What are the strengths of VTubers as seen from total views?

In Japan, it is common for VTubers to be active on YouTube. However, YouTube offers various content formats such as videos, live streams, and shorts, and the focus of each creator varies.
This time, let’s look at a ranking of VTubers with the highest total views, which combines the views from these three formats, and also examine which content each VTuber emphasizes.

If you want to learn more about the operational structure of VTubers, please check the article below!

Related Article: What are the Main Activity Styles of VTubers?[ja]

VTuber Total View Count Rankings (As of November 2024)

Here, we will focus on a ranking that only includes channels operated by VTubers individually, not those managed by agencies. Please note that view counts are constantly changing, so the numbers are approximate. Additionally, all figures are as of a certain date in November 2024.

Criteria for Playback Counts of Each Content Type

As mentioned earlier, YouTube offers three types of content: videos, live broadcasts, and shorts. The criteria for what is considered a “highly notable” number of views differ for each content type. Generally, the content length is shortest for shorts (approximately 15 seconds to 3 minutes), followed by videos (approximately 3 to 30 minutes), and live broadcast archives (over 1 hour). For videos and archives, a view is only counted if the content is watched for more than 30 seconds. However, for shorts, a view is counted after just 10 seconds of playback, making it easier for shorts to accumulate views compared to the other two types.

Additionally, even within the same video category, there are differences in view counts based on content. For example, “singing covers” are typically around 3 minutes per song, making them more likely to be casually viewed, whereas planned content might be around 20 minutes. This results in differences in view counts based on the video content.

Therefore, in this article, we will use the following criteria to define “highly notable” view counts:

• Shorts: Over 10 million views
• Videos: Over 10 million views for music-related content, over 1 million views for other content
• Live Broadcasts (Archives): Over 1 million views

We will explore which content type is the strength of this VTube!

5th Place: Usada Pekora

In 5th place is Usada Pekora, a member of the major VTuber agency, Hololive. Her total views have reached 800 million. Pekora ranks 5th in the subscriber count ranking for individual VTuber channels as well.
Upon examining her channel, she has posted approximately 1,800 videos, most of which are live stream archives. These archives significantly contribute to her total view count of 800 million. Despite each archive being over an hour long, with some extending up to 11 hours, 56 of them have been viewed over 1 million times. This accounts for about 2% of her total posts. However, in the context of VTuber channels, where it is rare for archives to reach 1 million views, this is an exceptionally high figure. Pekora seems to be increasing her total views through the consistent viewership of her archives.

4th Place: Kuzuha

In 4th place is Kuzuha, a member of the major Japanese VTuber agency, Nijisanji. Unlike Pekora, who was mentioned earlier, Kuzuha ranks 17th in terms of individual VTuber channel subscribers. However, he has achieved a total of 900 million views, placing him within the top 5 in terms of total views.
Kuzuha has posted approximately 2,000 videos, most of which are archives of live broadcasts. What is remarkable about him is the consistent viewership of these archives, which is more stable than any other VTuber. His archives typically exceed two hours in length, and most of the top-viewed ones are around ten hours long. Despite this, he has 77 videos with over one million views, which is a very high percentage of 3.8%. While his main content is game streaming, his ability to engage viewers through conversation, as well as frequent collaboration videos with other VTubers from Nijisanji on his personal channel, contribute to the stable viewership of his streams.
Additionally, Kuzuha’s singing voice is also popular, with five of his “singing cover” videos reaching 10 million views. In his case, the combination of consistently high viewership of his live stream archives and the popularity of his singing cover videos has led to a total of 900 million views.

3rd Place: Suisei Hoshimachi

In 3rd place is Suisei Hoshimachi, a member of Hololive, who has eagerly awaited her Budokan live concert. Her total video views have reached 1 billion, and she ranks 7th in the subscriber count ranking for individual VTuber channels.
As her Budokan concert has been confirmed, many people may recognize her name from music-related contexts. Suisei focuses heavily on her activities as an artist, which naturally leads to increased views for her cover songs, original music videos, and live stream archives. Her videos, in particular, have seen significant growth, with 17 videos surpassing 10 million views and an average view count of 26 million, far exceeding 10 million.
Suisei’s singing ability, her greatest asset, seems to be the key to her 1 billion views.

2nd Place: filian

In second place is filian, a Japanese individual VTuber active in the English-speaking world. Her personal VTuber channel ranks 4th in subscriber count, with a total of 1.2 billion views.
She primarily posts highlight videos from her streams on Twitch, which is her main platform, to YouTube. As a result, compared to other VTubers, she has fewer archived videos on YouTube, with over 1,000 of her approximately 1,200 videos being shorts.
Many of the clips capture the most exciting moments from her streams, leading to 15 shorts with over 10 million views and 38 with over 5 million views, marking her as a top performer in the VTuber community.
The consistent and frequent updates of her shorts, along with their easy-to-consume format, have contributed significantly to her achieving 1.2 billion total views.

1st Place: Houshou Marine

In first place is Houshou Marine, a member of the Japanese VTuber group Hololive. Her personal VTuber channel ranks second in subscriber count, while she has achieved first place with a total of 1.4 billion views.
Marine’s strength lies in her consistently high average view counts across shorts, videos, and live stream archives. She has five shorts with over 10 million views. Regarding videos, her singing videos, which include covers and original songs, are particularly popular due to her dedication to her artist activities. Six of these videos have surpassed 10 million views, and most have exceeded 5 million views. As for her archives, 39 of them have over 10 million views, which is 2.8% of her approximately 1,350 total uploads, demonstrating her ability to garner significant views across all content types. The archives with over 10 million views include not only popular singing performances but also game streams and collaboration projects, showcasing Marine’s versatility.
Unlike other VTubers who tend to specialize in one area, Marine’s diverse talents allow her to excel across all genres and content types. This multifaceted approach is a key factor in her achieving 1.4 billion views.

If this article has piqued your interest in rankings, please feel free to refer to the following link.

Related Article: VTuber Subscriber Count Rankings[ja]

Summary: Content with Higher View Counts Aligns with the VTuber’s Strengths!

Whether it is because viewers are more engaged or because the VTuber is actively promoting it, the results clearly show that the content gaining more views varies based on the unique personalityistics of the VTuber, even though only five individuals were analyzed. Additionally, it seems that the total view count does not necessarily correlate with the number of channel subscribers. Focusing on content that showcases one’s strengths, rather than being fixated on subscriber numbers, might be the key to increasing total views and uncovering the secret to popularity.