ViewStats

ViewStats is a web based analytics platform for YouTube channels launched in December 2023 by content creators Jimmy Donaldson and Chucky Appleby.^[1] The service adapts performance tracking tactics used on Donaldson's MrBeast channels for wider use by video makers, and TechCrunch described the public beta as a creator facing alternative to YouTube audience trackers that surfaces channel level data through the platform's API.^[2]

ViewStats

Type of site	Analytics platform
Available in	English
Owner	ViewStats, Inc. Beast Industries
Created by	Chucky Appleby Jimmy Donaldson
URL	viewstats.com
Commercial	Yes
Registration	Required
Launched	December 2023
Current status	Active

History

Appleby began developing ViewStats after relocating to Greenville, North Carolina in 2019 to join Donaldson's growing production team.^[1] The pair held regular analytical sessions to refine thumbnails and story ideas, and their internal dashboards evolved into a public platform intended to provide those datasets to other creators.^[1] ViewStats launched publicly in December 2023 with Appleby as chief executive officer operating the business as an independent company funded by its two co-founders.^[1][2] In May 2024 the company introduced a paid tier named ViewStats Pro that added premium products on top of the free site.^[3]

Features

ViewStats brings together a wide range of YouTube metrics that help creators understand their channel's performance. These include basic stats like views and subscriber counts, as well as more advanced "channelytics" that show estimated revenue, growth predictions, and which videos are performing best.^[4] Creators can easily test different thumbnails to see which works better, track how title changes affect performance, and see how their long-form videos compare to their Shorts.^[5][4]

When ViewStats Pro launched in 2024, it added new creator-friendly tools focused on coming up with video ideas, understanding what competitors are doing, and researching successful thumbnails, while keeping the original analytics features free.^[6][7]

Reception

Coverage from creator press and technology outlets presented the December 2023 launch as MrBeast opening his internal dashboards to the wider creator community.^[1][2] As the product matured reporters continued to cover it as a daily reference point for channel managers who wanted to check on performance before filming new videos.^[2]

The tone shifted in June 2025 when ViewStats Pro shipped a generative AI thumbnail tool. Photographers, designers, and creators told publications such as PetaPixel and Tubefilter that the generator felt like a shortcut that learned from their style and sidelined paid contractors.^[8][9] Donaldson responded within days and told users the feature would come down, a reversal that Newsweek and PC Gamer highlighted in follow up stories.^[10][11] BBC News later tied the response to a broader unease about AI inside the creator economy, noting that the ViewStats debate mirrored questions about who controls the look and feel of digital content.^[12]