YouTube Will No Longer Report Data to Billboard’s US Charts as of 2026
The issue revolves around the weighting of ad-supported vs subscription streams
YouTube has announced it will cease submitting its data to the US Billboard charts from January.
How we got here:
Billboard recently updated its chart rules, upgrading the weight it gives to ad-supported streams.
The previous ratio of subscription streams to ad-supported was 1:3, meaning one paid/subscription stream equaled three ad-supported streams.
That figure has now been amended to 1:2.5.
YouTube has long said the weight should be equal.
The fallout:
In a post on YouTube’s music blog, Global Head of Music Lyor Cohen said: “We believe every fan matters and every play should count equally, therefore after January 16, YouTube data will no longer be delivered or factored into the US Billboard charts.”
Cohen references Billboard’s “outdated formula” for weighting streams, which “ignores the massive engagement from fans who don’t have a subscription.”
He concludes: “We are committed to achieving equitable representation across the charts and hopefully can work with Billboard to return to theirs.”
The response:
In a statement, Billboard said it strives to measure fan support appropriately, “balanced by various factors including consumer access, revenue analysis, data validation and industry guidance.”
It hopes YouTube reconsiders its decision.
Worth noting:
YouTube will continue to submit its data to Luminate.
YouTube has announced it will cease submitting its data to the US Billboard charts from January.
How we got here:
Billboard recently updated its chart rules, upgrading the weight it gives to ad-supported streams.
The previous ratio of subscription streams to ad-supported was 1:3, meaning one paid/subscription stream equaled three ad-supported streams.
That figure has now been amended to 1:2.5.
YouTube has long said the weight should be equal.
The fallout:
In a post on YouTube’s music blog, Global Head of Music Lyor Cohen said: “We believe every fan matters and every play should count equally, therefore after January 16, YouTube data will no longer be delivered or factored into the US Billboard charts.”
Cohen references Billboard’s “outdated formula” for weighting streams, which “ignores the massive engagement from fans who don’t have a subscription.”
He concludes: “We are committed to achieving equitable representation across the charts and hopefully can work with Billboard to return to theirs.”
The response:
In a statement, Billboard said it strives to measure fan support appropriately, “balanced by various factors including consumer access, revenue analysis, data validation and industry guidance.”
It hopes YouTube reconsiders its decision.
Worth noting:
YouTube will continue to submit its data to Luminate.
YouTube has announced it will cease submitting its data to the US Billboard charts from January.
How we got here:
Billboard recently updated its chart rules, upgrading the weight it gives to ad-supported streams.
The previous ratio of subscription streams to ad-supported was 1:3, meaning one paid/subscription stream equaled three ad-supported streams.
That figure has now been amended to 1:2.5.
YouTube has long said the weight should be equal.
The fallout:
In a post on YouTube’s music blog, Global Head of Music Lyor Cohen said: “We believe every fan matters and every play should count equally, therefore after January 16, YouTube data will no longer be delivered or factored into the US Billboard charts.”
Cohen references Billboard’s “outdated formula” for weighting streams, which “ignores the massive engagement from fans who don’t have a subscription.”
He concludes: “We are committed to achieving equitable representation across the charts and hopefully can work with Billboard to return to theirs.”
The response:
In a statement, Billboard said it strives to measure fan support appropriately, “balanced by various factors including consumer access, revenue analysis, data validation and industry guidance.”
It hopes YouTube reconsiders its decision.
Worth noting:
YouTube will continue to submit its data to Luminate.
👋 Disclosures & Transparency Block
This story was written with information from Variety.
We covered it because it’s news pertaining to YouTube and Billboard’s charts.
📨 Subscribe to NIF
Get news dropped in your inbox 👇
📨 Subscribe to NIF
Get news dropped in your inbox 👇
Related Articles
Charts & Consumption Data
Jan 27, 2026
1 min read
Sonic Intelligence Academy Debuts World’s First AI Music Charts
They’re designed to track the performance and cultural impact of AI-generated music
Charts & Consumption Data
Jan 8, 2026
1 min read
ERA Reports £2bn Milestone for UK Music Streaming in 2025
Meanwhile, vinyl sales enjoyed a healthy 18% boost
Charts & Consumption Data
Jan 2, 2026
1 min read
UK Recorded Music Market Grew for 11th Consecutive Year in 2025
Key domestic breakthroughs included Olivia Dean and Lola Young
Sonic Intelligence Academy Debuts World’s First AI Music Charts
They’re designed to track the performance and cultural impact of AI-generated music
Rod Yates
Charts
Jan 27, 2026
ERA Reports £2bn Milestone for UK Music Streaming in 2025
Meanwhile, vinyl sales enjoyed a healthy 18% boost
Rod Yates
Charts
Jan 8, 2026
UK Recorded Music Market Grew for 11th Consecutive Year in 2025
Key domestic breakthroughs included Olivia Dean and Lola Young
Rod Yates
Charts
Jan 2, 2026
What We Learned from Anna’s Archive’s Spotify Scrape
A deeper dive into the metadata
Rod Yates
Charts
Dec 23, 2025
The Data Behind The 2026 GRAMMY Awards
An analysis of the industry and trends behind the GRAMMY nominees – Best New Artists are slightly newer. UMG dominate (again). Gender balance slips.
The NIF Team
Charts
Dec 16, 2025
The ROSTR Group Releases Its 2025 Stats Of The Year
Highlights include over 560K people using at least one of TRG’s products
The NIF Team
Charts
Dec 12, 2025
