Premieres

0:46 To premiere a video on YouTube, upload it in YouTube Studio and, on the Visibility step, either choose Public > Set as instant Premiere or Schedule, pick a date and time and check Set as Premiere (YouTube Help). A Premiere turns a finished video into an event: its watch page goes up beforehand so viewers can set a reminder, a countdown runs as it starts, everyone watches together with live chat, and afterwards it remains on the channel as an ordinary video with its views kept. YouTube announced Premieres at VidCon in June 2018 (Engadget).

Quick facts

Sources: Premiere a new video and customize your Premiere, YouTube Help.

How do I premiere a video on YouTube?

1. In YouTube Studio, click Create > Upload videos and choose the file.
2. Fill in the details as for any upload, up to the Visibility step.
3. Instant Premiere: choose Save or publish > Public > Set as instant Premiere. It starts as soon as the video finishes processing.
4. Scheduled Premiere: choose Schedule, set the date and time, and check Set as Premiere.
5. Click Set up Premiere to pick a countdown theme and length and, if eligible, a trailer.
6. Share the watch page link so viewers can tap Notify me.

Source: YouTube Help. Shorts, 360 and VR180 videos and videos output above 1080p cannot premiere.

3:42 YouTube's own explainer recommends scheduling a Premiere at least 24 hours ahead, so viewers around the world see it in Subscriptions, Home and search; choosing the thumbnail with care, since it fronts the waiting page; sharing the link and asking viewers to tap Notify me; answering chat during the Premiere; and staying in the chat for a short while after it ends to take questions or point viewers to a follow-up stream.

Countdown, trailer and chat

1:21 Two minutes before a Premiere starts, viewers on the watch page see a countdown video, in the theme the creator picked (YouTube Help). Before that, the page can play a trailer: a separate clip of 15 seconds to 3 minutes, which must not be a video that has already premiered, offered to channels with more than 1,000 subscribers and no Community Guidelines strikes. With a countdown theme and length set in "Set up Premiere", YouTube's explainer video notes that the countdown begins at the scheduled start time: a Premiere set for 12 p.m. starts its countdown at 12 p.m., and the video follows it.

2:56 During the Premiere, live chat runs beside the video and Super Chat and Super Stickers work if the channel has them on. Viewers can go back but cannot jump past the point everyone else has reached (YouTube Help). Viewers who set a reminder get a notification about 30 minutes before and again when it starts. A channel can also end a live stream by sending its audience straight to an upcoming Premiere with Live Redirect.

After the Premiere

3:07 The video stays on the channel as a normal upload, without the countdown, with the chat available as a replay, and the views from the Premiere count as the video's views (YouTube Help). Premieres can carry ads like any video. A Community Guidelines strike sets a scheduled Premiere to private while the penalty lasts (Community Guidelines Strikes). A Premiere cannot run a thumbnail test until it has aired.

From 2018 to now

When YouTube announced Premieres at VidCon on Jun 21, 2018, the first version was offered to YouTube Partner Program creators with at least 100,000 subscribers, gave each Premiere a public landing page with a countdown, and let creators open live chat with Super Chat (Engadget). Help today also describes trailers, countdown themes, instant Premieres and Live Redirect, and names no subscriber minimum for a Premiere itself, only for its trailer.

What creators say

0:00 George Vanous, who runs the Freedom! network, introduced Premieres to creators in a Nov 4, 2018 video, when they were new. He showed choosing Scheduled and then Premiere at upload, and described it as live chat with an audience without doing a live stream: a regular video that everyone watches together, "like a movie that's premiering for the very first time". He planned to premiere his next video so his viewers could chat with him while it played.

Frequently asked questions

How do I premiere a video on YouTube? In YouTube Studio, upload the video and on the Visibility step choose Public > Set as instant Premiere, or Schedule with "Set as Premiere" checked.

Can I premiere a YouTube Short? No. YouTube does not support Premieres for Shorts, 360 or VR180 videos, or videos output above 1080p.

How long is the YouTube Premiere countdown? The YouTube Premiere countdown video appears two minutes before the start; its theme and length are chosen in "Set up Premiere".

What happens to a YouTube Premiere afterwards? After it airs, a YouTube Premiere stays on the channel as a regular video with a chat replay, and its Premiere views count toward the video.

Who can add a trailer to a YouTube Premiere? YouTube channels with more than 1,000 subscribers and no Community Guidelines strikes can add a Premiere trailer of 15 seconds to 3 minutes.

Sources

• Premiere a new video, YouTube Help, read Nov 6, 2026
• Customize your Premiere, YouTube Help, read Nov 6, 2026
• YouTube creators can hype prerecorded videos with 'Premieres', Engadget, Jun 21, 2018
• New YouTube feature: Premieres are here!, Freedom!, Nov 4, 2018 (video)
• YouTube Premieres, YouTube Creators, Jul 13, 2023 (video)