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.
  2. At the top right, select Create a video or post  and then Upload video.
  3. 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 details to your video.
Title The title of your video. This field is required.
Description Info that shows below your video.
Thumbnail The image viewers will see before clicking your video.
Playlists Add your video to one of your existing playlists, or create a new playlist.
Audience To comply with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), you’re required to tell us whether your videos are made for kids.
Age restriction (advanced) Age-restrict videos that may not be appropriate for all audiences.

Step 2: Choose advanced settings

At the bottom of the Details page, select MORE OPTIONS 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.
Paid promotion Let viewers and YouTube know that your video has a paid promotion.
Tags

Add descriptive keywords to help correct search mistakes. 

Tags can be useful if the content of your video is commonly misspelled. Otherwise, tags play a minimal role in your video's discovery.
Language Choose the original video language.
Subtitles and closed captions Upload subtitles and closed captions files.
Recording date Enter the date the video was recorded.
Video location Add the location where your video was filmed.
Recording date Enter the date the video was recorded.
License and distribution

Choose between a standard copyright license or a Creative Commons license.

Select if your video can be embedded on a different website. Indicate if you’d like to send notifications to your subscribers for your new video.
Category Select the category of your video, such as education or comedy.
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.

Step 3: (If eligible) Choose how you want to monetize

Use the Monetization page to turn monetization on or off for your video. Only YouTube Partner Program members are eligible to monetize.

Step 4: Add video elements

Add cards and end screens to show viewers related videos, websites, and calls to action.
End screen Add visual elements to the end of your video. Your video must be 25 seconds or longer to add an end screen. This option is only available after your video is done processing.
Cards Add interactive content to your video. This option is only available after your video is done processing.

 

Step 5: Preview and publish

Open the Visibility page to choose your video’s privacy setting and pick your video’s publish time.
  • To publish your video now: Select Publish now and choose your video’s privacy setting.
    • Tip: Upload your video as “Unlisted” to make sure there are no monetization or processing issues with your video before you publish it.
  • To publish your video later: Select Schedule and pick the date you want your video to be published. Your video will be private until that date.
    • To set up a Premiere, check the box next to “Set as premiere”. Unlisted and private videos can also be converted to Premieres after upload.
Before finishing, preview your changes and make sure they follow YouTube policies.

Learn more about uploading videos

Upload audio files

You can’t upload audio files to YouTube. See a list of supported file formats that can be uploaded to YouTube.
To add your content to YouTube, try converting your audio file to a video file by adding an image. YouTube doesn’t have a tool to do this, but you can try other video editing software. 

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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