How to Make YouTube Shorts: Format, Length and the Edit
To make a YouTube Short, make a vertical or square video up to three minutes long and upload it to YouTube. YouTube treats it as a Short from its shape and length. A good Short does one thing: it opens on the payoff, keeps to one idea, carries captions for viewers with the sound off, and ends before attention drops. You can film and cut it in the YouTube app, or edit it from your own footage with a tool like Cut Express.
What makes a video a YouTube Short?
Two things, both read from the file. According to YouTube’s help center:
| Rule | What it means |
|---|---|
| Shape | Square or vertical. 9:16 fills a phone screen |
| Length | Up to 3 minutes for videos uploaded since October 15, 2024 |
| Copyright | A Short over 1 minute with an active copyright claim is blocked |
| Not a Short | A wider format, such as 16:9, stays a regular video |
The copyright rule matters for music. A long Short with a claimed song can’t be played until the claim is resolved, so keep music you’re unsure about to Shorts under a minute.
How long should a YouTube Short be?
As long as the idea needs, and no longer. Three minutes is the limit, not the target. A quick tip or a reaction fits in 15 to 30 seconds. A how-to or a story can use a minute or more if every second earns its place. Cut the first sentence of almost any take and see if the Short still works. It usually does.
How do you make a YouTube Short, step by step?
- Pick one idea. One tip, one result, one story beat. If it needs a second idea, it’s a second Short.
- Open on the payoff. Show the result or say your strongest line in the first second, then explain. Our guide to the first 3 seconds has openings to try.
- Shoot or reframe vertical. Film in 9:16, or reframe a horizontal clip around the subject (three ways to go vertical).
- Cut tight. Remove pauses and false starts. A jump cut on every breath is normal in Shorts.
- Add captions. Word-by-word captions keep muted viewers with you (caption styles).
- Add sound with care. Music under the voice, ducked so words stay clear, and a few sound effects on the cuts.
- Upload from the YouTube app or YouTube Studio. Write a title that says what the Short is about.
Can you make Shorts from a long video?
Yes, and it’s a strong source. A long video already holds the moments; you find the ones that work without context and cut each to one idea. Our guide to YouTube Shorts from long videos covers that workflow, and podcast to Shorts covers interviews.
What should a Short sound like?
The voice comes first and stays clear. Music, when you use it, sits under the voice and drops while someone speaks (ducking music under voice). Sound effects mark cuts and text pops; a whoosh on a transition or a click on a highlighted word is enough. No voice? A generated voice-over from a script works for faceless Shorts (AI voice over for Shorts).
How do you make YouTube Shorts with Cut Express?
Cut Express is a video editor you drive from Claude or ChatGPT. You upload clips in the chat and describe the Short; Claude writes the edit and Cut Express renders the MP4:
- Looks before it cuts. Claude reads frame sheets and, when asked, the transcript with timestamps, so cuts land on words, not guesses.
- Renders 9:16. 1080p on Pro, 2K on Ultra. The same timeline can render 16:9 for the long version.
- Captions, sound and color. Word-by-word captions in six presets, music ducked under the voice, built-in sound effects and 73 looks.
- Notes, not clicks. “Start on the reveal”, “captions higher”, “music lower” renders the next version.
Cut this 4-minute clip into a 40-second Short. Open on the moment the cake comes out, remove the pauses, add pop captions three words at a time, and put light music under it.
Transcripts cost 0.1 credit per minute of audio, once per file; editing itself spends no credits. Pro includes 60 minutes of rendered video a month (pricing). For comparing editors, see our YouTube Shorts editor guide.
When is the YouTube app enough?
If you film on your phone and post the same day, the Shorts camera in the YouTube app is quick and free: record, trim, add text and music, upload. An editor earns its place when the footage comes from a camera or a long recording, when you want styled captions and a grade, or when you make several Shorts a week from the same material.
FAQ
Can a YouTube Short be 3 minutes?
Yes. Square or vertical videos up to three minutes uploaded since October 15, 2024 count as Shorts.
What size should a YouTube Short be?
Vertical 9:16, such as 1080 by 1920 pixels. Square works too, but vertical fills the screen.
Can I use music in a long Short?
Be careful: a Short over one minute with an active copyright claim is blocked until the claim is resolved.
Do Shorts need captions?
They don’t have to have them, but many people watch with the sound off, and captions keep them watching.
Make your next Short
Upload a clip and describe the Short you want.
Free for 14 days, then Pro is $19/month. Cancel before the trial ends and nothing is charged.