Famous YouTube stars are barely scraping by

Gaby Dunn, co-star of the YouTube channel Just Between Us, explains the dismal economics of being a mid-list YouTube star.

Im 27 years old and have been building an online following for 10 years, beginning with a popular Livejournal I wrote in high school. A couple of years ago, after moving to Los Angeles, I made the transition from freelance writing to creating online video. The channel I have with my best friend Allison Raskin, Just Between Us, has more than half a million subscribers and a hungry fan base. Were a two-person video creation machine. When were not producing and starring in a comedy sketch and advice show, were writing the episodes, dealing with business contracts and deals, and running our company Gallison, LLC, which we registered officially about a month ago.

And yet, despite this success, were just barely scraping by. Allison and I make money from ads that play before our videos, freelance writing and acting gigs, and brand deals on YouTube and Instagram. But its not enough to live, and its influx is unpredictable. Our channel exists in that YouTube no-mans-land: Brands think were too small to sponsor, but fans think were too big for donations. Ive never had more than a couple thousand dollars in my bank account at once. My Instagram account has 340,000 followers, but Ive never made $340,000 in my life collectively.

The high highs and low lows leave me reeling. One week, I was stopped for photos six times while perusing comic books in downtown L.A. The next week, I sat faceless in a room of 40 people vying for a menial courier job. Ive walked a red carpet with $80 in my bank account. Popular YouTube musician Meghan Tonjes said she performed on Vidcons MainStage this year to screaming, crying fans without knowing whether shed be able to afford groceries.