Upload videos

You can upload videos to YouTube in a few easy steps. Use the instructions below to upload your videos from a computer or from a mobile device.

Upload videos in YouTube Studio

  1. Sign in to YouTube Studio.
  2. At the top right, select Upload  .
  3. Select Upload video (beta).
  4. Select the file you’d like to upload.

​If you close the upload experience before you finish choosing your settings, your video will be saved as a draft on your Videos page.

Step 1: Add basic info

Add important, required details to your video. If this info is missing, your upload will be saved as a draft on the Videos page.
Title The title of your video.
Description Info that shows below your video.
Thumbnail The image viewers will see before clicking your video.
Audience You’re required to tell us that your videos are made for kids if you make kids’ content.

Step 2: Choose advanced settings

Select Next to choose your advanced settings.
Note: Some features may not be available if your video is still processing. You can always upload your video as “Unlisted” and add these features after processing is complete. Learn how to change your video’s privacy setting after upload.
Playlists Add your video to one of your existing playlists, or create a new playlist.
End screen Leave the upload experience to add visual elements to the end of your video.
Cards Leave the upload experience to add interactive content to your video.
Subtitles and closed captions Upload subtitles and closed captions files.
Video language Choose the original video language.
Tags Add descriptive keywords to help correct search mistakes.
Category Select the category of your video, such as education or comedy. 
Video location Add the location where your video was filmed.
Recording date Enter the date the video was recorded.
License and rights ownership Choose between a standard copyright license or a Creative Commons license.
Comments and ratings Choose whether viewers can leave comments on the video. Choose whether viewers can see how many likes and dislikes are on your video.
Additional settings
  • Age restriction: Age-restrict videos that may not be appropriate for all audiences.
  • Embedding: Select if your video can be embedded on a different website.
  • Notifications: Indicate if you’d like to send notifications to your subscribers for your new video.
  • Paid promotion: Let viewers and YouTube know that your video has a paid promotion.

Step 3: Preview and publish

  1. Select the Preview & publish tab. 
  2. Select your video’s privacy setting. Unlisted is a good privacy option to use to make sure processing is completed before your audience sees your video. 
  3. Preview your changes and make sure they follow YouTube policies before publishing your video.

If you’re uploading a public video, you can set up a Premiere. Unlisted and private videos can also be converted to Premieres after upload.

Upload in Creator Studio 

Upload in Creator Studio Classic

  1. Sign in to YouTube.
  2. At the top of the page, click Upload  and then Upload video.
  3. Choose your video privacy settings.
  4. Select a video to upload from your computer or from Google Photos.
  5. While the video is uploading, add a title (max 100 characters) and description (max 5,000 characters) to your video.
  6. Edit any other settings. Partners can choose their Monetization settings. 
  7. Click Publish (public videos) or Done (private and unlisted videos) to finish.

If you haven’t clicked Publish or Done, your video won’t be viewable by other people. You can always publish your video later in your Video Manager.

Learn more about uploading videos

Learn the difference between “upload” and “publish”

When you upload a video, the video file is imported to YouTube.
When you publish a video, the video is made available for anyone with access to watch it.

Upload vertical videos

When you upload and publish your video, YouTube will figure out the best way to display the content. For the best experience, don’t add black bars to the sides of your vertical video. Whether the video is vertical, square, or horizontal, the video will fit the screen.

Figure out why your video’s upload date and publish date are different

  • Upload date: The date you uploaded your video. Shows next to your video on your Videos page.
  • Publish date: The date your video became public. Shows beneath your live video and is always in Pacific Standard Time (PST). 

These two dates can be different if:

  1. You uploaded your video as private or unlisted, and made it public later. 
  2. You’re in a time zone that’s ahead of PST.
Tip: You can always schedule your video to be published at a specific time.

Understand video quality processing

When you upload a video, it will initially be processed in low resolution. This process helps you complete the upload process faster. When the upload flow is complete, your video will be available to stream in low resolution, on a wide variety of devices.
Higher resolutions, such as 4K or 1080p, can take more time to process. While this processing happens, your video may seem to be missing higher resolutions for several hours. Once high-resolution processing is finished, higher resolutions will be available on your video. Learn more about video processing after upload.

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