YouTube has reached 29 billion videos as of December 2025, with growth driven by Shorts, AI-generated content, and expansion in markets such as India, according to new research from Omdia.
The research concluded that YouTube is on track to reach 30 billion videos in early 2026.
It also found that YouTube’s growth is accelerating and is heavily driven by short-form video with Shorts – vertical, short-form videos up to three minutes long – now representing over 90% of all new uploads.
According to the report, the top 1% of videos on YouTube generate 91% of total viewing time while the remaining 99% account for just 9% of viewing. Despite this disparity, the research highlighted that this latter group still plays a critical role in the platform’s ecosystem.
Music and professional content dominate, Omdia discovered. Music videos account for 33% of all YouTube viewing time, while professionally filmed content makes up 46%.
Podcasts are also reportedly growing, with video podcasts representing 5% of total viewing. Further, news was the third most popular category, capturing 10% of viewing.
Daoud Jackson, Senior Analyst at Omdia, said: "Omdia research shows the least-watched 99% of videos account for just 9% of total viewing time. Yet, YouTube continues to host the equivalent of 280,000 years of video content, most of which is rarely watched – a fascinating aspect of the platform’s strategy.
“This content also forms the backbone of Google’s video training data for Gemini. While user-generated content drives perceptions of success, our research shows the reality is more complex. YouTube has become a highly diverse platform in 2026, with professional content, music, news, and podcasts all shaping viewing patterns.”
The BBC Group recently struck a deal to produce new programming for YouTube. Discover more here.
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