YouTube Timestamp Link
A link that starts where you want it to. Paste the video, type the time, copy.
Sending people to the good part is the easy half
Getting them to arrive at all is the other one. If a video already earns attention, these two pages say plainly what a push does and what it does not.
The two link formats, and why one of them silently fails
YouTube accepts a start time in two shapes and they are not interchangeable, which is where most of the frustration comes from:
youtu.be/ID?t=155— the short link wants plain seconds.youtube.com/watch?v=ID&t=155s— the full link wants thesafter the number.
Get it the wrong way round and the video starts from the beginning without any error, which is the worst kind of failure: it looks like it worked. Both correct versions are generated above so there is nothing to remember.
In comments and descriptions, do not paste a link at all
Write the time on its own, as 2:35, and YouTube turns it into a clickable jump by itself. It looks native, it survives being copied, and it works in your own description to build chapters. That version is generated above too.
⚠️ For chapters to appear as real chapters, the first one has to be 0:00 and there have to be at least three of them, each at least ten seconds long. Those are YouTube's rules, not ours.
What it does not do
A start time is a suggestion to the player, not an edit. The viewer can still scrub anywhere, the video is unchanged for everyone else, and nothing about this is visible to the person who uploaded it.
There is no way to make a link that ends at a time on a normal watch page. Ending is only possible inside an embed, which is what the embed code generator is for.
Two things people do with the same link
Questions
How do I link to a specific time in a YouTube video?
Paste the video above and type the time. You get the short link, the full link, and the plain timestamp to use in comments and descriptions.
Why does my timestamp link start from the beginning?
Almost always the wrong format for the link type: youtu.be wants t=155 while watch links want t=155s. There is no error message when you mix them, which is why it is confusing.
How do I add a timestamp in a comment?
Just write 2:35 on its own. YouTube converts it into a link automatically, and that is more reliable than pasting a URL.
Can I make a link that stops at a certain time?
Not on a normal watch page. End times only exist inside an embed, which the embed code generator on this site can build for you.
Does the timestamp work on mobile and in the app?
Yes. Both formats open the app at the right moment on iOS and Android.
Can I do this for a Short or a live stream?
Yes for both, as long as you have the link. Shorts and live replays use the same video ids.