Choose live encoder settings, bitrates, and resolutions

It's important to make sure your live stream is high quality. Make sure you choose a quality that will result in a reliable stream based on your internet connection. We recommend running a speed test to test your upload bitrate.

If you're streaming in the Live Control Room, you only have to specify your resolution, frame rate, and bitrate in your encoder. YouTube will automatically detect which encoder settings you chose.

YouTube will automatically transcode your live stream to create many different output formats so that all of your viewers across many devices and networks can watch.

Make sure to test before you start your live stream. Tests should include audio and movement in the video similar to what you'll be doing in the stream. During the event, monitor the stream health and review messages.

Note: For 4K / 2160, the option to improve for low latency is not available. All streams will be optimized for quality and set to normal latency.

Encoder Live Streaming: Basics on How to Set Up & Use an Encoder

Subscribe to the YouTube Creators channel for the latest news, updates, and tips.

Stream resolution detection with custom stream keys in Live Control Room

By default (recommended), YouTube will automatically detect your resolution and frame rate. If you want to manually select a resolution, create a custom key and choose “Turn on manual settings" under “Stream Resolution."

Recommended bitrate setting ranges are based on video ingestion resolution and frame rate. These recommendations are the same for AV1 and HEVC.  

Ingestion Resolution / Frame Rate	Minimum Bitrate setting (Mbps)	Maximum Bitrate setting (Mbps)
4K / 2160p @60fps	10 Mbps	40 Mbps
4K / 2160p @30fps	8 Mbps	35 Mbps
1440p @60fps	6 Mbps	30 Mbps
1440p @30fps	5 Mbps	25 Mbps
1080p @60fps	4 Mbps	10 Mbps
1080p @30fps	3 Mbps	8 Mbps
720p @60fps	3 Mbps	8 Mbps
240p - 720p @30fps	3 Mbps	8 Mbps

Encoder settings

Protocol:	RTMP/RTMPS Streaming
Video codec:	H.264
	H.265 (HEVC)
	AV1
Frame rate:	up to 60 fps
Keyframe frequency:	Recommended 2 seconds Do not exceed 4 seconds
Audio codec:	AAC or MP3 (5.1 surround sound audio is only supported for AAC in RTMP)
Bitrate encoding:	CBR

Recommended advanced settings

Pixel aspect ratio:	Square
Frame types:	Progressive Scan, 2 B-Frames, 1 Reference Frame
Entropy coding:	CABAC
Audio sample rate:	44.1 KHz for stereo audio, 48 KHz for 5.1 surround sound
Audio bitrate:	128-Kbps for stereo or 384 Kbps for 5.1 surround sound
Color space:	Rec. 709 for SDR

Stream HDR or use codecs not supported by RTMP by using HLS (HTTP Live Streaming) ingestion protocol on YouTube Live. Learn more.

You can stream to YouTube Live with RTMPS, a secure extension to the popular RTMP streaming video protocol. Your data will be encrypted all the way into and through Google's servers, so nobody can intercept your communication with the service. Learn more.

HTML5 streaming: Many browsers support HTML5 and either the H.264 video codec or WebM format.

Live streams are automatically available on game consoles and mobile devices via the YouTube app and m.youtube.com.

Looking for the 360 live streaming spec? Check here.