If you're a YouTube creator looking for sponsors, the most important question isn't "which brands have the biggest budgets?" — it's "which brands are actively paying creators right now?"
We pulled the 50 most active sponsors from our database and ranked them by the number of unique YouTube channels they've worked with. This isn't based on guesswork or secondhand reports. It's based on tracked sponsorship data across 20,000+ brands.
Here's the full list.
A few patterns stand out immediately.
VPN companies dominate the top of the list. NordVPN, Surfshark, and ExpressVPN have among the largest sponsorship footprints on YouTube. Their business model makes this possible — digital products with near-zero marginal cost and high customer lifetime value mean every new subscriber acquired through a creator is almost pure profit.
SaaS and software companies are the next biggest category. Squarespace, Skillshare, and Notion show up consistently because their target audiences overlap heavily with YouTube viewers — people building businesses, learning new skills, and creating content.
Subscription services like HelloFresh and AG1 round out the top tier. These brands thrive on YouTube because the format allows for natural product integration. A creator cooking a HelloFresh meal or mixing an AG1 shake doesn't feel like an ad — it feels like content.
What Types of Brands Sponsor YouTubers?
The top 50 breaks down into six major categories. Understanding which category fits your channel helps you target the right brands.
VPN Services
VPN companies are the single largest category of YouTube sponsors. Brands like NordVPN, Surfshark, and ExpressVPN sponsor across virtually every niche — gaming, tech, lifestyle, education, entertainment. They're niche-agnostic because everyone uses the internet. If you make YouTube content of any kind, a VPN brand is a realistic sponsorship target.
SaaS & Software Tools
Squarespace, Skillshare, and Notion are among the most active software sponsors. These brands target creators, entrepreneurs, and knowledge workers — audiences that skew heavily toward YouTube. If your content involves building anything online, these brands are natural fits.
Subscription & D2C Services
HelloFresh and meal kit competitors have been YouTube sponsorship staples for years. The integration format is perfect — creators show the box arriving, cook the food, and talk about it for 60 seconds without it feeling forced. Other subscription brands like Dollar Shave Club and AG1 follow a similar model.
Gaming
Raid Shadow Legends became a meme because of how aggressively they sponsored creators, but the strategy works. Other gaming sponsors like Epic Games and War Thunder focus more narrowly on gaming channels where the audience overlap is strongest. See all gaming sponsors in our database.
Finance & Fintech
Financial apps and services are growing fast as YouTube sponsors. Brands in this space sponsor across finance, business, and education niches where the audience has purchasing power. These sponsorships tend to pay the highest CPM rates because of the high customer value in financial services.
Health & Wellness
BetterHelp is one of the most prolific sponsors on YouTube, appearing across nearly every content niche. Other health and wellness brands target more specific audiences — fitness channels, lifestyle creators, and wellness content.
How Much Do These Brands Actually Pay?
Sponsorship rates vary dramatically based on your niche and audience size. Here are the typical CPM ranges (cost per 1,000 views) for mid-roll integrations in 2026:
| Niche | CPM Range | Rate for 50K Views | Rate for 200K Views |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finance & Business | $40–$80 | $2,000–$4,000 | $8,000–$16,000 |
| Technology | $30–$60 | $1,500–$3,000 | $6,000–$12,000 |
| Health & Fitness | $25–$45 | $1,250–$2,250 | $5,000–$9,000 |
| Education | $25–$45 | $1,250–$2,250 | $5,000–$9,000 |
| Beauty & Fashion | $20–$40 | $1,000–$2,000 | $4,000–$8,000 |
| Lifestyle | $20–$40 | $1,000–$2,000 | $4,000–$8,000 |
| Gaming | $10–$25 | $500–$1,250 | $2,000–$5,000 |
| Entertainment | $10–$25 | $500–$1,250 | $2,000–$5,000 |
Your actual rate depends on your specific channel metrics. Use our free YouTube sponsorship calculator to get an estimate based on your views and niche.
For a deeper breakdown of how sponsorship pricing works, read our complete guide to YouTube sponsorship rates in 2026.
Which Brands Sponsor Small Channels?
One of the biggest misconceptions about YouTube sponsorship is that you need millions of subscribers to get deals. That's not true — and the data proves it.
Many of the brands in our top 50 actively sponsor channels with fewer than 100,000 subscribers. Some work with channels as small as 5,000-10,000 subscribers. The reason is simple: smaller channels often have higher engagement rates and more targeted audiences. A gaming channel with 30,000 subscribers and 15,000 views per video can convert better for a gaming brand than a general entertainment channel with 2 million subscribers.
The brands most likely to sponsor smaller channels tend to be those with strong affiliate programs — VPN companies, subscription services, and software tools. These brands can afford to sponsor at scale because they track conversions directly and know the ROI of each creator partnership.
We maintain a dedicated page showing brands that actively sponsor small YouTubers, updated regularly from our database. If you're under 100K subscribers, start there.
For step-by-step guidance on landing your first deal, read our guide to YouTube sponsorship for small channels.
How Brands Choose Which Creators to Sponsor
Understanding what brands look for helps you position your channel for sponsorship opportunities. Based on patterns in our data, here's what matters most:
Niche relevance over raw size. A tech brand would rather sponsor a 50K-subscriber tech reviewer than a 500K-subscriber vlogger. The tech reviewer's audience is exactly who they want to reach. When you pitch brands, lead with your niche alignment, not your subscriber count.
Consistent view counts over viral spikes. Brands want predictable reach. A channel that consistently gets 30,000 views per video is more attractive than one that alternates between 5,000 and 500,000. Consistency signals a reliable, engaged audience.
Engagement rate matters more than you think. Comments, likes, and especially click-through rates on previous sponsored content are signals brands look at carefully. Channels with high engagement can justify charging premium rates — even with smaller audiences.
Previous sponsorship experience helps. Brands prefer working with creators who have done sponsorships before because the content quality is more predictable. If you're landing your first deal, consider starting with affiliate programs (many of the brands on this list have them) to build a track record before pitching paid sponsorships.
How to Get Sponsored by These Brands
Knowing who the top sponsors are is only useful if you can actually land deals with them. Here's the practical approach:
- Know your rate before you pitch. Nothing kills a sponsorship conversation faster than naming a price that's wildly off-market. Use a sponsorship calculator to find your baseline rate before reaching out to any brand.
- Research which brands sponsor channels like yours. Don't pitch blindly. Look at what brands are sponsoring creators in your niche with similar audience sizes. Our sponsor database lets you search by niche and see exactly which brands are active.
- Prepare a media kit. A one-page document with your channel stats, audience demographics, content examples, and rates makes you look professional and saves the brand time. Include your subscriber count, average views, engagement rate, audience age and location breakdown, and 2-3 examples of previous sponsored content if you have them.
- Send a personalized pitch. Generic emails get ignored. Reference the brand's existing YouTube sponsorships, explain why your audience is a fit, and propose a specific integration format. Read our sponsorship pitch email guide for templates that actually get responses.
- Start with the right brands. If you're under 50K subscribers, target brands with active affiliate programs first. Build a track record of successful integrations, then use that data to pitch direct sponsorship deals at higher rates.
Key Trends in YouTube Sponsorship for 2026
Several shifts are reshaping the sponsorship landscape this year:
Brands are moving downstream. Three years ago, most top sponsors focused exclusively on channels with 500K+ subscribers. Now, channels in the 50K-200K range are getting a growing share of new deals. The math has changed — engagement rates matter more than raw reach, and mid-size creators often deliver better ROI.
Cross-niche sponsorship is expanding. Brands that used to stick to one niche are spreading out. Squarespace used to sponsor mostly tech and design channels. Now they sponsor business, travel, fitness, and education creators. This means more opportunities for creators in non-traditional niches.
Performance-based components are increasing. More brands are adding affiliate or conversion-based elements alongside flat-fee sponsorships. A typical deal might include a $2,000 flat fee plus $5 per signup through your tracking link. Creators with engaged audiences benefit from this model because the performance bonus can exceed the base fee.
Long-term partnerships over one-offs. Brands increasingly prefer committing to 3-6 video packages rather than single sponsorships. This gives them consistency and gives creators reliable income. If a brand offers a multi-video deal, it's usually worth taking a slightly lower per-video rate for the guaranteed revenue.
Methodology
This ranking is based on GetSponsored's database of 20,000+ tracked brands. Brands are ranked by the number of unique YouTube channels they have sponsored, not by total spending or number of individual sponsorship integrations.
The data reflects sponsorship activity tracked through our platform and may not capture every sponsorship deal on YouTube. Brands with primarily private or untracked sponsorship arrangements may be underrepresented.
We update this list regularly as new sponsorship data is tracked. If you notice a brand missing from the list, let us know.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the most common YouTube sponsors?
Based on our database of 20,000+ tracked brands, the most active YouTube sponsors in 2026 are VPN companies (NordVPN, Surfshark, ExpressVPN), SaaS tools (Squarespace, Skillshare, Notion), and subscription services (HelloFresh, AG1). These brands sponsor across the widest range of content niches and channel sizes.
How many subscribers do you need to get sponsored on YouTube?
Many brands on this list sponsor channels with as few as 1,000-10,000 subscribers. What matters more than subscriber count is engagement rate, niche relevance, and content quality. Brands would rather sponsor a 10K-subscriber channel with 40% engagement than a 500K-subscriber channel with 2% engagement. See our list of brands that sponsor small YouTube channels for specific opportunities.
How much do YouTube sponsors pay per video?
Rates vary by niche and channel size. VPN sponsors typically pay $30-$60 CPM (cost per 1,000 views), while gaming sponsors pay $10-$25 CPM. A channel averaging 50,000 views per video in the tech niche can expect $1,500-$3,000 for a standard 60-second mid-roll integration. Use our free sponsorship calculator for a personalized estimate.
Which brands sponsor gaming YouTubers?
The most active gaming sponsors include Raid Shadow Legends, Epic Games, War Thunder, Raycon, GFuel, and SteelSeries. Gaming sponsorship CPM rates are lower than tech or finance ($10-$25 vs $30-$80), but gaming channels often make up for it with higher view counts and more frequent uploads. Browse all gaming sponsors in our database.
How do I find sponsors for my YouTube channel?
Start by identifying brands that already sponsor channels similar to yours. Use a sponsorship database to search by niche and channel size. Prepare a media kit with your channel stats, and send personalized outreach emails referencing the brand's existing YouTube presence. Our platform matches creators with sponsors based on niche, audience size, and content style.