AdSense RPM dropped 40% overnight – is it just me or a platform-wide issue?

I feel your pain! I run a gaming channel and saw the exact same thing – RPM dropped from $7.50 to $4.80 on Monday. It's almost certainly a seasonal ad spend adjustment. Q1 is historically the slowest for advertisers, and many brands pull back after the holiday rush. I've seen this happen every January for the past 4 years. It usually recovers by mid-February. Keep an eye on your CPM vs. RPM – if CPM is also down, it's not just your channel. Also, check if your ad formats changed (e.g., more skippable vs. non-skippable). Sometimes YouTube shifts ad types without notice.

Adding to what editormaster14 said – I’ve noticed a similar trend on my finance channel. But there’s another angle: YouTube changed how they calculate 'AdSense for YouTube' revenue for some creators in the last update. Specifically, they now factor in 'impressions-based' revenue for Shorts, which can dilute your overall RPM if you post Shorts. If you’ve been uploading Shorts recently, that could explain part of the drop. Also, check your 'Ad type' report in AdSense – if 'Bumper ads' are showing more often, they pay less. I’d recommend diversifying revenue with affiliate links or sponsorships to buffer against these fluctuations.

I’m in the tech niche too, and my RPM dropped from $9.10 to $5.80 this week. It’s not just you – I’ve seen multiple threads on this. I dug into my analytics and found that the drop correlated with a 15% increase in 'unknown' ad impressions (likely from new ad formats or programmatic changes). Also, check your 'geographic' breakdown – if a sudden spike of traffic from low-CPM countries (like India or Indonesia) came in, that would tank your RPM even if your overall views are flat. Use the 'Geography' report in YouTube Studio to verify.

Thanks everyone for the detailed insights! I checked my analytics after reading your comments – turns out my Shorts impressions did increase by 20% last week, and I had a slight uptick in traffic from India. That explains the RPM drop. I’ll keep an eye on it and maybe adjust my content strategy to focus more on long-form. Appreciate the help – it’s reassuring to know it’s not just me. Problem solved!