The DeRev 2026 Report photographs a 10.4% growth in the Italian creator economy, but the salaries of stars drop to 18.8%. Mid-tier and macro-influencers are exploding. Instagram remains the economic engine of the sector, TikTok stabilizes, YouTube pays more for long-form content.
Having more followers no longer automatically means earning more. The influencer market is growing, but it’s changing its skin and celebrity fees are decreasing. The DeRev 2026 Report is clear: turnover in Italy will reach high levels 425 million euros, an increase of 10.4% compared to 385 million the previous year: the largest jump since 2023, almost triple that recorded in 2025. It gets up to 35 thousand euros for a post on Instagram and up to 58 thousand euros for a video on YouTube. But hierarchies are changing: less star worship, more attention to numbers, data and return on investment. And the first to pay the price are the celebrities who, until a few years ago, dictated the law on price lists.
Influencers: the economic decline of celebrities
For the third consecutive yearthe salaries of star profiles, with the largest communities are decreasing on all monitored platforms: -18.8% on Facebook, -9.5% on Instagram, -8.6% on TikTok and -2.4% on YouTube. It is confirmation that brands are no longer willing to pay huge sums to reach large and general communities, but want the investment to really translate into sales or concrete engagement. On Instagram the 63.2% of celebrities have lost followers over the last year and brands saw it before it even became apparent to the general public. In other words: notoriety alone is no longer enough. Indeed, in some cases it can turn into a reputational risk that brands are no longer willing to take, see the Ferragni case.
Mid-tier and macro-influencers: the new kings of the influencer market
Taking up more and more space are the mid-tier (between 50 thousand and 300 thousand followers) ei macro-influencers (up to one million followers) the only two categories growing on all three major platforms. The mid-tiers grew by 9.2% on Instagram, 7.1% on TikTok and 2.9% on YouTube; the macros follow closely with +7.1%, +7.6% and +5%. Why? They are profiles with smaller but decidedly livelier communities. On Instagram the mid-tier interaction rate is 4.56%, almost three times that of celebrities, stuck at 1.61%. And while only 36.8% of stars have grown in followers in the last year, among the mid-tier the percentage rises to 76.7%. And for companies this is what matters: a smaller but truly involved audience is better than a huge but passive and difficult to activate community.
Influencers: Instagram remains the engine, YouTube the most profitable, TikTok stabilizes
The fees also change a lot depending on the platform. Instagram confirms itself as the beating heart of the creator economy: published content increases everywhere, up to +100.5% for micro-influencers, and average fees grow both on single posts (+2.45%) and on sets of stories (+3.8%). Here the prices for a post range from 100-300 euros for nano influencers up to 12,500-35 thousand euros for celebrities. YouTube however, the platform that pays the most for single content, if long, remains: a long video can be worth between 500 and 1,250 euros for a nano creator, up to 25-58 thousand euros for a celebrity. TikTokafter the double-digit drops of previous years, stabilizes at an average variation in compensation of -0.33%. The issue of transparency remains here: only 0.78% of the most interacted TikTok contents declare the presence of a sponsorship, a percentage very far from that of YouTube.
Influencer market: Fashion & Beauty remains the leading sector, but finance is also growing
As far as the sectors are concerned, leadership remains in the hands of Fashion & Beautywith the 27% of the total, up by one percentage point compared to 2025. Followed by Food & Beverage (stable at 18%) and Gaming & Tech And Travel & Lifestyle (both at 13.5%). It grows too Sports and free timewhich went from 8 to 9%. But the most interesting fact is the emergence of a niche sector: the Business & Financewhich rises from 2.5% to 3%. We are talking about small numbers, but it is a field where there are very few creators and the reputational risk is very high. So those who want Business & Finance influencers pay a high price.
Influencers: a bigger market, but one that is changing
The sector therefore continues to grow, but is professionalising. Brands are looking for credible and measurable interlocutors, no longer simply the most famous face. Notoriety alone is not enough: without real trust and active communities, it can actually become an obstacle. For Italian creators the message is clear: large numbers matter less, and more and more the quality of the relationship with those who truly follow.
