YouTube CTR Calculator
Enter your impressions and clicks from YouTube Studio to calculate your click-through rate, compare it against niche benchmarks, and see how many views you could be gaining with a stronger thumbnail.
How it works
How to use the YouTube CTR calculator
Four inputs, instant results. No YouTube API connection or account linking required.
Pull your numbers from YouTube Studio
Open Analytics > Reach to find your impressions and clicks. The calculator accepts raw numbers or comma-formatted values.
Select your niche and channel size
Choose your content category and subscriber range so the calculator pulls the right comparison data for your situation.
Review your CTR score and gauge
See your click-through rate percentage alongside a color-coded gauge from poor to excellent, plus how you stack up against your category average.
Check your views lost projection
The calculator translates your CTR gap into concrete view counts — how many additional views you would get at benchmark levels, projected monthly and annually.
FEATURES
YouTube CTR calculator features
Enter your impressions and clicks from YouTube Studio to get your CTR, see where you rank against niche benchmarks, and calculate how many views you're leaving on the table.
Instant CTR calculation
Paste your impressions and clicks to get your click-through rate percentage. No formulas, no spreadsheets.
Niche benchmark comparison
Compare your rate against averages for 11 content categories including gaming, education, tech, vlog, cooking, fitness, music, business, entertainment, and beauty.
Visual CTR gauge
A color-coded gauge with thresholds at 2%, 5%, 7%, 9%, and 12% so you can see where you fall at a glance.
Channel size context
Factor in your subscriber count for more accurate comparisons. Smaller channels naturally see higher CTR because impressions skew toward subscribers.
Views lost projection
See the additional views you would gain if your CTR matched the niche average, good, and excellent benchmarks — broken out monthly and annually.
Performance rating badge
Get a clear label (poor, average, good, great, or excellent) without interpreting raw numbers yourself.
Why creators use this YouTube CTR calculator
Built for anyone who wants to measure thumbnail performance and find growth opportunities.
Quantify lost views
Most creators know their CTR but not what it costs them. The views-lost projection translates a percentage gap into real view counts you can act on.
Benchmark against your niche
A 4% CTR means different things in music versus gaming. Category-specific data gives you an accurate read on whether your thumbnails are competitive.
Prioritize thumbnail improvements
When the annual projection shows thousands of missed views, the case for redesigning thumbnails or A/B testing becomes concrete instead of theoretical.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good CTR on YouTube?
A good YouTube CTR depends on your niche and channel size, but generally 5-7% is considered good for most creators. YouTube's own data shows that half of all channels have a CTR between 2% and 10%. Gaming and entertainment channels tend to see higher CTR (6-10%), while music channels average lower (1-3%). If you're consistently above 6%, your thumbnails and titles are performing well relative to most creators.
What is the average YouTube CTR?
The average YouTube CTR is approximately 4-5% based on surveys of marketers and aggregated creator data. YouTube's official guidance states that half of all channels and videos have an impressions CTR between 2% and 10%. The exact average for your channel will depend heavily on your niche, channel size, and the traffic sources driving your impressions. Search traffic typically has 10-12% CTR while Browse Features (Home page) average 3-5%.
Does your thumbnail affect CTR?
Yes, thumbnails are one of the biggest factors affecting CTR. Your thumbnail is the first visual element a viewer sees before deciding to click. Studies and creator reports consistently show that thumbnail redesigns alone can lift CTR by 20-30% or more. YouTube's algorithm uses CTR as one signal for recommending videos, so a better thumbnail can create a compounding effect: higher CTR leads to more recommendations, which leads to more impressions and views.
How do I check my YouTube CTR?
Open YouTube Studio, go to Analytics, then click the Reach tab. You'll see your impressions click-through rate displayed as a percentage. You can filter by individual video, time period, or traffic source. For per-video CTR, open the video's analytics page and check the Reach section. Note that YouTube only counts impressions where at least 50% of the thumbnail was visible for at least one second.
What CTR do I need to go viral?
There's no single CTR that guarantees a video goes viral. YouTube's recommendation algorithm considers CTR alongside average view duration, session time, and other engagement signals. That said, videos that break out typically maintain 8-10%+ CTR even as impressions scale into the hundreds of thousands. The key is sustaining high CTR as YouTube pushes the video to broader audiences. A video at 15% CTR with 1,000 impressions isn't "viral" -- one at 8% CTR with 1 million impressions is performing exceptionally.
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