How to Add Timestamps on YouTube: Descriptions, Comments and Links
A YouTube timestamp points to a moment in a video. Choose where you need it first: a creator's description, a viewer's comment, or a link you share. Only the description route can create manual chapters on your own upload.
Three places, three different jobs
| Your task | Put the time here | What it changes |
|---|---|---|
| Organize your own upload | The video description in YouTube Studio. | A valid list can create manual chapters. You need editing access to the upload. |
| Discuss a moment as a viewer | A comment, such as 1:32 The lighting changes here. | A comment can link to that moment. It does not add chapters to the video. |
| Send someone a starting point | A timestamped Share link. | The link requests a starting time. It does not trim or export a shorter video. |
If you are leaving feedback rather than editing the upload, follow the comment-timestamp guide. If chapters already exist and you want to navigate them, see how to use YouTube chapters.
Add timestamps to your video's description
- Finish the edit and upload the version whose timing you want to describe.
- In YouTube Studio, choose Content, then open that video.
- In the description, put each chapter's starting time and useful title on its own line.
- Start at
00:00, use at least three times in increasing order, and allow at least ten seconds for every chapter. - Save. Open the watch page and check that each time reaches the right topic.
These requirements follow YouTube's chapter instructions. Manual chapters replace automatic ones for that video. A list in a comment is not a substitute for the creator's description.
A short description example
00:00 What the video covers 00:30 Set up the recording 01:20 Review the result
This is an illustrative list for a video longer than 1:30. Replace every time and title with your own content. The final chapter needs ten seconds too.
For a full worked duration check and a troubleshooting sequence, use the creator's chapter guide. YouTube may require access to advanced features before chapters are available.
Share a link that starts at a moment
On the desktop watch page, choose Share, select Start at, and enter the wanted time before copying the link. This follows YouTube's sharing guide. Use the platform's control so you do not have to assemble a URL by hand.
Reopen the copied link and check the starting point. A timestamped link still points to the original video, with the original access restrictions. It does not set an ending point, make a private video public, or create a downloadable clip.
Check the destination after an edit
A time belongs to a particular version of a video. If you remove material before that moment, an old edit note or chapter list can point to the wrong place. After the final edit, check the beginning of every topic again rather than copying a list from the raw recording.
- Right video: a correct time on a different upload is still the wrong link.
- Right version: check against the final uploaded edit.
- Right unit:
1:32means one minute and 32 seconds, not 1.32 minutes. - Right promise: a working jump link is a navigation aid. It is not evidence of a ranking or watch-time increase.
Still preparing your own recording? Review and export the edit first, then write timestamps for that result.
Open GlingOpening the app is separate from adding timestamps in YouTube. Account and plan requirements apply.
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