The features described in this article are available only to partners who use YouTube's Content ID matching system.
The media files that you deliver to YouTube for music videos must conform to these specifications.
Audio Profile
| Attribute | Specification |
|---|---|
| Codec | FLAC Linear PCM |
| Sample rate | 44.1 kHz recommended. Higher sample rates are accepted but not required (for example, 48 kHz or 96 kHz). |
| Bit depth | 24-bit recommended, 16-bit acceptable |
| Channels | 2 (stereo) |
Although it is not recommended, YouTube accepts compressed audio. YouTube transcodes from the delivered format; audio quality is much better when transcoded from a lossless format compared to re-compressing a lossy audio format.
If you must deliver compressed audio, use these specifications:
- Codec: AAC-LC
- Sample rate: 44.1 Khz
- Bit rate: 320 kbps or higher for 2 channels (higher is always better; 256 kbps acceptable)
- Channels: 2 (stereo)
Video Profile
| Attribute | Specification |
|---|---|
| Containers | .mp4 .mov |
| Codec | H.264 |
| Profile | High |
| Frame rate | 23.98, 24, 25, 29.97, 30 |
| Bitrate | SD (fewer than 720 lines) – 15 Mbps 720 lines – 50 Mbps 1080 lines – 60 Mbps |
| Resolutions | 1.33 (4:3) – 720x480, 1440x1080, 720x576 (PAL) 1.78 (16:9) – 720x404, 720x576 (PAL 16:9), 854x480, 1280x720, 1920x1080 (cropped content that is wider than 1.78 may deviate from these resolutions – see notes about matting for non-standard aspect ratios) |
| Pixel Aspect Ratio | SD: Anamorphic (non-square) pixels will be accepted, but Pixel Aspect Ratio (pasp) flag must be set to 16:9 or 4:3. HD: Square pixels only (no anamorphic content) |
| Scan type | Progressive Native frame rate content should be deinterlaced. Telecined content should be inverse telecined to original frame rate. Note: Content with blended frames or interlacing artefacts will be rejected. |
| GOP Structure | IBBP (M=3, GOP Length not to exceed ½ of the frame rate) |
| Colour Space | 4:2:2 (preferred) 4:2:0 |
| Matting | 16:9 frame size delivered with letterboxing will be accepted. If content contains pillarboxing (black on left and right), windowboxing (black on all sides) or is 4:3 LTBX, content should be cropped to active pixel area only. |
| Notes | Edit lists are not allowed as these cause loss of A/V sync. moov atom must be present and at the front of the file. |
Video Profile
| Attribute | Specification |
|---|---|
| Containers | MPEG-2 Transport Stream (.mpg, .mpeg, .ts) |
| Codec | MPEG-2 |
| Profile | SD: Main@Main HD: 422@High |
| Frame rate | 23.98, 24, 25, 29.97, 30 |
| Bitrate | SD (fewer than 720 lines): 50 Mbps HD (720 lines or higher): 80 Mbps |
| Resolutions | 1.33 (4:3) – 720x480, 720x576 (PAL only), 1440x1080 1.78 (16:9) – 720x404, 720x576 (PAL 16:9 only with anamorphic flag set), 854x480, 1280x720, 1920x1080 (cropped content that is wider than 1.78 may deviate from these resolutions – see notes about matting for non-standard aspect ratios) |
| Pixel Aspect Ratio | Square pixels only (no anamorphic content). |
| Scan type | Progressive Native frame rate content should be deinterlaced. Telecined content should be inverse telecined to original frame rate. Note: Content with blended frames or interlacing artefacts will be rejected. |
| GOP Structure | IBBP (M=3, GOP Length not to exceed ½ of the frame rate) |
| Colour Space | 4:2:2 (preferred) If 4:2:2 colour space is not available, please use 4:2:0. |
| Matting | 16:9 frame size delivered with letterboxing will be accepted. If content contains pillarboxing (black on left and right), windowboxing (black on all sides) or is 4:3 LTBX, content should be cropped to active pixel area only. |