When you take into account that the YouTube platform has been around since early 2005, you can see how many YouTubers in the early days have changed quite a bit.
Some of the earliest popular YouTubers became a staple in the community that many people will never forget due to their influence on the platform.
Nowadays, it seems like there’s a massive list of popular YouTube channels and personalities, but back in the day, only a handful were running the show.
This article is going to focus on 13 popular old YouTubers that are over 30 years old, who were once the face of YouTube itself.
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13 Popular Old YouTubers 2024
1. NigaHiga
Ryan Higa, the brainpower behind the NigaHiga YouTube channel, started out on the platform back in 2006.
His early entry on the platform gave him a leading edge in growing a following, not to mention he was pretty consistent with providing new content along the way.
He quickly gained the attention of many viewers due to the comedy skits he created, which led people to subscribe and look forward to whatever he came up with next.
The channel started out with Ryan making videos with his close friends, and their random and sometimes erratic nature provided plenty of entertainment for viewers.
Eventually, his channel obtained the status of having the most subscribers for 677 days in a row, which goes to show what kind of influence he once had on the platform.
Ryan still creates content on YouTube but has since expanded the scope of his content and even started a new channel called HigaTV.
2. PewDiePie
There’s no arguing with the popularity of PewDiePie’s channel and his content.
He started out back in 2010 and became widely loved for his chaotic and entertaining videos that were centered around video games.
More specifically, his “Let’s Play” series of videos were a key part of garnering the attention he has now.
He currently boasts over 110 million subscribers, and the scope of his content on YouTube has expanded over the years.
Nevertheless, many of his die-hard fans remain in tune with his channel as the quality of his gaming videos and entertainment has only improved.
His career on YouTube is what developed the life he has now, and he’s widely known all over the world as one of the biggest YouTubers on the platform.
3. KevJumba
Another staple from the early YouTube days, KevJumba (Kevin Wu) was primarily known as a comedian vlogger, but he also created a handful of skits.
Many people gathered around his channel for his storytelling, and over the years, he became a nostalgic part of the YouTube community.
As his life progressed, Kevin went through his fair share of ups and downs, which led to a full stop to his content creation.
Back in 2013, he decided to step away from YouTube to go to college and focus on his spirituality. It wasn’t until 2017 that he became active on YouTube again.
Even then, his engagement with the platform and social media as a whole is relatively sparse, but many of his day-one fans are still in touch with his creative and personal endeavors.
One of his most recent projects is that he started making music, as he’s always focused on exploring his creative side in numerous ways.
4. Shane Dawson
With an early start on the platform, Shane Dawson created his YouTube channel the same year that YouTube was released.
This likely gave him an advantage in his growing following. Aside from that, his content was known for its comedic approach and sometimes rather shocking delivery.
His erratic nature and unapologetic take on comedic skits grabbed the attention of many young viewers.
It only took a few years for Shane to be considered an important part of the YouTube platform.
Now, over 15 years later, he’s still relevant and has reinvented himself and his content numerous times.
Every video he releases still gets millions of views, and the channel has been rebranded to “Shane” for short.
Although his content has changed a lot since his comedy sketch days, many people tune in simply because they’re long-time fans of his, and they’re quite fond of his storytelling and what’s going on in his daily life.
5. FRED
When you reference erratic and manic YouTubers, FRED was one that you couldn’t escape back in the day.
The YouTube star’s real name is Lucas Cruikshank, but he embodied the Fred persona he created.
As Lucas grew over the years, he eventually left the Fred persona behind and dove into a broader range of content.
However, the Fred character was so popular at one time that he released his own movies from 2010 to 2012.
Even if some people weren’t a fan of the Fred character, he was nearly inescapable on the Youtube platform for years at a time.
The last video posted on the FRED channel was seven years ago, and you can now find Lucas making new content on his self-titled channel, where he posts a few videos per month.
He may not be as popular as he once was, but he’s a household name on YouTube that millions of people will never forget.
6. Jenna Marbles
Currently sitting at 19.8 million subscribers on YouTube, Jenna Marbles is a part of the old YouTubers crowd and has been a YouTube personality that people love for years.
Her channel was created back in 2010, and many people gravitated to her quirky and comedic personality.
Most of her content was centered around vlogs, a lot of which pertained to comedic storytelling, but she dove into more serious topics as well.
She ran into some controversy in 2020, leading to her leaving the platform altogether.
However, her channel is still available, and her videos are still raking in numbers from interested viewers.
She currently focuses on a private life as she became engaged back in 2021, but there isn’t much information about what she’s doing on a day-to-day basis.
Regardless of her exit from the platform, many people still recognize her as a big part of the YouTube community over the last 10 years.
7. Ray William Johnson
One of the most consistent content creators on this list, Ray William Johnson provided viewers with plenty of laughs with every video he released.
He had a knack for finding some of the funniest and most shocking videos on the internet and would display them in a comedic manner with witty one-liners and reactions that viewers became attached to.
He started his channel in 2009 and specifically focused on sharing viral content he knew his fans would love.
Like most other YouTubers on this list, his content and interests evolved over time.
Currently, he changed his focus to creating indie cartoons, but he doesn’t release as many videos as he once did.
His channel is still active and boasts over 13.5 million subscribers, many of which are a blend of new and day-one fans.
8. Smosh
Even if you weren’t a fan of the content Smosh created, most people on YouTube were well aware of their influence on the platform.
Simply put, they were known for a wide range of comedic and entertaining content.
Many viewers became attached to the original members, but this has changed over the years as some people have left and been replaced.
Anthony was one of the driving forces in the success of the Smosh YouTube channel, but when he left the channel in 2017, a handful of new faces started to appear in their videos.
Now, the channel has been rebranded to Smosh Pit and currently has 7.36 million followers.
Their viewer count and engagement have dropped since their golden years, but the channel is still quite active.
Even if the channel isn’t what it once was, millions of people will always remember the grasp Smosh had on viewers all over the world.
In 2019, the Smosh brand was acquired by a company called Mythical Entertainment.
9. Filthy Frank
Likely to be one of the most eccentric and talented YouTubers on this list, Filth Frank’s content was hysterical and now lies among other old YouTubers that have moved on with their careers.
The channel was created back in 2013, and Filthy Frank was a persona created by George Miller.
Over the years, the persona brought in the attention of millions of viewers and became a common presence with many memes across the internet.
George is also a talented musician and vocalist and goes by the name of Joji, which is now his primary focus.
Filthy Frank’s content came to a halt five years ago, but many people still revisit his content for nostalgic reasons.
Even if Filthy Frank’s career ended, he always remains a core memory for those who have been on the YouTube platform over the years.
The channel currently sits at 7.89 million subscribers, and many of Filthy Frank’s fans followed him throughout Joji’s music career as well.
10. Jeffree Star
Aside from being a popular YouTuber, Jeffree Star has also dabbled in music, acting, cosmetics, and being an overall successful entrepreneur.
Highly regarded as one of the most loved beauty gurus on YouTube, Jeffree’s personality and content are what reel people in.
The Jeffree Star YouTube channel was started back in 2006 and has been going strong ever since.
Nowadays, Jeffree has many entrepreneurial endeavors, including assets that have done well for his career.
Although YouTube is full of different beauty channels and self-proclaimed gurus, Jeffree has a fan base and presence on the platform that’s untouchable.
His channel boasts 15.9 million subscribers, and this number continues to increase over time.
He knows his way around branding, which has been a core part of what’s made his channel, businesses, and personality so popular.
11. Casey Neistat
A familiar face in the vlogging community, Casey is a YouTuber that has a personality many people became addicted to.
As his channel grew, he was very consistent and innovative with content creation, and his videos were always full of interesting visuals and information.
His content was quite diverse as well, and his channel currently has over 12.5 million subscribers.
Even today, he’s still consistent about uploading new content, which is a big catalyst in why he’s remained relevant on YouTube for over a decade.
He’s also a man of many talents, from videography to photography and being an entrepreneur in his own right.
With his YouTube channel and other personal endeavors, Casey has worked with many big-name brands that have launched his career forward.
He’s a man of many hats that fits into the category of old YouTubers, but his content and personality show he’s clearly young at heart.
12. Markiplier
Well-known as one of the kindest personalities on YouTube, Markiplier’s light-hearted yet erratic and fun persona made for quite a bit of entertainment in his videos.
His content is centered around video games, but over the years, he also started showing a more genuine side to who he is.
Nevertheless, people love Markiplier’s wholesome personality, alongside the neverending entertainment his content provides.
His YouTube channel has over 34 million subscribers and hosts over 5,000 videos for viewers to enjoy.
Markiplier’s YouTube channel was started back in 2012, and it has always had a pretty comedic take in every video.
Nowadays, he’s broadened the type of content he provides, although he hasn’t wavered from the entertaining personality that people have grown to love.
13. Wengie
A lifestyle YouTube who has found increasing success over the last decade, Wengie dives into her life and shares the things she loves most.
On her channel, you’ll find cooking recipes, fashion advice and reviews, beauty topics, life hacks, and plenty of DIY content as well.
She’s currently 36 years old, so many people might put her in the category of old YouTubers.
However, this doesn’t reflect in her content as she’s as youthful and lively as ever.
People are drawn to her personality and the quality of her content, most of which has been quite helpful for her 13.6 million subscribers.
Her channel continues to grow as Wengie still uploads a handful of videos every month.
Many of her subscribers are die-hard fans, but she has no issue pulling in new fans with each passing year.
