selling book in 2014.
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Tom Cassell (TheSyndicateProject/Syndicate), net worth: $4.72 million (£3.8m)

Another super-popular British vlogger, gamer Tom Cassell, 23, has just under 10 million YouTube subscribers, runs the most followed channel on gaming social video platform Twitch and is VP of a gambling website. It's not all been plain sailing however – the internet star has fallen foul of the authorities on more than one occasion for failing to disclose that he was being paid to promote various products.
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Toby Turner (Tobuscus/TobyGames), net worth: $5 million (£4m)

Toby Turner kicked off his social media career using a camera his mother bought him in 2006. Ridiculously popular, the 31-year-old internet comedian's funny videos on his Tobuscus YouTube channel have attracted 6.4 million subscribers, and his gaming and vlogging channels have pulled in millions more. Turner has also appeared in several movies and TV shows.
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Grace Helbig (GracieHinABox/it'sGrace), net worth: $5 million (£4m)

Enjoying a similar career trajectory, comic Grace Helbig, also 31, started vlogging in 2007 to kill time while she was house-sitting for a family in New Jersey. Like Toby Turner, the popular comedian has notched up millions of subscribers, as well as presenting and standup gigs, TV commercials, movie roles and comic book deals.
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Jenna Nicole Mourey (JennaMarbles), net worth: $5 million ($4m)

Queen of YouTube Jenna Nicole Mourey, better known as JennaMarbles, was working in a tanning salon and go-go dancing on the side when she launched her humorous YouTube channel in 2010. To date, the 30-year-old Californian-based vlogger has racked up 16.7 million subscribers and two billion views, and has her own dog toy brand and weekly show on SiriusXM Hits 1.
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Rubén Doblas Gundersen (elrubius/ElRubiusOMG), net worth: $5.5 million ($4.4m)

Spanish gamer Rubén Doblas Gundersen aka El Rubius has won over millions of YouTube subscribers with his witty gameplay videos and vlogs. In fact, the 26-year-old's ElRubiusOMG channel is the sixth most subscribed on YouTube with a breathtaking 23 million subscribers and 4.9 billion views. Like many YouTube stars, Gundersen has topped up his income with lucrative book deals and product endorsements.
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Samuel de Luque (Vegetta777), net worth: $6.2 million (£5m)

Fellow Spanish gamer Samuel de Luque, otherwise known as Vegetta777, has made even more money than Gundersen. The 27-year-old YouTube success story joined the site in 2008 and soon attracted millions of fans with his unique gameplay style. His channel is now the second most subscribed in Spain and super-popular among gamers in Latin America.
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Joseph Garrett (Stampylonghead), net worth: $6.3 million (£5m)

The most famous YouTuber you've never heard of – unless you're under 12 or a parent with young kids – 26-year-old Joseph Garrett aka Stampylonghead has made a fortune from his Stampy Cat character and family-friendly YouTube videos on Minecraft and other games. A former barman, Garrett has also appeared on Disney and CBBC TV shows, and has had two books published.
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Tyler Oakley (Tyler Oakley), net worth: $8 million (£6.4m)

LGBT activist and entertainer Tyler Oakley posted his first video in 2007 when he was a freshman at Michigan State University and hasn't looked back. The 27-year-old's eponymous YouTube channel now has eight million subscribers and his Twitter account has scored 5.6 million followers. Boosting his income, Oakley has appeared on countless internet shows and landed a book deal with Simon & Schuster in 2015.
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Lilly Singh (IISuperwomanII), net worth: $10 million (£8m)

Struggling with depression, Lilly Singh turned to YouTube to lift her spirits, launching her hilarious IISuperwomanII channel in 2010. Seven years down the line, the 28-year-old Canadian comedian counts 11 million YouTube subscribers and 2.07 million followers on Twitter, has launched her own lipstick and appeared in several movies to boot.
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Daniel Middleton (TheDiamondMinecart/DanTDM), net worth: $10 million (£8m)

Minecraft gameplay stars clearly make a killing on YouTube. Daniel Middleton, 25, aka TheDiamondMinecart/DanTDM has racked up 14 million subscribers – mostly children between the ages of five and 10 – and a total of 9.1 billion views. As well as YouTube videos, the British social media star makes regular TV appearances and has released a graphic novel.
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Messias Credido (BluCollection), net worth: $10 million (£8m)

Who'd have thought you could make millions of dollars from simply opening toy boxes? The BluCollection channel on YouTube is hosted by a mysterious man with a calming voice who opens and plays with toys. Recently unmasked as Florida-based Messias Crecido, 46, the Brazilian-born YouTuber has an impressive 5.2 million subscribers.