Career Timeline of MrBeast: Major Achievements and Milestones

Discover the career path of MrBeast, from the first major opportunity to industry-changing achievements.

James Stephen "Jimmy" Donaldson, better known as MrBeast, is a prominent American YouTuber, media personality, and businessman recognized for his engaging and high-production-value content. He is famous for hosting elaborate challenges, often incorporating philanthropic endeavors. MrBeast holds the distinction of having the most subscribed channel on YouTube, boasting over 419 million subscribers. Furthermore, as of August 2, 2025, he was the third-most-followed creator on TikTok, with a substantial following of over 119 million.

Sections (6)

Full Timeline Early Life & Education Career & Achievements Success & Recognition Challenges & Struggles Controversies & Scandals

February 2012: First YouTube Upload

In February 2012, at the age of 13, James Donaldson uploaded his first YouTube video under the channel name "MrBeast6000".

2015: "Worst Intros on YouTube" Series Popularity

In 2015, James Donaldson, known as MrBeast, gained popularity with his "Worst Intros on YouTube" series.

2016: Dropping out of college to become a full time YouTuber

In 2016, Donaldson dropped out of college in late 2016 to pursue a full-time career as a YouTuber. His mother disapproved of his decision and forced him to leave the family home.

January 2017: Viral "Counting to 100,000" Video

In January 2017, Donaldson's "counting to 100,000" video went viral, marking his breakthrough. The ordeal took him 40 hours.

2018: "YouTube's Biggest Philanthropist"

By 2018, Donaldson had given out $1 million through his stunts, earning him the title "YouTube's biggest philanthropist".

2018: Support for PewDiePie

During the PewDiePie vs. T-Series rivalry in 2018, Donaldson bought billboards and advertisements to help PewDiePie gain more subscribers than T-Series. During Super Bowl LIII, he purchased multiple seats for himself and his team, whose shirts spelled out "Sub 2 PewDiePie".

March 2019: Real-Life Battle Royale Competition

In March 2019, Donaldson organized a real-life battle royale competition in Los Angeles with prizes totaling $200,000 in collaboration with Apex Legends. Apex Legends publisher Electronic Arts sponsored the event and prize pool.

October 2019: Start of Tree Planting for #TeamTrees

In October 2019, the Arbor Day Foundation started planting trees in U.S. national parks as part of the #TeamTrees project. The project was announced on October 25, 2019.

October 25, 2019: Announcement of #TeamTrees Fundraising Challenge

On October 25, 2019, Donaldson and Mark Rober announced #TeamTrees, a YouTube fundraising challenge to raise $20 million for the Arbor Day Foundation by January 1, 2020, to plant trees.

January 1, 2020: #TeamTrees Fundraising Goal Deadline

The original goal for the #TeamTrees project was to raise $20 million for the Arbor Day Foundation by January 1, 2020. The funds were to be used to plant trees, with a deadline for planting by December 2022.

April 2020: Rock, Paper, Scissors Competition Stream

In April 2020, Donaldson created a rock, paper, scissors competition stream that featured 32 influencers and a grand prize of $250,000, becoming YouTube's most-watched live Original event at the time. Nadeshot won.

June 2020: Release of Finger on the App Mobile Game

In June 2020, Donaldson collaborated with MSCHF to release "Finger on the App," a one-time multiplayer mobile game where the last person to remove their finger from the screen won $25,000. Four people ultimately won $20,000 each after keeping their finger on the application for over 70 hours.

September 17, 2020: Creation of Beast Philanthropy YouTube Channel

On September 17, 2020, Donaldson created the YouTube channel Beast Philanthropy, a charity and food bank, with Darren Margolias as executive director. It donates 100% of its revenue to charity.

October 2020: Influencer Trivia Tournament

In October 2020, Donaldson hosted an influencer trivia tournament featuring 24 competitors with a grand prize of $300,000. The winners, Charli and Dixie D'Amelio, faced cheating claims.

November 2020: MrBeast Burger Announcement

In November 2020, Will Hyde announced that Donaldson would launch a virtual restaurant called MrBeast Burger in December 2020. Franchise rights to serve the burgers would be sold to restaurants across the U.S., with orders via online delivery services.

December 2020: Finger on the App 2 Planned Launch and MrBeast Burger Launch Announcement

In December 2020, a sequel to the mobile game, "Finger on the App 2" was planned to launch. Will Hyde also announced that Donaldson would launch a virtual restaurant called MrBeast Burger, selling franchise rights to serve burgers to restaurants across the U.S. with orders via online delivery services.

2020: Departure of Jake Franklin from the Crew

In 2020, Jake Franklin left MrBeast's crew, and Karl Jacobs, previously a cameraman, was promoted to replace him.

January 1, 2021: "Youtube Rewind 2020, Thank God It's Over" Release

On January 1, 2021, Donaldson released the "Youtube Rewind 2020, Thank God It's Over" video, explaining his belief that YouTubers should have more say in Rewind and citing PewDiePie's 2018 Rewind as inspiration. He signed a Facebook and Snapchat content distribution deal with Jellysmack a month later.

February 2021: Insider Poll Shows Favorable View of MrBeast

A February 2021 poll from Insider showed that 70% of respondents had a favorable view of MrBeast, compared to 12% who had an unfavorable view. His channel appeals strongly to younger viewers.

March 2021: Delayed Launch of Finger on the App 2

Due to a flood of downloads causing crashes, the mobile game "Finger on the App 2" was further delayed in March 2021. The game featured a grand prize of $100,000, and the winner kept their finger on the screen for around 51 hours.

March 2021: Introduction of Juice Funds

In March 2021, Donaldson partnered with the Creative Juice financial network to introduce Juice Funds, a $2 million investment fund for content creators.

April 2021: Investment in Current and Cryptocurrency Scheme Backlash

In April 2021, Donaldson became a long-term investor and partner of financial technology company Current. The same month, Donaldson received backlash after fans lost significant amounts of money in a cryptocurrency scheme that Donaldson had invested in and promoted.

October 29, 2021: Announcement of #TeamSeas Fundraising Challenge

On October 29, 2021, Donaldson and Rober organized the #TeamSeas challenge on YouTube, aiming to raise $30 million by January 1, 2022, for the Ocean Conservancy and The Ocean Cleanup.

November 2021: "$456,000 Squid Game in Real Life!" Upload

In November 2021, Donaldson uploaded "$456,000 Squid Game in Real Life!", a recreation of the Squid Game series, where 456 people competed for a $456,000 cash prize. It gained over 130 million views within a week. Vice criticized its misunderstanding of Squid Game's message.

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December 2021: Influencer Tournament

In December 2021, Donaldson created a third influencer tournament featuring 15 competitors with a grand prize of $1 million.

January 1, 2022: #TeamSeas Fundraising Goal Deadline

The goal for the #TeamSeas project was to raise $30 million for the Ocean Conservancy and The Ocean Cleanup by January 1, 2022.

January 2022: Launch of Feastables and MrBeast Bar

In January 2022, Donaldson announced the creation of Feastables, launching with MrBeast Bar in original, almond, and quinoa crunch flavors. The launch included a sweepstakes with over $1 million in prizes.

January 2022: YouTube's Highest-Earning Creator

In January 2022, Forbes ranked Donaldson as YouTube's highest-earning creator, earning an estimated $54 million in 2021. Forbes stated that his income in 2021 would have placed him 40th in the 2020 Forbes Celebrity 100, earning as much money as Vin Diesel and Lewis Hamilton did in 2020.

June 2022: Release of Chocolate Factory Video

In June 2022, a video emulating "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" was released, featuring elimination challenges where the winner chose between a chocolate factory or $500,000. Gordon Ramsay was a judge in the final challenge.

July 28, 2022: Surpassed 100 Million Subscribers

On July 28, 2022, Donaldson surpassed 100 million subscribers on his main channel, making him the fifth channel and the second individual YouTuber to achieve this milestone.

September 4, 2022: Opening of the First Physical MrBeast Burger Restaurant

On September 4, 2022, the first physical MrBeast Burger restaurant opened in the American Dream Mall in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

November 2022: One Billion Video Views in 30 Days

In November 2022, Donaldson achieved one billion video views over 30 days on his main YouTube channel.

November 2022: Partnership with East Carolina University

In November 2022, Donaldson partnered with East Carolina University to create a course centered around YouTube content creation.

November 17, 2022: Guinness World Record

On November 17, 2022, Donaldson achieved the Guinness World Record for "Most Subscribers for an Individual Male on YouTube" with 112 million subscribers on his MrBeast channel.

December 2022: Deadline for Planting Trees for #TeamTrees

The deadline for planting the trees funded by the #TeamTrees fundraising campaign was set for December 2022.

2022: Video Production Costs

In 2022, it was reported that Donaldson spends about $1 million on each video, funded mainly by sponsorships and Google's AdSense program. He uses his reaction and gaming channels to help finance his main channel.

March 3, 2023: Feastables Promotion Controversy

On March 3, 2023, Donaldson asked fans on Twitter to improve the presentation of Feastables displays in stores, suggesting they obscure competing products, and offered a $5,000 raffle for proof of assistance, which led to criticism and accusations of exploiting fans for unpaid labor.

May 2023: Guest Judge on Gordon Ramsay's Food Stars

In May 2023, Donaldson was featured as a guest judge on Gordon Ramsay's Food Stars show.

October 2, 2023: Feastables Partnership with Charlotte Hornets

On October 2, 2023, Feastables partnered with the Charlotte Hornets to include MrBeast's insignia on their jerseys for the 2023–24 NBA season, though the partnership has since ended.

October 15, 2023: Surpassed 200 Million Subscribers

On October 15, 2023, Donaldson surpassed 200 million subscribers on his YouTube channel.

2023: Employee Count

As of 2023, Donaldson employs over 250 people, including writers, editors, and producers, many of whom are friends and family members.

2023: Launch of Mr. Beast Streaming Channel

In 2023, a free ad-supported streaming television channel named Mr. Beast that shows only previously released MrBeast YouTube videos began airing on the Roku Channel service.

February 2024: Feastables Rebranding

In February 2024, Feastables rebranded their chocolates, introducing a new shape and formula.

March 2024: Announcement of Beast Games Reality Competition Series

In March 2024, Donaldson and Amazon MGM Studios announced their plans to create a new reality competition series Beast Games, set to air exclusively on Prime Video. It was set to become the biggest reality competition series, with 1,000 contestants competing for a $5 million cash prize—the biggest single prize in the history of television and streaming.

June 2, 2024: Most Subscribed Channel on YouTube

On June 2, 2024, Donaldson surpassed T-Series to become the most subscribed channel on YouTube, with 267 million subscribers.

July 10, 2024: First YouTuber to Surpass 300 Million Subscribers

On July 10, 2024, Donaldson became the first YouTuber to surpass 300 million subscribers.

July 13, 2024: "50 YouTubers Fight for $1,000,000" Upload

On July 13, 2024, Donaldson uploaded his 300 million subscribers special, "50 YouTubers Fight for $1,000,000", featuring guest appearances from Howie Mandel, Miranda Cosgrove, and Joey Chestnut. It reached 71 million views in the first 24 hours.

September 2024: Announcement of Lunchly Snack Kits

In September 2024, Donaldson announced the Lunchly brand of snack kits, marketed as a healthier alternative to Lunchables, in a joint venture with YouTubers Olajide "KSI" Olatunji and Logan Paul.

December 19, 2024: Release of Beast Games on Amazon Prime Video

On December 19, 2024, Donaldson released Beast Games on Amazon Prime Video. The television show broke numerous Guinness World Records.

2024: Highest-Paid YouTube Creator

In 2024, MrBeast ranked first on the Forbes list for the highest-paid YouTube creator.

April 25, 2025: Influencer Basketball Game

On April 25, 2025, Donaldson and Fede Vigevani hosted an influencer basketball game featuring a team of Spanish-speaking creators and a team of English-speaking creators. Neymar, Stephen Curry, and Serena Williams, made guest appearances in the video Beat Neymar, Win $500,000.

May 2025: "Would You Fly to Paris for a Baguette?" Most Watched Video

As of May 2025, MrBeast's YouTube Shorts video "Would You Fly to Paris for a Baguette?" is the most-watched video on his main YouTube channel, with over 1.5 billion views and 56 million likes.

May 2025: MrBeast Faces Legal Threats in Mexico Over Chichén Itzá Video

In May 2025, Mexican authorities threatened legal action against MrBeast for his video "I Explored 2,000 Year Old Ancient Temples," which showed him violating rules at the Chichén Itzá ruins by climbing and entering temples at night. MrBeast initially claimed to have had permits and followed guidelines, but Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum called for an investigation into the permit conditions.

June 1, 2025: First YouTuber to Surpass 400 Million Subscribers

On June 1, 2025, Donaldson became the first YouTuber to surpass 400 million subscribers.

June 2025: MrBeast Announces AI Thumbnail Generator

In June 2025, MrBeast, with the help of Viewstats, introduced a new AI-powered thumbnail generator that swaps faces and styles with popular videos' thumbnails. The tool allows users to use other YouTubers' thumbnails without their consent to generate new thumbnails, and suggests channels to plagiarize content from.

August 1, 2025: Announcement of #TeamWater Fundraising Challenge

On August 1, 2025, Donaldson and Rober organized the #TeamWater challenge on YouTube, aiming to raise $40 million for WaterAid by the end of August 2025.