I’ll be real, when I check my analytics, the videos with fewer views but higher average watch time actually get recommended more often than the ones with “viral” clickbait views. That kinda makes me think watch time is the real king in 2025.
What I’ve Noticed on My Channel
- One of my videos got 1,200 views but average watch duration was only 40 seconds (video was 6 mins). It flopped hard after the first day.
- Another video got just 300 views but people watched at least 3 minutes on average. That one slowly started showing up in Suggested and is now at 2,000 views.
What Big Creators Say
MrBeast, Ali Abdaal, and even some TubeBuddy guys keep saying watch time is the “currency” of YouTube. Views look nice on the surface, but if people don’t stick around, the algo doesn’t reward you. And honestly… my own small experiments match that.
Why Watch Time Feels Like a Trap
Here’s the problem though: improving watch time is HARD. Views? Easy as you make a catchy thumbnail and clickbait title to get more views. But getting people to stay for 5–10 minutes straight? That’s a whole different skill.
It feels like storytelling, pacing, and editing matter way more now than keyword stuffing. Like, you can optimize all you want, but if people drop after 20 seconds, YouTube will bury the video.
What About Shorts?
This is another thing I’ve been wondering. For Shorts, views are insane (you can hit thousands overnight). But watch time is super short by nature. Does YouTube measure Shorts differently? Some say yes but they use “completion rate” instead of minutes watched.
That might explain why some Shorts blow up and others just flatline.
So… Which Is More Important?
If I had to choose, I’d say watch time beats views in 2025. Because views without watch time don’t seem to go anywhere. But decent watch time, even with fewer views, can snowball into YouTube pushing you into Suggested.
Community Question
What do you guys think? Do you believe watch time is more important than views now? Have you had a video with tons of views flop because people didn’t stay, or one with small views grow just because people actually watched it?