YouTube recommended upload encoding settings — container, codecs, frame rate, bitrate by resolution and color space (November 2026)

The page warns that an edit list can stop a video from processing properly. Putting the moov atom at the start is the fast start setting, which lets playback begin before the whole file is downloaded. Most editors call it web optimized or fast start in the export options.

One caveat: the page opens by saying this feature is offered only to partners who use YouTube Studio Content Manager. It is still specific enough to be a good reference for any creator choosing export settings.

Converting everything to 30 fps because it feels safe runs against the page. If the source is 24 or 25 fps, leaving it as is is the recommendation.

• Encode and upload at the same frame rate the content was recorded at.
• Common rates are 24, 25, 30, 48, 50 and 60 fps, and other rates are allowed.
• Deinterlace interlaced content before upload. For example, 1080i60 becomes 1080p30, and 60 interlaced fields per second become 30 progressive frames per second.

The page adds that newly uploaded 4K videos need a device or browser that supports VP9 to play. Audio playback bitrate does not depend on video resolution.

The table marks HDR as unsupported at 480p and below. If you upload HDR, read the separate help page on uploading HDR videos too.

• Audio bitrate: mono 128 Kbps, stereo 384 Kbps, 5.1 at 512 Kbps.
• For Eclipsa audio (immersive audio), 128 kbps per channel is recommended.

BT.709 is the recommended standard color space for SDR uploads. The transfer characteristics, primaries and matrix coefficients are all BT.709 (H.273 value 1).

When values are missing or mixed, YouTube standardizes first. An unspecified TRC is assumed to be BT.709 TRC; an unknown matrix and primaries are assumed to be BT.709. If BT.601 and BT.709 are mixed, the matrix is used to redefine the primaries so they are consistent. If the result still does not match BT.709 or BT.601, pixel values are mapped to convert to BT.709.

• Primaries that need a high bit depth to avoid banding, such as BT.2020, are converted to BT.709 (8-bit) unless a supported HDR transfer function is used, and full range becomes limited range.
• Using an RGB color matrix for upload is not recommended. An sRGB TRC is converted to BT.709 TRC.

In Shortsmith’s render code (editor/encoding.py) the final encode is written against YouTube’s recommendation page. As checked on November 10, 2026: H.264 (libx264) High profile level 4.1, yuv420p (4:2:0), CRF 18, maximum bitrate 12 Mbps, keyframes fixed at 2 seconds, and the faststart flag on the finished file. Vertical 9:16 video is built at 1080 by 1920, and the final frame rate follows the source.

For audio, the stage-file setting is AAC 192 kbps stereo at 44.1 kHz, which differs from the 48 kHz the page recommends. This post does not claim either is better; if you must match a spec strictly, such as a partner delivery, check your export settings yourself. The code also has a step that re-encodes smaller when the finished file exceeds 80 MB.

With render on my computer, the desktop program handles that compositing step locally, and the finished file is saved to the Videos/Shortsmith folder.

• Render on your own computer with the desktop app
• Fixing YouTube upload errors

The recommendations are long, but only a few lines are worth remembering.

• MP4 with H.264; audio AAC-LC stereo at 48 kHz.
• moov atom at the start, no edit list.
• Keep the recorded frame rate; deinterlace interlaced footage.
• For 1080p SDR, use 8 Mbps (12 Mbps for high frame rate) as a reference.
• Color space BT.709; avoid an RGB matrix.
• There is no bitrate limit; the table is a reference.

YouTube Help updates its documents whenever a feature changes, and translations lag by language, so the Korean and English versions can differ slightly. The figures and conditions here come from pages read on November 10, 2026 and may have changed since.

Before making an important decision, open the original links under Sources and compare them with what you see now. Eligibility rules and numbers change most often. If a menu name looks different, look for a similar item in the same place; if it is missing, the feature may not be enabled for your account yet. Statements about Shortsmith reflect its screens and code as of November 2026.