Hitting 100K views on YouTube is like packing a stadium. As of 2025, over 2.6 million videos are uploaded to the platform each day, meaning that as a YouTuber, you have a lot of competition as your videos will be running against millions more.
Standing out on YouTube requires more than just good content. Over 60% of YouTube watch time comes from Personalized Recommendations. In other words, the algorithm drives most views by suggesting videos tailored to specific viewers.
Reaching 100K views requires a blend of strategies like optimizing video titles and descriptions, leveraging YouTube SEO, creating shareable content, and posting consistently. Collaborating with other content creators or using trends effectively can also play a major role in accelerating your growth.
In this article we’ll explore the key strategies to do in order to build your audience and increase your channel’s engagement. We’ll break down actionable tips to grow your reach and scale your YouTube presence to hit that 100K mark!
If you want to grow your presence on YouTube, views are the way to do it. Every view you get tells YouTube that someone is watching, that your content is so intriguing and appealing that viewers click on your video, stop scrolling and stay to watch your content.
Before jumping into hacks or growth strategies, it’s important to understand YouTube’s algorithm and what actually drives views on the platform. In order to keep users watching for as long as possible, the algorithm rewards videos that:
The YouTube algorithm works to keep viewers watching. The more time they spend on the platform, the better. When your video gathers views quickly after being published, it sends a powerful signal that the content resonates with audiences.
The more people click and watch, the more YouTube recommends. The first hours of your video are crucial to get as many views as you can to gain traction.
Here’s how YouTube recommends videos based on engagement:
The smaller the time frame those views come in, the higher the algorithm ranks the video. It's a ranking, and you're competing against every single video on YouTube.
Views and watch time are not the only things that matter to the algorithm. Impressions such as likes, comments and shares are also telling the algorithm there’s value in what you share on the platform.
YouTube’s algorithm not only focuses on how many people are watching but also how much time they are spending watching you.
A combination of a high number of views and strong watch time can really boost your channel’s growth. They can also be the key to open the door or monetization by allowing you to join the YouTube Partner Program.
You can learn more about ways to make money on YouTube in our article How Do YouTubers Make Money!
Reaching 100K views it’s not gonna happen overnight. You probably already hit other milestones like reaching 10K views, 50K views before and now you are not only focusing on singular videos but you are building a system, solidifying your whole channel.
Look at your best performing videos, those that hold between 5K or over 10K views. Study everything about them: style, tone, graphics, pacing, subject, length and even your posting time.
Use the experience you have, your old videos as data to guide your content strategy. Explore your YouTube Analytics and try to understand what is working best for you and your audience. Always keep an eye on:
Follow your own content that has proven successful and make it your reference for upcoming video ideas.
To get to 100K views you really need to stand out from the crowd. You need to truly provide your audience with valuable content.
In order to do that, you must:
Instead of making independent videos, try to connect them in some kind of a series so viewers would want to watch them altogether. This not only boosts your views but also session time on the platform, which the algorithm loves.
You can create different playlists to gather your related videos to make it easier for people to find your videos. Here are some ideas you can include in an episode kind of way:
Promote your videos in any other account you own and with other YouTubers or influencers. . People who truly enjoy your content would support you across platforms.
In order to achieve high milestones, you must think of each video as a complete experience. From first impressions to after tastes, in YouTube words: from thumbnail to replay value.
Craft appealing thumbnails for your videos to make them stand out from the rest. Keep in mind that 90% of the best performing videos have custom thumbnails. To make yours stand out you can:
Think of your videos as long term. Yes, it's true that some of them can be watched once and that’s it. But there are some other videos worth saving, replaying, and sharing with more people.
Craft rewatchable content by:
Take every chance you have to interact with your viewers and build a loyal community. Liking and replying to comments creates a sense of community and closeness that will help you gain views.
When viewers feel connected and loyal to your content, they’ll naturally watch your videos and keep coming back for more. You can create direct CTAs (Call To Action) to directly ask questions to your viewers:
In order to further include your viewers and getting closer to 100K views you can also:
YouTube works as any other search engine. YouTube SEO helps your videos appear in search results and suggested feeds. Use keyword research tools like Google Trends to identify what your target audience is actively searching for. Include these keywords in your video titles, descriptions, tags, and even spoken content (captions).
Take time to search for different topics and see what is made about them. Discover what kind of topics your audience is searching for, and few creators are covering, and make content about those particular subjects.
You can use different tools, like Google Trends, to spot rising content gaps you can use to stand out. By identifying these “hidden gems” opportunities you can create videos with a higher chance of ranking, gaining traction and reaching new viewers organically.
Don’t base all your content on just one type of format. Explore different types and repurpose your long videos into short and engaging clips to reach more audiences on different platforms.
You can edit specific parts of your videos and create short versions to post on Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts and TikTok. Formats like behind the scenes, highlights or good tips are perfect for discovery and can drive traffic back to your main channel.
You can use tools like CapCut to quickly create scroll-stopping clips. This strategy not only saves you time but helps you stay consistent while tapping into multiple audiences.
YouTube Shorts have more chances of going viral and collecting thousands of views, giving your channel massive exposure. Shorts can even outperform longer videos in view count. That’s why you should figure out how long a video should be and master the ideal length.
Here’s how you can add Shorts you your strategy to reach those 100K views:
Your viewers can watch shorts related to longer videos of your own and then decide to go watch a longer video on that topic. Shorts can be a great way to promote long-form videos. You can learn the perfect recipe for shorts success on our article How To Make YouTube Shorts Viral!
Enrico has a YouTube channel where he creates content around social media and content strategy. In 2017 he managed to surpass 100K views by growing his channel through YouTube Shorts.
The first 24 hours his Short got 0 views. But later on the video got from 10 to 20 daily views until December 21st when everything changed as he got around 1,500 daily views until he reached over 100,000 views.
How did he do it? The key is understanding your audience deeply: their needs, interests and the content gaps no one else is talking about. Enrico noticed hardly anyone on YouTube was talking about caption fonts, a niche topic he saw real interest in. This insight gave him an opportunity to create unique content that stood out.
His success, in his words, can be summarized in:
There is no straight answer to how much time it will get to hit 100K views on YouTube. Every creator has its journey in which multiple things impact the time it gets for your channel to grow:
Don’t obsess over when you are going to hit 100K views. Instead, focus on why your best performing content works and how you can replicate that success in upcoming videos. The real goal on YouTube is to build a channel that keeps growing!
Struggling to get views is really common on YouTube. If you are struggling, don’t panic! Your audience will come along you just need to work on improving some key things:
The views you are getting tell you something. So take a look at your content, try to find what it is that makes it work and try to keep creating videos with a similar style, topic or in the same niche.
Some videos can take off in a few days and some others take weeks or even months to get views. If you are seeking to get 100,000 views on YouTube, you must master consistency, learn to keep breathing based on your data and improve a little bit with every upload.
Behind every 100K views videos is a YouTuber who:
Every YouTuber is worried about views. The more people watching your videos, the more proof of your value as a creator, along with several monetization opportunities down the road.
Hitting 100K Views is totally achievable, however it takes a smart strategy, content that truly resonates with your audience and the consistency to keep working on getting better video after video.