YouTube Chapters Format
Chapters turn a single video into a navigable list of sections — viewers can jump straight to the part they want, and YouTube shows the chapter list right under the video. All it takes is a specific list of timestamps in your description. Here's the exact format, every style YouTube accepts, and templates you can copy for common video types.
The 4 rules
These come straight fromYouTube's own chapter guidelines. Break any one of them and YouTube silently ignores the whole list — it won't tell you which rule failed.
- At least 3 timestamps, listed in ascending order.
- The first timestamp must be 00:00.
- Every chapter must be at least 10 seconds long.
- Timestamps go in the video description — not comments, not the title.
Formats YouTube accepts
YouTube reads a line as a chapter if it starts with a recognizable time. All of these work the same way:
0:00 Intro 00:00 Intro 0:00 - Intro 0:00 | Intro [0:00] Intro
For videos over an hour, add the hour: 1:05:20 instead of 65:20. Stay consistent within one description — don't mix MM:SS and H:MM:SS once you cross the one-hour mark.
Templates by video type
Tutorial
0:00 Intro 0:45 What you'll need 2:10 Step 1 — Setup 6:30 Step 2 — Configuration 12:15 Step 3 — Testing 16:40 Common mistakes 19:00 Wrap up
Podcast / interview
0:00 Intro 1:20 Guest introduction 4:00 How it all started 15:30 The big turning point 28:45 Lightning round 34:10 Where to find more
Product review
0:00 Intro 1:00 Unboxing 3:20 Design and build quality 7:45 Performance testing 13:10 Price and value 15:30 Final verdict
Vlog
0:00 Intro 2:00 Getting ready 8:15 On the road 14:40 The main event 21:00 Wrapping up the day
Common mistakes
- Starting the first chapter a few seconds late instead of exactly 00:00.
- Only listing 2 chapters — YouTube needs 3 minimum.
- Reordering a chapter while editing and forgetting to fix the timestamps around it.
- A short chapter (like a quick sponsor mention) squeezed into less than 10 seconds.
Don't format this by hand
Paste your chapter list into our free generator — it validates every rule above, fixes ordering and duplicate issues automatically, and gives you a clean list ready to paste back into your description.