YouTube Timestamp Link Generator

How to use the YouTube Timestamp Link Generator

1. Paste the video link. If it already contains a time (t=), the start time is filled in for you.
2. Type the moment you want, as minutes and seconds (1:23), hours too (1:02:03), plain seconds or 1h2m3s.
3. Choose a short youtu.be link or a full youtube.com link, then copy it or test it in a new tab.
4. For chapters, write one line per section starting with its time, add the video length if you know it, and fix anything the checker flags before pasting the formatted list into your description.

Features

• Accepts 1:23, 1:02:03, 83, 2m5s and similar time formats
• Short youtu.be or full youtube.com links, with optional playlist
• Reads an existing t= value from the pasted link
• Chapter formatter with consistent 00:00 or 0:00:00 style
• Checks chapters start at 00:00, number at least three and last 10 seconds each
• Works with watch, youtu.be, Shorts, live and embed links

How YouTube start times work

YouTube reads a start time from the t parameter of a link. On a youtu.be short link it looks like https://youtu.be/VIDEO_ID?t=83; on a full link it is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID&t=83s. The value is in seconds, so 1 minute 23 seconds becomes 83. When someone opens the link, the player jumps straight to that moment. It is the quickest way to point a friend, student or colleague to the exact part of a long video.

Converting a time to seconds

Multiply hours by 3,600 and minutes by 60, then add the seconds. For 1:02:03 that is 3,600 + 120 + 3 = 3,723 seconds. You do not need to do this yourself: type the time the way you see it on the player and the tool converts it.

Short link or full link?

Both open the same video. The youtu.be form is shorter and looks cleaner in chats and posts, while the youtube.com form makes the destination obvious and keeps a playlist attached if you choose. Embedded players use a different parameter called start; if you are embedding a video, the YouTube Embed Code Generator handles that for you.

YouTube chapters

Chapters split a video into labeled sections on the progress bar, which helps viewers skip to what they need. You create them by typing timestamps in the video description. YouTube applies a few rules, and if any is broken, no chapters appear at all:

• The first timestamp must be 00:00.
• There must be at least three timestamps.
• Timestamps must be in ascending order.
• Each chapter must be at least 10 seconds long.

The helper checks every one of these, including the length of the final chapter when you enter the video’s duration. It also tidies the formatting so every line uses the same style, adding hours (0:00:00) when the video is an hour or longer.

Example

Writing good chapter titles

Short, descriptive titles work best: “Mixing the dough” beats “Part 2”. Use the words viewers would search for, because Google Search can show chapters as key moments of a video. Keep the list near the top of the description so it is easy to find, and update it if you trim the video, since edited videos can shift every timestamp after the cut.

Planning a video description? Count your characters with the Character Counter, and grab the video’s thumbnail with the YouTube Thumbnail Downloader.

Frequently asked questions