Top 10 Powerful Content Creators Globally In 2022

Money, fame, and moxie are all it takes to qualify for Forbes’ first-ever ranking of the most powerful influencers on the Internet. Their compelling, often quirky, content is consumed by millions–and the world’s top brands happily spend millions to sponsor.

To separate the wheat from the chaff in an industry plagued by self-promotion and spam, Forbes evaluated each creator across three categories: earnings, clout, and entrepreneurship.

Clout measures not just the sheer number of followers, but also their engagement as indicated by likes, shares, and comments. This count includes people who follow creators on multiple platforms.

Finally, each creator has given an entrepreneurship rank of between 1 and 3, rewarding people who founded companies, started investment shops, or otherwise structured deals in creative—and lucrative—ways. Here is the list. 

Jimmy Donaldson (MrBeast)

MrBeast earned the number one spot on this list not only because he’s making more than anyone else, but also because his restaurant concept, MrBeast Burger, is a truly entrepreneurial mechanism for the YouTuber to monetize his fame.

• Total Followers: 162M
• Avg. Engagement: 5.99 percent
• Entrepreneurship Score: 3 Charli D’Amelio

In 2021, 18-year-old Charli D’Amelio was the highest-earning TikToker, making $17.5 million from her casual clothing brand Social Tourist (a joint venture with Hollister and sister Dixie), Hulu show the D’Amelio Show, and deals with brands like Invisalign, Morphe and Dunkin’.

• Total Followers: 203.7M
• Avg. Engagement: 2.16 percent
• Entrepreneurship Score: 3

 Alexandra Cooper

Talking about sex—her own, as well as that of friends and celebrities—has made former college soccer player Alexandra Cooper into a multi-millionaire.

Cooper’s turned raunch to riches, and the podcast is currently ranked the number one female-focused podcast on Spotify globally.

• Total Followers: 3.6M
• Avg. Engagement: 15.98 percent
• Entrepreneurship Score: 3

Elliot Tebele (FuckJerry)

Remember when the most entertaining internet content was photos with funny captions—otherwise known as memes? Well, that time is long gone, but original mass-market meme maker FuckJerry, helmed by Elliot Tebele, has diversified into games, tequila, and television to stay relevant.

• Total Followers: 20.1M
• Avg. Engagement: 1.77 percent
• Entrepreneurship Score: 3

Emma Chamberlain

Of all the creators on this list, Emma Chamberlain has one of the highest engagement rates, with 12 percent of her Instagram audience engaging with her content.

is known for her wit and deadpan humor, which have helped make her a popular vlogger. She’s also the founder of Chamberlain Coffee, a premium coffee and tea brand that happens to sell a ton of merchandise and raised a $7 million Series A.

• Total Followers: 27.6M
• Avg. Engagement: 6.84 percent
• Entrepreneurship Score: 3

Huda Kattan

She’s one of the earliest creators on this list as she started her beauty blog in 2010. That led the then-financier to start booking clients and eventually start her own cosmetics line, Huda Beauty, launching with false lashes.

The brand has expanded into a skincare and all sorts of cosmetic goodies, retailing direct-to-consumer and in stores like Sephora around the world.

• Total Followers: 63M
• Avg. Engagement: 2.17 percent
• Entrepreneurship Score: 3

 Rhett McLaughlin and Link Neal (Rhett & Link)

McLaughlin and Link met in 1984 during first-grade detention after writing profanities on their desks and later performing comedic sketches in grade school.

Now, the North Carolina State University grads deliver sketch comedy to some 5 million YouTube fans. The two made Forbes’ 2022 Highest-Paid YouTube Stars list earning $30 million in merchandise, festival and solo show appearances, music sales, and endorsements.

• Total Followers: 11.8M
• Avg. Engagement: 1.34 percent
• Entrepreneurship Score: 3

 Khaby Lame

With more than 146 million TikTok followers, Khaby Lame is now the most-followed TikToker in the world (he surpassed Charli D’Amelio in June). The 2022 Forbes 30 Under 30 Europe honoree creates comedy skits that mock overly complicated “life hacks”—all without saying a word.

• Total Followers: 231.4M
• Avg. Engagement: 3.57 percent
• Entrepreneurship Score: 3

Addison Rae Easterling

Growing up in a trailer in Lafayette, Louisiana, Addison Rae Easterling never expected to obtain 88 million TikTok followers and make over $27 million. But trained as a competitive dancer, Easterling’s ability to bring a song to life with her own versions of popping, locking, and dropping, has made her an entertaining follow for people around the world.

• Total Followers: 133M
• Avg. Engagement: 6.43 percent
• Entrepreneurship Score: 3

Jake Paul

Jake Paul has made millions switching from prankster to pugilist. Paul—who got his start with controversial YouTube spectacles like eating IcyHot and throwing water balloons at women—now makes most of his money as a boxer.

The trash-talking Paul uses his social reach to build hype and drama, around his boxing and MMA matches, which he streams to his 20.4 million subscribers—converting eyeballs into massive merchandise and advertising dollars.

• Total Followers: 57.3M
• Avg. Engagement: 1.49 percent
• Entrepreneurship Score: 2

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