Archive live streams
YouTube can automatically archive your live stream for you. However, we recommend also recording a local archive as a backup. How the archive is created depends on whether you use Stream now or Events. You'll be able to create highlight clips while your stream is still live.
| Stream type |
Archive length* |
| Stream now | 12 hours |
| Events | 8 hours |
| Mobile | 8 hours |
| Any stream at 1440p or 2160p (4k) | 4 hours |
*Streams exceeding archive length may not be captured
Archive settings
Stream now
To update archive settings:
- Visit youtube.com/live_dashboard.
- Select Stream options.
- Check the box for "Make archive unlisted when complete."
Events
To update archive settings:
- Visit youtube.com/my_live_events.
- Select New live event or Edit.
- Click Advanced settings.
- Check the box for "Automatically make archive unlisted once the stream has ended."
Mobile
After your mobile live stream ends, you can edit privacy settings—including setting it to private—or delete the archive on the "My videos" page.
Note: You can also change the privacy of any live stream archive using the Video Manager.