Playlist YouTube

What is a playlist on YouTube?

A YouTube playlist is a collection of videos that plays in the order you set. Anybody can make a playlist, share it, and let others add videos to it. Creators use playlists to group related uploads so a viewer keeps watching instead of picking the next video themselves.

Why playlists matter for your channel

A playlist groups videos so a viewer who finishes one carries on into the next, which is why YouTube reports watch time and views for a playlist as a unit rather than video by video. Playlists also give a channel structure — a beginner series, a product line, a season — so someone new finds an entry point instead of scrolling the uploads feed.

How to create and manage a playlist

In YouTube Studio, click CREATE in the top-right corner, then New playlist. Enter a title and description, use the drop-down box to select the visibility setting, choose how videos are arranged, click ADD VIDEOS, then CREATE. To change a playlist you already have, open Content in the left menu and go to the Playlists tab.

YouTube applies these limits to playlists:

• Playlist titles are limited to 150 characters.

• Playlist descriptions are limited to 5,000 characters.

• Titles and descriptions cannot contain angle brackets or the line separator character.

• A channel can only create so many public playlists per day across the YouTube main app, YouTube Music and the YouTube API; gaining access to advanced features raises that daily limit.

How to check playlist analytics

Open YouTube Studio, select Content in the left menu, go to the Playlists tab and click Analytics next to the playlist you want. Each playlist has its own Overview, Content, Audience and Revenue tabs, aggregated across every video in it. To compare playlists, select Analytics in the left menu, open the Content tab and choose Playlists — by default you see the top 5 playlists over the last 28 days.

One detail catches people out. Total views, audience and revenue insights leave out videos owned by other channels, while views from playlist, playlist watch time and playlist average duration include them, because those 3 metrics only count activity inside your playlist. For the wider picture, see the YouTube analytics entry, or how playlists fit a plan to increase watch hours.