Wanna quit your day job? 262K TikTok views a month will get you there

Lifestyle

Lily Wachtor

You can make a living on major streaming platforms. We put the numbers together for you.

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How realistic is it to ditch your day job for a more creative outlet—like making money on TikTok?

If you’re one of the countless dreamers looking to become a paid influencer on the streaming platforms TikTok, Twitch, YouTube, or RadioPublic podcasting, the team at Viasat Savings can give you a major head start on figuring out the if and when.

Below, we used simple math to find the monthly views, Bits, and listens you need to make the median income in your state. Use these stats to plan for the day you can sign off Slack forever.

Hit these streaming stats to quit your day job in your home state

Where you live makes the biggest difference to when you can start streaming on Twitch full-time or turn your podcast into a money-making machine.

  • Streaming platforms don’t factor cost of living into their payouts like local employers do, so you can become a paid influencer sooner if you live or move where the median income is lower.
    • West Virginia, Arkansas, and Mississippi are the three easiest places to make a living on major streaming platforms. (And don’t write off rural towns—you can get adequate upload speeds for your videos even in the countryside.)
    • DC, Massachusetts, and Maryland top the list as the three most difficult places to make the median income on streaming payouts.
  • You can also leave your job sooner by choosing a more generous streaming platform. A livable YouTuber salary, for example, is the hardest one to make of the four platforms we studied.
    • Even in the state with the lowest median income, Mississippi, you need 9.5 million YouTube ad views a month (not just content views) to make the median wage.
    • In Washington DC, it takes over 18 million YouTube ad views a month to make the median income.

Hit these streaming stats to quit your day job in America

Don’t know where you want to live in the next few years? Use the national median income to set your streaming goals instead.

Methodology

To find out how aspiring influencers can create content for a living, we first compiled the median income by state from the US Census (adjusted for 2019 inflation).

Then, we calculated average payouts on the streaming platforms Twitch, TikTok, YouTube, and RadioPublic. We based these averages on the lowest payout tiers available, since most influencers start small before gaining the platform’s attention and earning at higher rates.

  • Twitch – $0.01 per Bit
  • TikTok – $0.02 per view
  • YouTube – $0.50 per 1,000 ad views
  • RadioPublic – $10.00 per 1,000 listens

Finally, we calculated the average monthly streaming volume that would earn a payout equal to the median annual income in each state.

To provide context on public interest in streaming careers and earnings, we also surveyed 1,000 people ages 16–54 on Pollfish.

So, when should you quit your job to become a paid influencer?

One very important thing to keep in mind: median income doesn’t guarantee high purchasing power or a glamorous standard of living. It’s more of an objective glance at what mid-level earners live on in the real world.

If you’d be happy making the median income in your state, work toward the numbers in the chart and you’re good to submit your letter of resignation!

If your partner or roommate pays half the bills or you live in a rural area with a low cost of living, you may be able to quit much sooner. On the other hand, if you live in an especially expensive part of your state or have children to support, you might need more time. Hang in there.

Lastly, remember that if you and your fan base really hit it off, you might get bumped up to a higher pay tier on your platform of choice—and make way more moolah than the median income.

Good luck! Go get paid.

Who We Are

Viasat Savings is an authorized retailer of Viasat, a satellite internet provider. Members of the media can reach out to ali@viasatsavings.com.