How to add chapters to a YouTube video, and why yours may not show
Add chapters in YouTube Studio with the 00:00 rule, at least three timestamps and a 10 second minimum. Automatic chapters, why chapters fail to show, and how a timestamp link works.
- 01To add chapters, put a list of timestamps and titles in the video description in YouTube Studio. The first timestamp must be 00:00, the list needs at least three timestamps in ascending order, and each chapter must be at least 10 seconds long.
- 02YouTube Help says automatic chapters are on by default for new uploads. Not every video is eligible, and a list you write yourself overrides them.
- 03A timestamp link is a video link with a start time in seconds, such as youtu.be/VIDEO_ID?t=90. The Start at option in YouTube's Share box builds one for you.
To add chapters to a YouTube video, open the video in YouTube Studio and add a list of timestamps and titles to the description. The first timestamp must be 00:00. The list needs at least three timestamps in ascending order, and each chapter must be at least 10 seconds long. Save the video and YouTube can turn the list into chapters.
This guide covers the format, automatic chapters, the reasons chapters fail to show, and how timestamp links work. The rules come from YouTube Help and Google Search Central, checked on 15 October 2026. YouTubeScribe is our product, and we link to our own tools only where they do the job described.
What YouTube chapters are
YouTube Help says Video Chapters break up a video into sections, each with an individual preview. They let viewers rewatch different parts of the video. Creators can add their own chapters to each upload or rely on automatic chapters, and chapters may appear in the transcripts.
That puts chapters next to the other ways of finding a moment in a long video. Our guide to searching YouTube transcripts covers those.
How to add chapters to a video
YouTube Help gives one set of steps, written for YouTube Studio, and none specific to phones.
- Sign in to YouTube Studio.
- From the left menu, select Content.
- Click the video you want to edit.
- In the Description, add a list of timestamps and titles.
- Make sure the first timestamp starts with 00:00.
- List at least three timestamps in ascending order. Each chapter must be at least 10 seconds long.
- Click Save.
A valid list looks like this.
00:00 Intro 01:12 Setting up the channel 04:30 Choosing a topic 09:45 Publishing the first video
Search Central's guidance for timestamps on YouTube adds detail on the format. Write the time as hours, minutes and seconds, and leave out the hour when there is none. Put each timestamp on its own line, with its label on the same line. The label needs at least one word. The list also has to run in chronological order.
If you cannot add chapters
YouTube Help says that if you do not yet have access to chapters, you can apply for access to Advanced features. The feature access page lists Add chapters under Advanced features. Active creators with enough channel history will likely qualify automatically, and others can verify their identity with a valid ID or video, though that option is not available to every creator. To see what you have, open Studio, click Settings, then Channel, then Feature eligibility. Enabled shows next to each feature you can use. YouTube Help warns that some features have separate eligibility rules, so that tab may not list everything.
Chapters and Google Search
Google Search Central says Google may enable key moments for a YouTube video from its description, without any markup from you. It also says Google prefers the timestamps and labels you write yourself. A tidy chapter list is therefore also a way to tell Google where the moments are.
Automatic chapters
YouTube Help says the Allow automatic chapters box is checked for all new uploads, and that you can change it for one video or in bulk. To switch it on for a single video:
- Sign in to YouTube Studio and select Content from the left menu.
- Click the video.
- Click Show more. Under Automatic chapters, select Allow automatic chapters.
- Click Save.
Not every video qualifies. YouTube Help says not all videos are eligible and not all eligible videos get automatic chapters. If the channel has any active strikes, or the content may be inappropriate for some viewers, the chapters feature is not available.
A list you write yourself overrides automatic chapters. Add your own list when the automatic ones have the wrong titles or split the video in the wrong places.
Turn automatic chapters off
- One video: open it in Studio, click Show more, clear Allow automatic chapters, and save.
- Every new upload: in Studio, click Settings, then Upload defaults, then Advanced settings. Clear Allow automatic chapters (when available and eligible) and save.
- Existing videos in bulk: YouTube Help says this is possible, and it does not list the steps on the chapters page.
How timestamp links work
A timestamp link is an ordinary video link that carries a start time. YouTube Help documents the Share box and gives no address format, so this section keeps what is documented apart from what we tested.
The Share box
On a computer, open the video, click Share, check Start at and enter the time before you copy the link. YouTube Help's example is 2:30, which starts the video at 2 minutes and 30 seconds. On Android, go to the moment in the video, tap Share and turn on the Minute : Second toggle, for example 2:30.
The t value in the address
Google Search Central uses a t value in its own examples. A link ending ?t=30 starts 30 seconds into a video, and ?t=120 starts it at 2:00. Those examples describe a website's own video pages, so they are not a YouTube rule.
For YouTube we tested it ourselves on 15 October 2026. A short link ending ?t=90 redirected to a full watch address that kept the t value, and playback began at about 90 seconds. A t=1m30s value and a t=90s value on the full address also worked. This is our own check, and YouTube could change the behaviour without notice.
| Where | What to add | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Short link | youtu.be/VIDEO_ID?t=90 | The number is seconds. |
| Full link | youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID&t=90s | Same moment, with an s after the number. |
| Embed | start=90 on the embed address | The IFrame player takes a positive whole number of seconds. It looks for the closest keyframe, so playback can begin just before the time you set. |
To turn a time into seconds, multiply the hours by 3,600 and the minutes by 60, then add the seconds. That is our own arithmetic. For example, 1:02:03 is 1 x 3,600 + 2 x 60 + 3, which comes to 3,723 seconds.
If you would rather not do the sums, our timestamp link generator takes a video link and a time and builds both links. It accepts h:mm:ss, m:ss or a plain number of seconds, and builds a chapter list from several times.
Why your chapters do not show
Check these in order. Each row comes from YouTube Help, the feature access page or Search Central.
| Cause | What to do |
|---|---|
| The first timestamp is not 00:00 | YouTube Help says the first timestamp must start with 00:00. Add a 00:00 line at the top. |
| Fewer than three timestamps | The video needs at least three, listed in ascending order. |
| Timestamps out of order | Sort them from the earliest to the latest. |
| A chapter under 10 seconds | The minimum chapter length is 10 seconds. Merge the short chapter into the one beside it. |
| Label on another line, or empty | Search Central says each timestamp goes on its own line with its label beside it, and the label needs at least one word. |
| No access to chapters | Check Settings, Channel, Feature eligibility in Studio. Add chapters is an Advanced feature. |
| Active strike or sensitive content | YouTube Help says the chapters feature is not available if the channel has an active strike or the content may be inappropriate for some viewers. |
| Waiting for automatic chapters | Not all eligible videos get them. Write your own list, which overrides them. |
YouTube Help documents no other cause. If every row passes and chapters still do not show, the video may simply be one that does not get them.
Reading or generating chapters with a tool
Two of our tools handle chapters on videos where you did not write the list. The chapters extractor reads the chapter list the uploader already put on a video, usually as timestamped lines in the description, and returns it as a clean list. It is free. If the video has no chapters, the result says so, and it does not invent titles from the transcript.
For a video with no published chapters, the chapter generator cuts the caption track into timestamp lines you can paste into the description. It is a Pro tool. It needs a caption track, so a video without one gets no lines from it.
Our guide to videos with no captions covers what to do in that case.
Paste generated lines at the top of the description, start the list at 00:00, check the titles and save. YouTube still has to accept the list under the rules above.
If you are starting a channel, chapters are one step in our guide to making a YouTube channel.
Questions people ask
How do I add chapters to a YouTube video?
Open YouTube Studio, select Content, click the video and add a list of timestamps and titles to the description. The first timestamp must be 00:00, the list needs at least three timestamps in ascending order, and each chapter must be at least 10 seconds long. Then click Save.
How many timestamps do I need for chapters?
YouTube Help says the video should have at least three timestamps listed in ascending order.
How long must a YouTube chapter be?
The minimum length for video chapters is 10 seconds, according to YouTube Help.
Why are my YouTube chapters not showing?
The usual causes are a first timestamp that is not 00:00, fewer than three timestamps, timestamps out of order and a chapter shorter than 10 seconds. Chapters also fail to show when the channel has no access to the feature, has an active strike, or has content that may be inappropriate for some viewers.
Does the first chapter have to start at 00:00?
Yes. YouTube Help says the first timestamp you list must start with 00:00.
What are automatic chapters?
They are chapters YouTube creates for a video without a list from you. YouTube Help says the option is checked by default for all new uploads, but not all videos are eligible and not all eligible videos get them. A list you write yourself overrides them.
How do I turn off automatic chapters?
For one video, open it in YouTube Studio, click Show more, clear Allow automatic chapters and save. For every new upload, go to Settings, then Upload defaults, then Advanced settings, and clear Allow automatic chapters (when available and eligible).
How do I make a timestamp link to a moment in a video?
On a computer, click Share, check Start at, enter the time and copy the link. On Android, tap Share and turn on the Minute : Second toggle. You can also add a t value in seconds to the address, such as youtu.be/VIDEO_ID?t=90, which worked in our own test on 15 October 2026.
What does t= mean in a YouTube link?
It sets the start time in seconds. Google Search Central's examples show ?t=30 starting 30 seconds in and ?t=120 starting at 2:00, and our own test confirmed that a t value on a YouTube link starts playback at that second.
Can I add YouTube chapters on my phone?
YouTube Help gives one set of steps, written for YouTube Studio, and no separate steps for phones. The page does not document editing the description in the Studio app.
Can I see the chapters of someone else's video?
If the creator added chapters, they usually sit in the description as timestamped lines. A chapters extractor reads that list and returns it as a clean list. If the video has no chapters, it says so.
Do chapters help a video show up in Google Search?
Google Search Central says Google may enable key moments for a YouTube video from its description and that it prefers timestamps and labels you supply. It does not promise a ranking change.
Sources
- YouTube Help. Video Chapters. support.google.com· Checked 15 October 2026.
- YouTube Help. Learn about feature access for YouTube Creators. support.google.com· Checked 15 October 2026.
- YouTube Help. Share videos and channels. support.google.com· Checked 15 October 2026.
- Google Search Central. Video structured data, including best practices for marking timestamps on YouTube. developers.google.com· Checked 15 October 2026.
- Google for Developers. YouTube Embedded Players and Player Parameters. developers.google.com· Checked 15 October 2026.
Written by Faisal Ashfaq. Faisal Ashfaq maintains the YouTubeScribe caption extractor at Deeporax AI LTD in Oldham. He writes the under-the-hood notes on timed text.
Reviewed on 15 October 2026. If a line is wrong, email support@youtubescribe.com.