This article explains how to share a YouTube video with a timestamp so it automatically starts at a specific point when clicked. The desktop website has a built-in tool for this, while a manual workaround is available for mobile users.

How to Create a YouTube Link That Starts at a Specific Time in the Video

Linking to a specific time in a YouTube video lets viewers jump directly to that part when the link is clicked. This is particularly useful for long videos. It’s easy to do on the desktop website.

1. Click Share directly beneath the video.

2. In the pop-up box, check Start at.

3. Enter the time you want the video to start. The correct time may already be listed if you pressed the share button at the exact moment you want the video to start.

4. Click Copy to save the time-stamped URL. You’ll notice the link has changed to include additional characters, which indicate to YouTube when to start the video (more on this below).

5. Paste the link wherever you want or select any of the social share buttons to share it. Anyone who opens your link will begin watching the video at the time you specified.

   Note that this method does not bypass pre-roll ads.

How to Add a Timestamp to a YouTube Link

You can link to a specific time in a video by adding specific characters to the end of the URL. This works for both short and regular links and can be done from a computer or a mobile device.

1. Locate the URL. If you’re on a computer, it’s the link at the top of the browser. In the app, tap Share > Copy link below the video.

   You don’t need to clean up the link. It’s OK if yours is much longer than our example, with lots of extra characters; you should still be able to define the timestamp.

2. Decide when you want the video to start when the link is clicked. This can be in hours, minutes, or seconds.

3. Prepare the timestamp in this specific format. Our video is long, so in this example, we’ll choose 1 hour, 5 minutes, and 30 seconds, and write it like this:

    &t=1h5m30s
   

   You don’t have to include all three time units. For instance, to start the YouTube video at 1 minute or 2 hours, you would write &t=1m or &t=2h.

4. Copy the whole link, with the extra characters included. It should look something like this:

5. You can now share that custom link with anyone and the video will start at the time you specified.

Why Linking to a Specific Time Matters

Internet users have short attention spans, so asking someone to sit through even a 4- or 5-minute video where the key part comes halfway through can cause them to close the video in frustration.

YouTube hosts thousands of videos worth sharing that can be several minutes or several hours long (these are our favorite 10-hour videos). If you’re sharing a video of an hour-long public speaking presentation on Facebook, your friends will appreciate that you linked to the exact time in the video when something interesting is happening.

More people are watching YouTube on their mobile devices than ever before, contributing to shorter attention spans. They don’t want to sit through lengthy introductions or irrelevant parts before reaching the interesting content.

When you decide to share a video at a specific time, viewers can restart the video if they want to watch the entire thing, so you’re not doing anyone a disservice by linking to a relevant point. Opening a YouTube link to a specific time doesn’t modify the video itself or break any terms of service agreements.