Only 3.9% of US creators work full-time, report finds

While 39 million creators contribute to the US economy, just 3.9% work full-time, according to a report by the American Influencer Council.

The trade body said the figure, which accounts for around 1.5 million full-time creators, highlights a widening gap between the scale of the creator economy and its ability to support sustainable careers.

An estimated 27 million Americans earn income from content creation, but most do not rely on it as a primary source of income.

Unveiling its latest International Creator Day Trend report, the AIC argued that labour policy has failed to keep pace with the growth of the creator economy, pointing to gaps around pay, contracts and platform dependency.

"Career creators are building full-time businesses on platforms they don't own," said Qianna Smith Bruneteau, founder and executive director of the AIC.

The body added that creators rely on platforms such as YouTube, TikTok and Instagram for distribution and monetisation, but are not recognised as employees. This dynamic, it said, leaves them exposed to shifting algorithms and inconsistent earnings.

The findings come as the AIC launched an Academic Advisory Circle, a network of university researchers brought in to inform its research on creator labour policy. This year's edition of the report is the first to include input from the group.

"Building an audience on rented land means the landlord sets the terms," said Jenna Drenten, a marketing professor at Loyola University Chicago, who contributed to the report.

As the creator economy matures, the report predicted growing pressure for clearer standards and formal recognition of creators as a distinct professional class.

"The question is not whether formalisation is coming, but whether it will serve all creators or only the most visible ones," said Wangari Njathi, a marketing professor at Pepperdine University.