Forbes Unveils 2026 Top Creators List As Collective Earnings Surpass $1 Billion For The First Time
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- The creator economy is reaching new milestones as the world’s leading creators set a new standard for the media business through the power of social media, showcasing its impact on a larger scale.
- Forbes’ Top Creator list makers are growing their audience and global impact as the list’s total number of followers rose 7% to 3.6 billion across platforms, up from 3.37 billion in 2025.
Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.Forbes Top Creators 2026Sebastian Nevols for Forbes CANNES, FRANCE (June 23, 2026) – Coinciding with the Cannes Lions Festival today, Forbes unveiled its 2026 Top Creators List, the fifth annual ranking of the 50 highest-earning, most influential social media-savvy stars across Tik Tok, You Tube, Instagram, Twitter and other social platforms.
The creator economy is reaching new milestones as the world’s leading creators set a new standard for the media business through the power of social media, showcasing its impact on a larger scale. For the first time since Forbes debuted the Top Creators list in 2022, the ranking of the 50 most powerful influencers collectively broke the billion-dollar mark, earning a total of $1.02 billion—a 20% jump from last year's $853 million, and an 80% surge from the $570 million total earnings first reported in 2022.
Forbes’ Top Creator list makers are growing their audience and global impact as the list’s total number of followers rose 7% to 3.6 billion across platforms, up from 3.37 billion in 2025. The creator economy is no longer trying to break into show business, but has become it. Social media creators are jumping from smartphone screens to Netflix and Amazon series and also big screen, creating films like “Back Rooms” and “Obsession.” Other expansions that creators have leaned into include Fast TV, building hundred-person studios, leading national brand campaigns and beating traditional Hollywood in the box office.