Set your channel guidelines

We’re testing channel guidelines with a small group of creators right now. After testing, we’ll consider expanding to more creators in the future based on feedback.

Note: Guidelines can not be viewed on Desktop.

Channel guidelines communicate the types of conversations you want to have on your channel. Viewers will find your channel guidelines before leaving a comment on your video or during your live chat. To get started: Sign in to YouTube Studio. From the left menu, click Settings. Select Community Channel guidelines. Enter a welcome message and your first channel guideline. You can add up to 3. Click  ADD GUIDELINE to add up to two more guidelines. Click SAVE. Your custom guidelines won’t cause comments or live chat messages to be automatically hidden or removed. They’ll instead help you set expectations for comments that may get held by you or your channel moderators. While YouTube won’t automatically enforce any of your custom guidelines, we will continue to automatically enforce our Community Guidelines.

Learn more about channel guidelines

What should I say in my welcome message and channel guidelines?

First-time viewers might not be familiar with your channel when they comment on your videos or participate in live chats. Write a welcome message that greets your audience and encourages them to follow your guidelines. For example, you could write: “Welcome to my channel! Please follow my channel guidelines when you join the conversation.”

Your guidelines tell viewers how to communicate on your channel. Write guidelines that promote the kinds of conversation you want to have on your channel. Some examples of good rules include:

• Be civil and respectful
• Stick to the topic
• Questions welcome
• No self-promotion or spam
• Challenge the argument, not the person