YouTube Streaming Data to Return to Billboard Charts in 2027 After January Withdrawal, YouTube Confirms
YouTube updated its official blog on November 9 to announce: 'We are returning to the Billboard charts starting in 2027. Billboard's new methodology better reflects how fans engage with music today across both subscription and ad-supported services.' Billboard also alerted subscribers to the news the same day.
The break began in December 2025, when YouTube said Billboard used an outdated formula that weighted subscription-supported streams higher than ad-supported ones, undervaluing the engagement of fans without a subscription. Streaming makes up 84% of U.S. recorded music revenue, YouTube noted, and it asked that every stream be counted fairly and equally, whether subscription-based or ad-supported.
After a decade-long partnership and extensive discussions, YouTube stopped delivering its data to Billboard after January 16, 2026, and its data was no longer factored into the charts.
Under the November 9 update, YouTube data will again factor into the U.S. Billboard charts starting in 2027. YouTube did not publish the weighting details of the new methodology in the update.
(Source: YouTube)
Source: YouTube
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：位于加州 San Bruno 的 YouTube 总部（资料图）。BrokenSphere 摄，CC BY 3.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: YouTube headquarters in San Bruno, California (file photo). Photo by BrokenSphere, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
