Overview
- Billboard and YouTube announced on Monday that YouTube will resume sharing streaming data for charts beginning with the Jan. 16, 2027 chart, which measures activity from Jan. 1–7, 2027.
- The key technical change reduces the conversion gap used to compute album-equivalent units so that 1,000 paid/subscription streams now equal 1,500 ad-supported streams instead of the prior 2,500 ratio.
- This change means plays on free, ad-supported YouTube content such as music videos and live performances will count more toward the Hot 100 and Billboard 200 than under the old formula.
- Artists who rely on large YouTube audiences—including many independent and internationally popular acts—are likely to see improved chart outcomes because previously excluded or down-weighted free streams will now register more strongly.
- The move restores a major data source to Billboard after YouTube withdrew in December 2025 over weighting concerns and follows earlier chart updates that began including YouTube in 2013 and the Billboard 200 in 2019.