The Most Viewed YouTube Videos, and the Most Subscribed Channels

The most viewed YouTube video is Pinkfong's "Baby Shark Dance," uploaded on June 17, 2016. On October 23, 2026, its YouTube page showed 17,478,225,552 views. That's about 1.8 times the 9.63 billion of Cocomelon's "Wheels on the Bus" in second place. Luis Fonsi's "Despacito" is third, with 9.15 billion. It's the most viewed music video by a recording artist. The most liked video is a MrBeast Short, with 58.8 million likes. MrBeast also has the most subscribers, 523 million.

We started from Wikipedia's list of the 30 most viewed videos, as of August 30, 2026. Then we read each video's own count on YouTube, through our server, on October 23, 2026. The counts move every minute, so every number here carries its date.

What are the most viewed YouTube videos?

Rank	Video	Views (billions)
1	Baby Shark Dance, Pinkfong	17.48
2	Wheels on the Bus, Cocomelon	9.63
3	Despacito, Luis Fonsi	9.15
4	A Facebook ad	8.60
5	Bath Song, Cocomelon	7.68
6	Johny Johny Yes Papa, LooLoo Kids	7.26
7	Phonics Song with Two Words, ChuChu TV	7.13
8	See You Again, Wiz Khalifa	7.12
9	Shape of You, Ed Sheeran	6.83
10	Axel F, Crazy Frog	6.25

Views read on each video's YouTube page on October 23, 2026. The videos come from Wikipedia's "List of most-viewed YouTube videos," as of August 30, 2026.

Five of the top 10 are children's songs, four are music videos and one is an ad. Early on, amateur clips like "Evolution of Dance" and "Charlie Bit My Finger" led the list, Wikipedia's page says. Since then, the leaders "have increasingly been music videos produced on behalf of professional recording artists," the page says.

Psy's "Gangnam Style" was the first video to pass a billion views, in December 2012. Today it's 11th, with 6.10 billion.

Why is a Facebook ad the fourth most viewed video?

Fourth place goes to an ad titled "009 1225 GetInspiredOnGroups Crafts GLOBAL Acq EN UAC 1920x1080 21s Null FB M0 267," which reads like a file name. Wikipedia calls it "The most viewed known advertisement on YouTube," and it's also the most viewed unlisted video. Unlisted videos don't show up in YouTube search. On August 30, 2026, it became the fourth video to reach 8 billion views. Wikipedia says it got there "at just 2 years and 11 months," faster than any video before it.

Another ad sits near the top. Temu's 2024 Big Game ad had 4.98 billion views on October 23, which puts it 17th.

How fast is Baby Shark Dance still growing?

Views	Date reached
10 billion	January 13, 2022
15 billion	September 1, 2024
16 billion	June 19, 2025
17 billion	June 9, 2026
17.48 billion	October 23, 2026

Milestones from Wikipedia's list. The last row is our read of the video's YouTube page.

Wikipedia also logged it at 17,179,869,184 views on August 2, 2026. By October 23, 82 days later, it had added about 298 million more. That's roughly 3.6 million views a day, more than ten years after it went up. It took first place from "Despacito" on November 1, 2020. It was also the first video to pass 10 billion views.

What is the most liked YouTube video?

Rank	Video	Likes (millions)
1	Would You Fly To Paris For A Baguette?, MrBeast	58.83
2	Despacito, Luis Fonsi	56.76
3	See You Again, Wiz Khalifa	47.11
4	Baby Shark Dance, Pinkfong	47.07
5	Our MOST INTENSE Balloon Popping Race, How Ridiculous	43.01

Likes read on each video's YouTube page on October 23, 2026, in the order of Wikipedia's "List of most-liked YouTube videos," as of October 13, 2026.

MrBeast's Short has been the most liked video since January 2025, according to Wikipedia. It's got 1.83 billion views, far fewer than the music videos it beats on likes. "Despacito" was the first video to reach 50 million likes, on October 23, 2022.

Which YouTube channel has the most subscribers?

Rank	Channel	Subscribers
1	MrBeast	523 million
2	T-Series	316 million
3	Cocomelon	203 million
4	SET India	190 million
5	Vlad and Niki	151 million

Counts as each channel's YouTube page showed them on October 23, 2026, in the order of Wikipedia's "List of most-subscribed YouTube channels." YouTube shows them rounded.

YouTube doesn't publish an official ranking. Wikipedia's list notes that "YouTube does not publish lists of most-subscribed channels" as of 2026. It says MrBeast had 500 million subscribers on June 12, 2026, and was "gaining an average of 133,000 subscribers per day" then. Our read four months later shows 523 million, so the channel has gained about 23 million since.

Can you buy YouTube views?

Not from us. Hclout doesn't sell YouTube views. Our page on buying YouTube views says "YouTube filters bought views out of the count, often within days," and that's why we stopped. Want your own videos to climb? Our guide to the YouTube algorithm in 2026 covers what YouTube rewards. Our page on how much YouTube pays covers the money side. For the same kind of list on Instagram, see the most liked Instagram posts.

Frequently asked questions

What is the most viewed YouTube video?

Pinkfong's "Baby Shark Dance," with 17.48 billion views on October 23, 2026.

What is the most viewed music video on YouTube?

If you count only music videos by recording artists, it's Luis Fonsi's "Despacito," with 9.15 billion views on October 23, 2026.

What is the most liked YouTube video?

MrBeast's Short "Would You Fly To Paris For A Baguette?", with 58.8 million likes on October 23, 2026.

Who has the most subscribers on YouTube?

MrBeast, with 523 million subscribers on October 23, 2026. T-Series is second, with 316 million.

What was the first YouTube video to reach a billion views?

Psy's "Gangnam Style," in December 2012.

Sources

• YouTube, each video's and channel's own page, read through our server on October 23, 2026
• Wikipedia, "List of most-viewed YouTube videos" (as of August 30, 2026), "List of most-liked YouTube videos" (as of October 13, 2026) and "List of most-subscribed YouTube channels" (October 2026), read October 23, 2026