India’s creator economy booms, but 88% still earn less than 75% of their income online

New Delhi: India’s influencer marketing sector is growing rapidly, driven by a young creator base, rising brand investments, and shifting platform monetisation models.

India’s creator economy has reached an estimated 3.5–4.5 million influencers in 2024, growing at roughly 22% CAGR, according to the Kofluence Annual Report 2024–25. Instagram continues to dominate the landscape, hosting between 1.8–2.3 million creators, while YouTube accounts for 500–700k, and other platforms together total 90–120k creators.

Influencer marketing budgets remain heavily weighted towards Instagram, which receives over 50% of brand spending, followed by YouTube, X, and Facebook. Campaigns on Instagram Reels for nano creators (under 10k followers) are priced between Rs 500–Rs 5,000, while mega and celebrity creators can earn upwards of Rs 2 lakh per branded short-form video.

Despite the industry’s scale,monetisationremains uneven. The report notes that 88% of creators earn less than 75% of their income from social media, and more than half make under 25%. Sponsored collaborations remain the top revenue source for 47% of creators, while only 15% rely primarily on ad revenue from platforms such as YouTube and Meta.

E-commerce brands lead sectoral influencer spending at 23%, followed by FMCG at 19%. Comedy and entertainment content drives the highest engagement, 5–6%, with a median cost-per-view of Rs 0.15–Rs 0.2.

Short-form video is the most preferredmonetisationformat, chosen by 52% of creators, while long-form videos (13%) and static posts (15%) maintain niche appeal. However, platformmonetisationtrends are shifting: Instagram Reels revenue saw a correction in 2024 as brands became more ROI-focused, while YouTube Shorts earnings rose, particularly for nano and macro creators.

The report also points to growing regulatory pressure, with 72% of marketers and 56% of creators supporting clear ad disclosures. AI adoption is increasing, with 29% of marketers using it for creative content generation, followed by performance reporting and campaign management.

Brands continue to face challenges in scaling influencer campaigns, over 30% cite budgeting as the main constraint. Micro-influencers (10k–100k followers) are preferred for regional campaigns, chosen by 52% of marketers for their hyperlocal reach.

According to Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Shorts now has more than 50 billion daily views, making YouTube a strong rival to TikTok. However, creator feedback has been mixed, with concerns over lower ad revenue shares compared to long-form content. YouTube is piloting innovative ad formats designed to boost earnings for creators while delivering stronger ROI for advertisers. As a result, creators seeking more predictable revenue streams are increasingly prioritizing the platform.