"Earning a Lot, 35 Million Won a Month"…'Mukbang YouTuber' Hibab Reveals Income

"High Volatility... Sometimes Negative Even After Paying Taxes"

Popular YouTuber 'Hibap (Jwa Hee-jae, 28)', who has 1.64 million subscribers, is drawing attention as his monthly income was revealed. Hibap is a YouTuber specializing in so-called 'mukbang (eating broadcast)' content and has gained public recognition by appearing on various entertainment programs.

On the 5th, Hibap appeared on 'Saturday Bap Gives' released on the Tcast X Channel YouTube 'E Bap Se-kki'. On that day, Hibap dined with a couple who had been dating for 9 days and said, "I brought a meal promise as a hidden card. How much does a YouTuber with 1.6 million subscribers actually earn? I will reveal my monthly salary."

After the meal, Hibap disclosed his monthly income as promised. He said he earned 35 million KRW last month (September). However, he added, "My monthly income fluctuates quite a bit. Sometimes after taxes, it can be negative. But last month, I earned a bit more than usual."

YouTuber Hibap Photo by YouTube broadcast capture

Also, Hibap does not keep all the income for himself. When asked, "How much do you spend on food each month?" he replied, "Including the cost of producing (YouTube) content, it costs about 15 million KRW."

Hibap is a famous YouTuber who ranked 4th in a survey on 'Koreans' favorite YouTubers.' Netizens who learned about his monthly income commented, "If Hibap earns 35 million KRW a month, how much do YouTubers with more subscribers make?"

Meanwhile, income from YouTube content in South Korea is rapidly increasing. According to data submitted by the National Tax Service to Assemblyman Cha Gyu-geun of the Innovation Party, as of 2022, there were 1,324 individual media creators such as YouTubers and BJs under the age of 20 who reported income exceeding 100 million KRW. This is 2.5 times higher than in 2020 (528 people).

The total number of people in South Korea reporting income exceeding 100 million KRW was 39,366, with individual media creators accounting for about 7%. By age group, those under 20 were overwhelmingly the majority, followed by those in their 30s and above (1,071), 40s and above (273), and 50s and above (113).