Comparison of Brand Accounts and channel permissions on YouTube

Historically, Brand Accounts could be used with a variety of Google services. Starting August 4, 2021, Brand Accounts can only be linked to YouTube channels and will be designated with “(limited to YouTube)." This update will not impact existing Brand Accounts, only accounts that are created after August 4, 2021.

A Brand Account is an account that is specifically for your brand. This account is different from your personal Google Account. If a channel is linked to a Brand Account, multiple people can manage it from their Google Accounts. You don't need a separate username or password to manage YouTube channels with a Brand Account.

Connect your YouTube Channel to a Brand Account if:

• You don't want viewers to see your name or email address. There's no public association between your Google Account and the Brand Account.
• You want to manage multiple channels from one account. Brand Accounts can be helpful if you have more than one YouTube channel. Learn more.

Ready to create a Brand Account?

1. First, check to see if you already have a Brand Account.
2. Sign in to YouTube.
3. Go to your channel list.
4. Click Create a new channel.
5. Fill out the details to name the Brand Account and verify your account.
6. Click Create.

I get an error when creating a Brand Account

You've probably given others access to manage your channel. We recommend you keep your non-Brand Account. If you still want a Brand Account, you must first remove access from others.

Use channel permissions in YouTube Studio with a Brand Account

Keep in mind before moving to channel permissions:

• Managers can do less with channel permissions than they can with a Brand Account. Find more info in the table below.
• Brand Account permissions will no longer apply to the channel and access will be managed exclusively through YouTube Studio.
• Existing Brand Account users will be copied into channel permissions. First, you must manually set the permissions level and send the invite.
• People you’ve invited to manage your channel can only manage your channel in YouTube Studio on computer and partially on mobile. They can’t manage on YouTube.com, or via YouTube APIs.

Opt into channel permissions

The primary owner of the Brand Account can decide to use channel permissions in YouTube Studio. We’re working to add more features to channel permissions.

Before switching, check the table below to see if features you need are available. You can also learn about the differences between roles in channel permissions and Brand Accounts.

Opt out of channel permissions

If you want to go back to a Brand Account after opting into channel permissions, you must invite everyone to the Brand Account again.

To opt out, select “Opt out of permissions in YouTube Studio” under YouTube Studio's Settings Permissions. You must be opted out of channel permissions to complete a channel transfer.

Supported features

Category	Access level / Public actions	Brand Accounts	Channel permissions
			YT Studio on a computer	YT Studio app	YouTube app
Granular permission control	Manager role	Yes
	Editor role	No
	Editor (Limited) role	No
	Viewer only role	No			—
	Viewer (Limited) role	No			—
	Subtitle Editor role	No		—	—
Video management	Upload videos / Shorts	Yes		—
	Create Shorts	Yes	—	—
	Understand video performance in YouTube Analytics or Artist Analytics	Yes
	Manage videos (metadata, monetization, visibility)	Yes
	Create a playlist	Yes		—
	Add a video to an existing public playlist	Yes
	Manage playlists	Yes	—	—
	Live stream as the channel	Yes		—	—
	Captions, private video sharing	Yes		—	—
	Mobile uploads	Yes			—
Channel management	Customize / manage the channel homepage	Yes
Community engagement	Create a post	Yes		—
	Manage Community posts	Yes		—
	Delete Community posts	Yes	[Manager only]	—	[Manager only]
	Reply to comments as the channel from YouTube Studio	Yes			—
	Comment and interact with comments on another channel's videos as the channel	Yes	—	—
	Use Live Chat as the channel from Live Control Room	Yes		—
	Create a story	Yes	—	—	—
Artists specific	Official Artist Channel features (for example, concerts)	Yes		—	—

Differences between roles in channel permissions and Brand Accounts

The main difference between channel permissions and Brand Account roles is the granular levels of access. We’re also working on adding even more roles to permissions over the course of the year.

Studio roles		Brand Account roles
Owner	Can do everything on all platforms. Includes deleting the channel, plus managing live streams and live chat Can't transfer ownership to other users	Primary owner	Can do everything
Manager	Can add or remove others and edit channel details Can create, edit, and view, start, and end streams Can view and copy stream keys Can chat and moderate chat within Live Control Room Can’t delete channel, but can delete draft videos	Owner	Can do everything
Editor	Can edit everything Can view and copy stream key Can't add or remove others, delete videos or the channel, or enter into contracts Can create, edit, view, start, and end streams Can chat and moderate chat within Live Control Room Can’t delete scheduled/live/completed streams	Manager	Can do everything except: Join or leave an MCN Invite other users Transfer the channel, or have it transferred to them (except by the primary owner) Delete the channel Make a purchase
Editor (Limited)	Same permissions as editor, except can’t access revenue data (includes chat revenue and viewer activity tab)
Viewer	Can view (but not edit) all channel details Can’t access the stream key Can’t edit stream settings/metadata Can’t go live or end streams Can’t delete scheduled/live/completed streams Can’t chat or moderate chat within Live Control Room	Communications Manager	Can’t do anything on YouTube
Viewer (Limited)	Same permissions as viewer, except can’t access revenue data (includes chat revenue and viewer activity tab)