India’s creator economy influences $400 bn in consumer spend; set to drive $1 tn by 2030: BCG

India’s booming creator economy is moving from the margins to the mainstream with 2–2.5 million monetized creators already influencing over $350–400 billion in annual consumer spend and poised to drive $1 trillion+ in consumption by 2030, according to a new report by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) titled "From Content to Commerce: Mapping India’s Creator Economy."

The report which was launched at WAVES 2025 reveals that as digital infrastructure deepens and short-form video becomes a cultural norm, creators are evolving from entertainers to key nodes in the marketing-to-commerce funnel. “This shift is not just redefining how brands engage audiences, but also unlocking $100–125 billion in ecosystem revenues in the coming five years,” the report notes.

Beyond Gen Z

What began as a Gen Z phenomenon in metro cities is now a pan-India movement, with creator influence penetrating across age groups, genders, and city tiers. In Tier 2 and Tier 3 towns, over 60% of consumers report being influenced by creator content in their purchase decisions. This includes key verticals like fashion, entertainment, beauty, and personal care where over 70% of consumers have been exposed to creator content, with roughly 1 in 5 purchases being influenced directly by it.

“User time share is shifting toward creator-driven platforms,” the report adds, with short-form video content seeing the highest traction across comedy, fashion, and entertainment genres.

Brand Budgets are Shifting But ROI Concerns Remain

70% of brands surveyed plan to increase creator budgets by 1.5–3x over the next 2–3 years, with current spending on influencer marketing ranging between 10–20% of their total marketing budgets. Top objectives include boosting consideration (70%), awareness (40%), and even D2C conversions (28%).

However, scaling creator partnerships is still challenged by concerns around fake followers (74%), uncertain ROI (40%), and brand risk (38%). This has led to a shift in brand strategy away from sheer follower count to audience-content fit, engagement levels, and trust.

Most Creators Still Struggle to Monetize

Despite India’s vast creator base, only 8–10% of creators monetize effectively. A large portion of India’s creators mostly nano and micro influencers earn less than INR 18,000 per month, compared to creators in more mature markets like the US and Brazil, which have higher monetisation rates due to stronger per capita content consumption and paying user bases.

To unlock further growth, BCG classifies creators into archetypes like Trust Ambassadors, Niche Creators, Disseminators, and Trend Setters, each playing different roles in influencing consumer behavior across the funnel.

New Revenue Streams

As India’s digital economy matures, the next wave of monetisation will come from non-brand funded streams. The report highlights three key under-tapped models:

Virtual gifting, already gaining ground in Tier 2 and 3 regions

Subscription models, currently under-indexed due to India’s price sensitivity

Live commerce, with early experiments by Flipkart, Amazon Live, and Myntra M-Live showing promise

BCG notes that 90% of creator revenues today are still brand-funded (ads, sponsorships), but predicts this will shift significantly as creators tap commerce-led and community-led models.

What’s Next

The report identifies generative AI as a powerful accelerator of content production and campaign scalability, allowing creators and brands to iterate faster and personalize more deeply. But alongside tech and scale, authenticity remains the north star.

To keep up, brands are advised to rethink content cycles, embrace co-created formats, and build internal teams with deep ecosystem understanding especially in navigating ROI, regulation, and real-time engagement.

With over 1.3 billion internet users by 2030 and creator influence spreading across consumer segments, the stage is set for a new marketing paradigm.