Most Popular YouTube Channels & Searches of 2023

YouTube is undoubtedly the world’s most popular video platform with over 2 billion monthly users. But what are those users searching for when they’re on the platform, and which channels are they engaging with the most?

In this guide, I’m going to cover:

• The 100 most searched terms on YouTube
• The 50 most subscribed YouTube channels
• The 10 most viewed channels on YouTube
• How marketers can leverage YouTube stats

I’ll also show you how to find YouTube keywords to enhance your video marketing campaigns.

Top 100 YouTube Search Terms Globally

Below, I’ve compiled a list of the most searched YouTube terms over the past month. It’s based on search volume data obtained from Semrush’s Keyword Analytics for YouTube tool.

Of course, this data fluctuates over time and the most popular search terms change. So, if you want fully up-to-**** data, I’d highly recommend using Semrush’s tool to find it.

The data in the following list is for global search volume rather than regional search volume. The data was also gathered specifically from YouTube searches, not from Google searches.

OK, let’s get into it.

Key Youtube Search Term Statistics

• ASMR is the number one most searched term by a long shot! It beats out GTA 6 by over 4.7 million searches.
• Bad Bunny is the most searched for person of the month with 3.5 million searches. Mr Beast comes up right behind him at number 5.
• Other artists joining Bad Bunny in the top 25 include YSY A, Taylor Swift, Duki, Feid, Morat, La Joaqui, and Eminem.
• The NBA is the most searched for sports organization while Argentina vs Mexico is the most searched for sports term.
• GTA 6 and GTA 6 trailer are new to the top 5 keywords this month, showing just how quickly topics can gain popularity.

Top 50 Most Subscribed YouTube Channels

The number of subscribers a YouTube channel has clearly indicates its success and popularity among its audience. Simply put—the more, the better.

So, which channels are King when it comes to subscribers? I’ve put together a list of the most subscribed channels based on data from Wikipedia.

Let’s take a look.

Top 10 Most Viewed YouTube Channels

As a YouTuber, the most important metric for your channel is the number of views your videos receive. This is the clearest sign that your content is resonating with your target audience, and drawing users in.

In this section, we’re going to take a look at the 10 channels with the most video views of all time based on stats from Wikipedia.

1. T-Series (239.77 Billion Views)

• Subscribers: 255 million
• Main language: Hindi
• **** of creation: March 13, 2006
• Most popular video to ****: Vaaste Song: Dhvani Bhanushali, Tanishk Bagchi | Nikhil D

T-Series is an Indian record label and film production company established in 1983. It started as a way to sell pirated Hindi songs before becoming a producer of Indi-pop and Hindi soundtracks.

On top of contemporary Indian music, T-Series also uploads movie-making content, trailers, festival footage, and spiritual content such as prayer rituals. The most viewed video on the T-Series YouTube channel is a song titled, “Vaaste“, which has garnered 1.5 billion views since being uploaded on 6 April 2019.

2. Cocomelon – Nursery Rhymes (172.12 Billion Views)

• Subscribers: 169 million
• Main language: English
• **** of creation: September 12, 2005
• Most popular video to ****: Bath Song | CoComelon Nursery Rhymes & Kids Songs

Cocomelon (also stylized as CoComelon) is a YouTube channel specializing in 3D animation videos of traditional nursery rhymes and original children’s songs.

Cocomelon’s videos were added to Netflix in 2020, and hold the top spot in the kid’s category with popular songs like “Baby Shark”. The most viewed YouTube video is called, “Bath Song | CoComelon Nursery Rhymes & Kids Songs“, which has 6.5 billion views since its upload **** of 2 May 2018.

3. Sony Entertainment Television India (154.77 Billion Views)

• Subscribers: 166 million
• Main language: Hindi
• **** of creation: September 20, 2006
• Most popular video to ****: ***** Patrol Dial 100 – क्राइम पेट्रोल – Dav-Pech – Episode 25 – 23rd November 2015

This channel belongs to the Indian pay television channel with the same name. The channel uploads multiple videos daily and has climbed to a total of 124,000 videos since uploading its first YouTube video in 2010. On 7 June 2021, the account was terminated following a security breach but was reinstated 5 – 6 hours later.

The most popular video is episode 25 of a show called “***** Patrol”, which was uploaded on 24 November 2015, and has 230 million views.

4. Sony SAB (107.52 Billion Views)

• Subscribers: 87.9 million
• Main language: Hindi
• **** of creation: August 4, 2007
• Most popular video to ****: Baal Veer – बालवीर – Episode 840 – 3rd November 2015

Sony SAB was created in 1999 by Markand and Gautam Adhikari, and the YouTube channel was launched eight years later in 2007. The channel’s content is mainly aimed at younger audiences and includes hit shows like “Pushpa Impossible”.

Its most popular video, Baal Veer – बालवीर – Episode 840, currently has 145 million views!

5. ✿ Kids Diana Show (97.76 Billion Views)

• Subscribers: 117 million
• Main language: English
• **** of creation: May 1, 2015
• Most popular video to ****: Diana – LIKE IT – Kids Song (Official Video)

✿ Kids Diana Show is the name of the YouTube channel belonging to 9-year-old child YouTuber, Eva Diana Kidisyuk.

Starting in Kyiv, Ukraine, she’s since moved to Miami. She creates videos about skits, travel videos, and pretend play videos (to name a few) with the help of her brother Roma.

The account uploads videos in English and several other languages including Hindi, Japanese, Russian, Spanish, German, and more.

The most popular video to **** is a song titled, “LIKE IT“, which was uploaded on 18 January 2019, and has 2.3 billion views.

6. Like Nastya (95.58 Billion Views)

• Subscribers: 111 million
• Main language: English
• **** of creation: December 6, 2016
• Most popular video to ****: Nastya and papa sleeping at farm sheep Family fun trip

Anastasia Sergeyevna Radzinskaya is a Russian-born child YouTuber. The channel, Like Nastya, started as a subsidiary of another channel with the same name.

The majority of the channel’s videos involve adventures outside with her father, and video uploads of Anastasia pretend-playing professions and participating in nursery rhymes.

Her most viewed video is titled “Nastya and papa sleeping at farm sheep Family fun trip“, which has 943 million views.

7. Zee TV (83.63 Billion Views)

• Subscribers: 75.4 million
• Main language: Hindi
• **** of creation: December 11, 2005
• Most popular video to ****: Kumkum Bhagya – Ep 565

Zee TV is another Hindi-language channel that is absolutely on fire when it comes to viewing numbers. Its videos include movies and TV shows in the comedy, drama, and reality TV genres.

It’s incredibly popular with families, and its most-viewed video, “Kumkum Bhagya – Ep 565” has a massive 149 million views.

8. Vlad and Niki (82.23 Billion Views)

• Subscribers: 106 million
• Main language: English
• **** of creation: April 23, 2018
• Most popular video to ****: Vlad and Niki – new Funny stories about Toys for children

Named after brothers Vladislav and Nikita Vashketov, Vlad and Niki is a channel that uploads video content involving the two brothers embarking on funny and imaginative adventures.

The channel is run by parents Sergey and Victoria and is only one of the 21 channels they handle. They upload video content twice a week in over 18 languages with the videos taking place in Miami or Dubai.

In 2019, it was estimated that the brothers were the YouTubers making the most money per video—an estimated $312,000 per upload.

Their most viewed video is titled “Vlad and Niki – new Funny stories about Toys for children“, and has over 1.1 billion views since its upload in 2020.

9. WWE (80.28 Billion Views)

• Subscribers: 98.6 million
• Main language: English
• **** of creation: May 11, 2007
• Most popular video to ****: Randy Orton makes it personal with Triple H

As of 2023, WWE is the largest wrestling-related promotion in the world, hosting over 500 events a year, broadcast to millions of people across various countries in the world. They upload both snippets and full matches and have garnered a total of over 78 billion views on their 73,000 videos.

The most popular YouTube video is titled “Randy Orton makes it personal with Triple H“, which has 314 million views.

10. Colors TV (66.34 Billion Views)

• Subscribers: 69.3 million
• Main language: Hindi
• **** of creation: June 13, 2008
• Most popular video to ****: Yashraj Mukhate Gets Creative With Rakhi’s Dialogues | Bigg Boss S14 | बिग बॉस S14

Colors TV appeals to a broad audience and specializes in both scripted and reality TV shows.

Some of its most popular series are Sasural Simar Ka, Balika Vadhu, Uttaran, and Bigg Boss.

“Yashraj Mukhate Gets Creative With Rakhi’s Dialogues | Bigg Boss S14 | बिग बॉस S14” has 47 million views and many of its other videos also have tens of millions of views.

How Marketers Can Leverage YouTube Stats

YouTube statistics offer a goldmine of valuable information for marketers, providing insights that can significantly enhance their strategies and campaigns. Here’s why YouTube stats are crucial for marketers:

• Audience Understanding: Stats reveal detailed information about the audience, including demographics, preferences, and behaviors. Marketers can gain a deeper understanding of who is watching their content, and this enables them to create campaigns that are more targeted and personalized.
• Identify Trends: Stats provide real-time insights into current trends and popular topics. Marketers can capitalize on these trends by aligning their content with what captures the audience’s attention. This ensures that campaigns remain relevant and engaging.
• Optimized Search Strategies: YouTube is a search engine in itself, and understanding popular search terms can inform SEO strategies. Marketers can enhance discoverability and YouTube search rankings by tailoring their video titles, descriptions, and tags to align with the terms actively searched by their audience.
• Content Optimization: By analyzing stats, marketers can pinpoint the types of content that resonate most with their audience. Insights into the most-viewed videos, popular search terms, and subscriber patterns can empower marketers to optimize their content strategy for maximum impact.
• Collaboration: Understanding which channels are the most popular can aid marketers in identifying valuable collaboration opportunities. Partnering with a YouTuber with a substantial audience can significantly contribute to the growth of their (marketer’s) channel.

How to Find YouTube Keywords

Semrush’s Keyword Analytics for YouTube is great for finding search term data for YouTube keywords quickly and easily. This tool is a separate app, so you’ll need to access it via the Semrush App Center. Then, open the tool and you’ll get three options:

• Keyword Research
• Fast growing keywords
• Top Videos

Click “Get started” within the “Keyword Research” box.

On the next page, choose to see data for the past month by clicking the “Last Month” tab.

This will give you a better idea of trends over a longer period of time. At the top right of the screen, select a specific region or “All Regions” to view global keyword data.

Now, you’ll get a list of keywords with the “Search Volume” and “Competitive Rate” (a score out of 100 indicating how much competition there is for the term).

“Fast growing keywords” is another great feature that allows you to identify trending keywords that are surging in popularity.

You’ll then see a list of keywords with their “Search Volume” and the extent of volume increase during your selected time period.

Wrapping Up

YouTube offers an incredible avenue for marketers and content creators to connect with audiences, expand their reach, and open doors to income opportunities.

By staying tuned to trends, exploring collaborations, and optimizing content with popular keywords, individuals and brands can truly make the most of this dynamic platform.

Feel free to contribute your insights to the discussion by leaving a comment below!