The Average Income Of An Influencer Will Make You Pause

A person who gains followers online and earns money through brand deals, advertisements, product links, subscriptions, or by selling their own products is known as an influencer. However, most do not make that much. In 2025, influencer marketing agency NeoReach surveyed over 3,000 creators worldwide about how much they make and found that over 50% earn below $15,000 per year. Even among those who work full time, the agency reported that 56.55% still make less than the U.S. living wage line, which varies per state. According to the MIT Living Wage Calculator, the living wage is $43,159 in Mississippi and $60,080 in Massachusetts; these figures pay for rent, food, transportation, health care, and taxes.

In the United States, brands pay influencers based on their follower count. Impact.com's 2025 rate guide shows that an Instagram account with fewer than 15,000 followers earns $500 to $2,000 for each post. Accounts with between 15,000 and 75,000 followers earn $2,000 to $8,000 per post. Meanwhile, those with 75,000 to 250,000 followers earn $8,000 to $20,000 per post, and those with 250,000 to 1,000,000 followers earn $20,000 to $45,000. Accounts with more than 1 million followers can earn $45,000 or more per post. TikTok offers similar pay ranges. On YouTube, creators with fewer than 15,000 subscribers earn about $1,000 to $2,500 per sponsored video, but the largest channels may earn $49,000 or more per video.

Most influencers still earn most of their money from brand deals, but the ways they earn are changing. In April 2024, Goldman Sachs reported that about 70% of creator income comes from sponsorships, followed by advertisements, product links, subscriptions, and payments from fans. Yet in 2025, when Epidemic Sound and Censuswide asked 3,000 professional creators in the United States and the United Kingdom where their money comes from, the results showed that 32% earn real income from live streaming, 29% from ad revenue, and 27% from fan subscriptions, platform creator funds, and brand partnerships. This means that although influencers can still make money from mentioning sponsors in videos, they now benefit from a wider range of monetization methods, especially on social media platforms that make the most money for creators.

According to email marketing company Kit, professional creators now make money from six or more sources. In its 2024 State of the Creator Economy survey, it was found that creators who build steady income streams — such as selling their own products or courses — earn more money than those who post only occasionally. In fact, Shopify explains that when a creator launches their own products, it provides them with a second, more controllable revenue source. This approach works well with ‌long-term sponsorship deals and allows for clearer performance metrics.

Being an influencer involves risk — and often does not last long. Many creators step away or become too exhausted to continue. The July 2023 Creator Economy Trends report from MBO Partners found that 41% of independent creators feel this kind of burnout. The number of people earning money as creators also fell, from 8.2 million in 2022 to 8.1 million in 2023.

Kajabi's 2025 State of Creator Commerce found that about one in three creators who depend on social media face negative impacts (which may include a drop in income) when algorithms change, and one in four said they live from paycheck to paycheck. Aside from the financial risks, a peer-reviewed 2024 study in the National Library of Medicine showed that spending five hours on social media is associated with increased negative emotions among influencers.

Given these risks, influencers should diversify their income streams so algorithm changes do not result in financial ruin. Building an email list or community that they control — like the model used by Substack – lets them reach their fans directly. Additionally, contracts should be in writing and include clear terms for duration and payment, as recommended by the Creators Guild of America. Treating influencing like a small business also means setting aside savings and paying estimated taxes quarterly to avoid penalties. Lastly, stay alert to social media scams targeting influencers through fake Instagram offers.