Who Has a YouTube Diamond Play Button? The Elite Club of Channels with Over 100 Million Subscribers

Exclusive only to the most popular channels on YouTube, the coveted Red Diamond Play Button award recognizes creators who have achieved over 100 million subscribers. As of 2022, just 7 YouTube channels have earned entry into this club: PewDiePie, T-Series, Cocomelon, SET India, MrBeast, Kids Diana Show, and Like Nastya.

In this comprehensive guide, we‘ll reveal who these mega channels are, how the exclusive Diamond award works, estimated values, growth tips, and more. Let‘s dive in!

Welcoming the 7 Members of the 100M Club

Hitting the 100 million subscriber milestone is an incredible feat accomplished by only 0.0001% of YouTube‘s over 50 million creators. It requires tremendous momentum and loyal audience growth over many years of consistent content.

Here‘s a quick look at the 7 channels that make up the ultra-exclusive Diamond Play Button club:

PewDiePie

Felix Arvid Ulf Kjellberg, better known as PewDiePie, was the first individual YouTube creator to hit 100 million subscribers back in 2019. His comedy vlogs and commentary on video games, internet culture, and politics helped him claim the #1 most subscribed spot, which he holds despite competition.

T-Series

This Indian record label and film production company was the second channel overall to reach 100 million subscribers in 2019. T-Series exploded in popularity by posting music videos and film content from Bollywood and its other entertainment properties. It now has over 230 million subs.

Cocomelon

The young children‘s channel Cocomelon broadcaster nursery rhymes and songs to great success during the pandemic, hitting 100 million subs in 2020. Its content and distribution on platforms like Netflix tapped into the massive demand for toddler entertainment.

SET India

Sony Entertainment Television India is the country‘s leading Hindi general entertainment TV channel. It crossed into the elite Diamond club in 2021, aided by its popular syndicated Hindi serials, reality shows, and family programming.

MrBeast

Jimmy "MrBeast" Donaldson has grown his channel into a viral juggernaut, dishing out expensive stunts, challenges, charity events, and other videos that attract views. MrBeast joined the 100 million subscriber club in 2022 through his sensationalized content.

Kids Diana Show

This child-friendly toy review channel highlights videos with Diana and her brother Roma playing with toys, going on adventures, and more. Kids Diana Show was able to gain its massive young audience quickly, hitting the milestone in 2022.

Like Nastya

Anastasia Radzinskaya and her family document their daily lives through vlogs on Like Nastya. The Russian-American pre-schooler‘s content caught on globally, making her one of the youngest YouTube creators to ever receive a Diamond Play Button.

While their content spans different genres, languages, and ages, this elite group of creators share the ability to consistently churn out videos that draw in millions of regular viewers. But just how special is the coveted prize they‘ve earned?

The Prestigious Red Diamond Play Button Award

In 2015, YouTube introduced its original Diamond Play Button for channels that surpass 10 million subscribers, made of gold-plated brass. However, to recognize the even more monumental 100 million sub milestone, they crafted an exclusive Red Diamond version.

The Red Diamond Play Button features a sleek silver-plated metal design with a large dark red crystal inset, symbolizing the massive achievement. Currently, it‘s the highest recognition a creator can receive.

YouTube personally awards the Red Diamond Play Button in a framed presentation box. However, recipients cannot sell or transfer ownership of the award. It exists purely as a symbol of prestige and honor from YouTube.

Estimated Value of the Diamond Award

While the Play Button has no official resale value, we can estimate its monetary worth based on the materials:

• The standard 10 million Diamond Play Button contains roughly $500 of 14K gold plating. The engraved brass underneath likely adds another $100 or so in raw material costs.
• In contrast, the special 100 million Red Diamond version has only about $20 worth of silver plating.
• But the centerpiece red crystal is likely a custom-created ruby weighing over 150 carats. A lab-ruby of that size would fall in the $1,000 to $1,500 range.
• The crystal mounting and production costs for YouTube‘s personalized engraving and framing might add another few hundred dollars.

So in total, the physical materials in a Red Diamond Play Button are likely worth around $2,000. For a one-of-a-kind award that recognizes such a rare achievement, most would consider it priceless!

Of course, the Diamond Play Button is merely symbolic. The true value for these creators comes from the prestige, bragging rights, and ability to monetize massive audiences.

Lucrative Business of Top YouTube Channels

While YouTube does not share exact revenue figures, we can estimate how much top channels earn based on their subscriber count and views.

For example, MrBeast has over 107 million subscribers and averages 150-200 million views per month. Based on typical YouTube CPM rates, his monthly ad revenue likely ranges from $500,000 to $1 million or more. Channels can further monetize through brand sponsorships, merchandise, and other sidelines.

Here‘s a breakdown of the estimated minimum yearly earnings for some of YouTube‘s top channels:

• PewDiePie – $6 million
• T-Series – $100+ million
• Cocomelon – $130+ million
• SET India – $500+ million
• MrBeast – $54 million
• Kids Diana Show – $40+ million
• Like Nastya – $28+ million

These massive earnings demonstrate the lucrative possibilities of YouTube fame. While making big money involves luck, personality appeal, and great content, achieving 100 million subscribers almost guarantees multimillion-dollar success.

Strategies for Rapid Subscriber Growth

For smaller creators aspiring to such heights, here are some best practices:

• Set milestones like 100k, 500k, and 1 million to make big goals feel achievable. Celebrate each milestone.
• Analyze your channel‘s traffic to identify your most popular and best performing video types and topics. Double down on those.
• Ensure you have strong thumbnails, titles, descriptions, tags, and closed captions to optimize discoverability.
• Promote new videos externally via social media, websites, email newsletter, etc. to maximize views.
• Make sure to have end screens, cards, and descriptions linking to your other videos and reminding viewers to subscribe.
• Consider collaborations with other creators in your niche to tap into new audiences.
• Maintain a consistent upload schedule and frequently engage with your community.

Growing an audience takes time and commitment, but 100 million subscribers remains extremely rare air.

Who Else Might Receive a Diamond Play Button?

Currently, the channels in the 100 million club have large leads over competitors. But a few creators nearing the milestone could potentially join them in the coming years:

• WWE – World Wrestling Entertainment has 98 million subscribers, mainly thanks to archival and highlights content. More nostalgic wrestling footage could push them over the edge.
• Zee TV – This popular Indian cable channel sits at 95 million subscribers. Its family dramas and soaps continue gaining millions of views.
• Sports Center – ESPN‘s sports news channel now has 71 million subscribers and rising. Its diverse sports content helps secure a steady audience.

While wildcards could always emerge, it remains incredibly difficult to maintain popularity long enough to reach such heights. But the seven current Red Diamond Play Button recipients continue growing, producing, and raking in millions along the way.

The Rarity of Real Red Diamonds

The man-made ruby crystal in the Play Button represents a red diamond, which are among the rarest gems on Earth.

Only around 20 to 30 true natural red diamonds are known to exist in the world. Their scarcity makes them by far the most valuable diamond color.

One-carat red diamonds sell for around $1 million per carat or higher at auction. In 2017, the famous 59-carat CTF Pink Star sold for $71 million!

So while the YouTube Play Button contains a lab-created stone, it symbolizes the uniqueness of these elite, 100 million-plus subscriber channels. Like precious red diamonds, their extreme popularity makes them astonishingly special.

Conclusion

YouTube‘s Red Diamond Play Button recognizes an incredibly exclusive club of channels that have achieved over 100 million subscribers. The recipients represent different genres, ages, and languages – but all have mastered the formula for explosive growth and passionate audiences.

While reaching such heights is extremely rare, it generates fame, prestige, and multimillion-dollar incomes. For creators striving to make it big, this elite group provides inspiration to dream big. Because one day, with enough talent, great content, and a little luck, that coveted Red Diamond Play Button could be yours!