YouTube has long been a dominant force in entertainment. We've known this for years—well before it became a staple on living room TVs, solidified its position as a podcast powerhouse, and built an advertising business that's grown to rival Netflix's scale on its own.
Now, fresh analysis from industry researchers at MoffettNathanson shows that Alphabet's YouTube has officially become the world's largest media company by revenue, based on estimates for fiscal year 2025.
Move over, Walt Disney: MoffettNathanson pegs YouTube's 2025 revenue at around $62 billion (with some reports citing $62.3 billion), a figure that aligns closely with Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai's recent confirmation that YouTube's sales across advertising and subscriptions surpassed $60 billion for the year.
This puts YouTube ahead of Disney's core media operations. After stripping out Disney's massive Experiences segment (think theme parks and consumer products), the company's Entertainment and Sports divisions—which include box office earnings (about $6.6 billion globally from movies in 2025), plus subscription revenue from Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN—totaled roughly $60.9 billion (or around $60.2 billion in some breakdowns).
That's impressive, outpacing rivals like Netflix, but still about $2 billion shy of YouTube's haul. Of course, not all of YouTube's revenue flows straight to Alphabet's bottom line. The company shares up to 55% of its ad revenue with creators, fueling an enormous creator economy.
In fact, Alphabet has paid out a cumulative $100 billion to YouTubers, artists, and media partners over just the past four years (through September 2025). That kind of payout explains why creators like MrBeast always seem to have that signature grin ready for the thumbnail.
YouTube's rise highlights a clear shift: the platform's blend of massive user-generated content, premium subscriptions (like YouTube Premium and YouTube TV), and targeted ads has propelled it past traditional Hollywood giants to claim the top spot in media revenue.