10 Most Popular YouTube Channels by Subscribers

It’s been a while since we last updated our list of the top 10 YouTube channels with the most subscribers. So, here they are as of May 9, 2013:

10. Movies

YouTube’s own channel where you can buy and rent movies online has cracked the Top 10 list. I have to say I’m a little confused as to what the benefit of subscribing is. There is no original content that you can view for free. Maybe YouTube has plans to change that.

YouTube Movies Channel

9. One Direction VEVO

One Direction wins the efficiency award with the lowest amount of videos (70) of any channel in the top 10. Despite not having published a video in over a month, the band continues to gain tons of views and subscribers probably from having such a rabid and loyal fan base.

8. Hola Soy German

For those of you unfamiliar with this YouTuber, no, he is not a Spanish-speaking German person. His name is pronounced “hair mon” and he does speak Spanish. In fact, he only speaks Spanish, and his rapid fire, comedic approach has earned him more than 6.5 million subscribers.

7. Pew Die Pie

This hilarious Swede has gained the 7th most subscribers by pointing a camera at himself and playing video games. I highly recommend watching him play scary games. Seeing him scream is quite entertaining. Warning: NSFW Language:

6. Machinima

Machinima earns the honor of “They have how many videos?!” with a staggering 23K+ published videos. Honestly though, if you produce over 23 thousand videos and you don’t have at least a million subscribers, you have no hope. Machinima has acquired their near 7.5 million subscribers through fun and informative videos catered towards gamers. Warning, most videos have NSFW language:

5. Rihanna VEVO

The Barbadian bombshell is by far the most-subscribed to musical artist on YouTube. She has multiple music videos with 100+ million views. Also, I imagine having a video where she sings in a bathtub has something to do with her place on this list.

4. nigahiga

Ryan Higa has acquired the 4th most subscriptions of any YouTube channel with entertaining observational humor. He combines the quick-cutting monologue style you see common on YouTube with fun cutaways illustrating the situations he talks about. You’ll notice his earlier videos are much shorter. If you’re starting out, it’s always good to have short videos. Then once you build up a solid following, you can get into 5-10 minute territory.

3. Ray William Johnson

Ray William Johnson uses a formula that has served many comedy shows such as Best Week Ever, The Soup, and Tosh.0. Step 1: Curate a bunch of funny clips. Step 2: Make commentary. Step 3: Profit.

2. Jenna Marbles

My personal favorite, Jenna Marbles’ brand of insight is unique and hilarious. She has a way of taking the ordinary and making observations like will make you think and laugh. Like in this example below, who knew there were so many variations of women’s makeup and meanings behind them? (Warning: NSFW Content – you’re probably noticing a theme here; YouTube’s lack of censorship means you can get away with a lot more than traditional media)

1. Smosh

Smosh is kind of an enigma in that it’s production values are very high and it’s well-edited; however, the humor is somewhat… low brow. I guess they’re targeting the teen demographic. Whatever the case may be, they’re doing something right as they have more YouTube subscribers than anyone else.

Which YouTube channels not in the Top 10 are your favorites?



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