youtube sponsorship · top brands
The 10 Brands That Sponsor the Most YouTube Creators in 2026 (And What That Tells You)
Ten brands account for 13,717 tracked creator sponsorships, almost 8% of all YouTube sponsor activity in our database. Here's the full list and what the concentration pattern means for your own brand.
On this page
Who spends the most on YouTube creator deals in 2026 is not a list question.
It is a question of how the spend stacks up.
Ten brands drive a real share of every creator deal on the site, per our 281,264-row deal log.
Which brands they are tells you more than any rate card.
What's Inside
- The 10 brands that book the most YouTube creators.
- 1 named anchor creator per brand, with sub counts.
- The 7.8 percent share math behind the top 10.
- 4 verticals that show the spend pattern.
- 3 takeaways for a brand new to YouTube in 2026.
Where We Come In
We hold the deal log.
So we can hand you the named shortlist for any brand on this page. Speak with us before you copy the play book by hand.
The data behind this report
We track 176,223 paid YouTube creator deals across 32,731 brands and 21,997 channels.
Coverage runs from Feb 9, 2017 to March 10, 2026.
Every figure was run on our deal log on April 22, 2026.
There are no outside guesses here.
10 Brands That Sponsor the Most YouTube Creators
Ranked by total deal count in our log, with the number of distinct creators each brand has worked with.
| Rank | Brand | Deals tracked | Creators worked with | Avg deals per creator |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | BetterHelp | 2,612 | 1,319 | 1.98 |
| 2 | Skillshare | 1,819 | 721 | 2.52 |
| 3 | Squarespace | 1,524 | 332 | 4.59 |
| 4 | NordVPN | 1,334 | 620 | 2.15 |
| 5 | Surfshark | 1,230 | 640 | 1.92 |
| 6 | Brilliant | 1,128 | 404 | 2.79 |
| 7 | Incogni | 1,127 | 692 | 1.63 |
| 8 | Hostinger | 947 | 367 | 2.58 |
| 9 | Raycon | 916 | 485 | 1.89 |
| 10 | Aura | 880 | 457 | 1.93 |
Source: Influencer Advisory our deal log table, 2026-04-22.
Together these ten brands hold 13,717 deals, or 7.8% of every YouTube sponsor deal in our log.
That is a big share for ten ad buyers in a market this wide.
10 Named Anchor Creators, 1 Per Brand
Each top-10 sponsor has one creator who runs way more deals than the rest.
These are the anchors in our log.
| Brand | Anchor creator | Subs | Deals with brand |
|---|---|---|---|
| BetterHelp | Crystal Park | 53,900 | 30 |
| Squarespace | Jess Karp | 523,000 | 62 |
| Skillshare | Lucie Villeneuve | 96,300 | 59 |
| NordVPN | HalfGēk | 15,300 | 60 |
| Surfshark | David G | 35,700 | 25 |
| Brilliant | Newsthink | 1,210,000 | 71 |
| Incogni | Undecided with Matt Ferrell | 1,770,000 | 20 |
| Hostinger | Create a Pro Website | 463,000 | 37 |
| Raycon | TheDooo | 6,360,000 | 17 |
| Aura | Money Moves With K | 148,000 | 30 |
Source: Influencer Advisory deal log, top creator by deal count per brand, pulled 2026-04-22.
Read the anchor list as the floor of each plan.
Crystal Park at 53,900 subs has run 30 deals with BetterHelp.
That is the clean sign that BetterHelp pays small creators on a steady cycle.
Newsthink at 1.21M subs has run 71 deals with Brilliant.
That is the clean sign that Brilliant re-books proven creators.
1 Concentration Pattern, in One Chart
A simple view of the share: what slice of all tracked sponsor work comes from the top N brands.
| Top N brands | Combined deals | % of platform total |
|---|---|---|
| Top 1 (BetterHelp) | 2,612 | 1.48% |
| Top 3 | 5,955 | 3.38% |
| Top 5 | 8,519 | 4.84% |
| Top 10 | 13,717 | 7.79% |
Source: Influencer Advisory concentration rollup, top-N share of platform deals, pulled 2026-04-22.
One brand (BetterHelp) has more creator deals than 90% of the brands in our log put together.
Most of the 32,731 brands we track have run fewer than 10 deals.
A few ad buyers have run over 1,000.
This barbell shape is what the creator sponsor scene really looks like in 2026.
5 Things the Top Brands Have in Common
Walk down the list:
- BetterHelp (mental health sub)
- Skillshare (online learning sub)
- Squarespace (site builder sub)
- NordVPN (privacy sub)
- Surfshark (privacy sub)
- Brilliant (learning app sub)
- Incogni (data removal sub)
- Hostinger (web hosting sub)
- Raycon (gear, the one outlier)
- Aura (ID safety sub)
Nine of the top ten are sub-based products.
The tenth (Raycon) uses code-based tracking.
It is in effect a direct sale play.
Every brand on the list is built to track creator-driven sign-ups.
The creator reads a script.
The creator drops a code or link.
The brand counts the sign-ups.
The creator gets paid in line with how the read works.
Or at least with the size of the crowd.
The pattern is not about budget size. It is about tracking.
Brands with big budgets but weak creator tracking do not show up in the top 10.
They can not tune their creator spend the way these sub brands can.
4 Repeat Patterns Up Close
The "avg deals per creator" column above is worth sitting with.
Squarespace runs 4.59 deals per creator on average, the highest in the top 10.
When Squarespace finds a winner like Jess Karp, they re-book her 62 times.
NordVPN runs 2.15.
Brilliant 2.79.
Incogni at 1.63 has the shallowest repeat in the top 10.
That fits a younger brand still finding its repeat roster.
For context: across our full log of 87,793 brand-creator pairs, 30.85% repeat at least once, 15.3% repeat three or more times, and 6.6% repeat five or more.
The top 10 brands sit above the median on repeat depth.
5 Vertical Splits Where the Deals Sit
The top 10 by vertical shows a clearer view of where the deal count sits.
| Vertical | Brands in top 10 | Combined deals |
|---|---|---|
| Privacy software | NordVPN, Surfshark, Incogni, Aura | 4,571 |
| Education / Learning | Skillshare, Brilliant | 2,947 |
| Mental health | BetterHelp | 2,612 |
| Web / Hosting | Squarespace, Hostinger | 2,471 |
| Consumer electronics | Raycon | 916 |
Source: Influencer Advisory vertical rollup, top-10 brands grouped by primary product, pulled 2026-04-22.
Privacy software alone holds 4,571 tracked deals, or 2.6% of all YouTube sponsor work in our log, from just four brands.
That is a big category outlier.
For scale, one vertical with four firms holds about 1 in every 38 paid creator reads on the site.
Over the last eight years.
3 Takeaways for a Brand New to YouTube in 2026
Three points from the data, each checked against the table above:
- If you sell a sub-based product with trackable sign-ups, YouTube deals are a proven channel. Every brand in the top 10 except Raycon is sub-based. They have run 13,717 deals as a group with no one quitting.
- The top 10 hold just 7.8 percent of market work. The other 92.2 percent is open. The market is dense at the top but thins out fast. A new brand fights for creator slots against thousands of smaller ad buyers, not against BetterHelp.
- Repeat depth splits brands that will scale from the rest. Squarespace at 4.59 avg deals per creator is the model. Find the winner. Stay with them. Stack the proof.
Where We Come In
You can copy this play book by reading the table.
Or we hand you the named shortlist for your vertical, with rates and contact paths.
For a rate card in your vertical, or a creator shortlist, speak with us.
For more reading see Who Actually Sponsors YouTube Creators in 2026 for the full deal dataset, TikTok Creator Economy 2026 for the cross-platform view, and How Much Does Influencer Marketing Cost in 2026 for pricing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which brand sponsors the most YouTube creators in 2026?
BetterHelp.
Our log has 2,612 tracked sponsor deals from BetterHelp across 1,319 distinct creators.
That is the biggest by a wide margin.
The next four are Skillshare (1,819 deals), Squarespace (1,524), NordVPN (1,334), and Surfshark (1,230).
How dense is YouTube sponsor spending?
Very.
Our top 10 sponsor brands alone hold 13,717 deals.
That is about 7.8% of all 176,223 tracked sponsor deals in our log.
The top 50 likely hold over 25% of all creator sponsor work.
YouTube's sponsor scene is a long tail run by a small group of heavy repeat ad buyers.
What do the top sponsor brands have in common?
Eight of the top ten are digital sub-based products with creator-friendly tracking.
BetterHelp, Skillshare, Squarespace, NordVPN, Surfshark, Brilliant, Incogni, Hostinger, Aura.
Raycon (gear) is the single outlier.
Why are VPN brands so active on YouTube?
NordVPN and Surfshark together hold 2,564 deals across 1,260 creators.
That makes VPN one of the densest sponsor types.
The fit is built-in.
VPN is a sub product.
Creators have high-intent fans for privacy pitches.
And code-based tracking is easy.
Does this hurt small brands?
The opposite.
When the top 10 hold 7.8% of work, 92.2% of sponsor deals come from brands outside the top 10.
There is room for a new brand in most niches.
And creators who work with repeat ad buyers (30.85% of ties repeat at least once) tend to run a polished flow, which helps new ad buyers too.
Methodology
Data source: our deal log table.
Brand names cleaned via the company_normalized column.
Date for every number above: 2026-04-22.
Vertical groups in the final table were set by us based on each brand's main product.
Related reading: Who Actually Sponsors YouTube Creators in 2026? A Data Report from 176,223 Real Deals · Best Digital Marketing Agency in 2026 · Influencer Marketing Budget Template for 2026 (You Can Copy This) · Advertising Regulation News May 2026 · How to Get Brand Deals on YouTube in 2026 (Real Sponsor Data).
Frequently asked
Which brand sponsors the most YouTube creators in 2026?
BetterHelp. Our log has 2,612 tracked sponsor deals from BetterHelp across 1,319 creators. That is the biggest by a wide margin. The next four are Skillshare (1,819 deals), Squarespace (1,524), NordVPN (1,334), and Surfshark (1,230).
How dense is YouTube sponsor spending?
Very. Our top 10 sponsor brands alone hold 13,717 deals. That is about 7.8% of all 176,223 tracked sponsor deals. The top 50 likely hold over 25% of creator sponsor work. YouTube's sponsor scene is a long tail led by a small group of heavy repeat ad buyers.
What do the top sponsor brands have in common?
Eight of the top ten are digital sub products with creator-friendly tracking. BetterHelp (mental health), Skillshare (learning), Squarespace and Hostinger (site builders), NordVPN and Surfshark (privacy), Brilliant (learning app), Incogni (data removal), Aura (ID safety). Only Raycon (gear) breaks the pattern.
Why are VPN brands so active on YouTube?
NordVPN and Surfshark together hold 2,564 deals in our log across 1,260 creators. That makes VPN one of the densest sponsor types on YouTube. The fit is built-in. VPN is a sub product. Creators have high-intent fans for privacy pitches. And code-based tracking is easy.
Does this hurt smaller brands?
The opposite. When the top 10 hold 7.8% of work, that means 92.2% of sponsor deals come from brands outside the top 10. There is room for a new brand in most niches. And creators working with repeat ad buyers (30.85% of ties in our data repeat at least once) tend to run a polished flow. That helps new ad buyers too.
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