YouTube URL Schemes

Understanding and customizing YouTube URL schemes can make video sharing more effective:

1. Watch Links
   • Format
     • Regular version: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=<video_id>
     • Short version: https://youtu.be/<video_id>
   • Query parameters
     • t → Starts the video at a specific timestamp, great for directly jumping to the key moments
       • For example:
         • &t=60 starts the video 1 minute in
         • &t=1m30s starts the video 1 minute and 30 seconds in
       • Works for both watch link types:
         • https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnQLp_DII2o&t=120
         • https://youtu.be/cnQLp_DII2o?t=120
     • The following parameters are unnecessary and can be safely stripped from URLs:
       • list → Shows which playlist the video is from
         • Example: &list=PLVELbpBnqC0qFKrWNBZupOEV6MX4xt_fM
       • ab_channel → Shows which channel the video is from
         • Example: &ab_channel=InspiringSquad
     • https://www.youtube.com/embed/<video_id>
       • Use this to embed videos on websites ¹
       • ⭐️ Also, this is helpful for watching videos without any ads!
       • Example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcQQVbioeZk → https://www.youtube.com/embed/NcQQVbioeZk
2. Playlist Links
   • Format: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=<playlist_id>
3. Channel Links
   • Format: https://www.youtube.com/channel/@<channel_handle>