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A solid video marketing strategy is no longer optional. It’s the backbone of modern content. In 2025, 91% of consumers say video quality impacts their trust in a brand, and nearly every brand with a pulse is using video to drive engagement, conversions, and that...
May 11, 2025
Are you struggling to manage your YouTube content, keep up with regular video uploads and social media post scheduling?
Then knowing how to schedule YouTube videos can be a game-changer strategy. It helps you maintain consistency, reach your audience at the optimal time, and free up your time for other important tasks.
In this step-by-step guide, I’ll walk you through the simple steps to schedule YouTube videos, empowering you to streamline your content strategy and maximize your channel’s success.
So let’s jump right in!
Let’s go through the entire process of scheduling your videos on YouTube step by step.
Step 1: Sign in to YouTube Studio
First, sign into your YouTube Studio account and click the create icon in the upper right corner.
YouTube Studio on desktop
Step 2: Upload your video
Then click Upload videos > Select files; drag and drop or select the video you want to schedule.
Step 3: Fill out the video details
While your video upload is in progress, you can add the title, description, and thumbnail image to your YouTube video. Optionally, you can add chapters, tags, and other details to boost its visibility.
YouTube video details
Step 4: Select the schedule
To publish your YouTube video at a specific time, set it as “scheduled” on the upload page under the “Visibility” tab.
Scheduling YouTube videos natively, on desktop
Finally, select the date and time you want your video to be published and click SCHEDULE.
Even after uploading and scheduling your YouTube video, you can still edit it. Here’s how:
Step 1: Navigate to the “Content” tab
From your YouTube Studio dashboard, navigate to the “Content” tab from the left menu. Here, you’ll see all your scheduled YouTube videos and drafts.
Step 2: Hover over the scheduled video
In the Channel content section, hover over the scheduled video you’d like to edit and click the pencil icon to start editing.
Editing a scheduled video on YouTube
Step 3: Edit your video
Finally, navigate to the “Editor” tab from the left menu. The YouTube editor lets you edit and apply video elements anywhere on a timeline.
To schedule Shorts on YouTube, you need to follow the same process as scheduling longer-form videos. To recap:
If you’re on the go, YouTube lets you upload and schedule videos and Shorts using the mobile apps.
Step 1: First, open the YouTube app on your mobile. Then tap the Create icon at the bottom of the screen.
YouTube app on mobile
Step 2: Tap “Upload a video” from the menu and upload the video from your mobile. Note that videos shorter than 60 seconds will automatically be uploaded as Shorts.
Video upload on YouTube mobile
Step 3: Caption your YouTube video or a Short and tap “Visibility”.
Step 4: By default, YouTube will suggest publishing your video immediately. Select the “Schedule” tab to choose your publishing time and date.
Step 5: Select the day and time you want your video to get live and tap the “back” icon at the top of the screen.
YouTube video schedule on mobile app
Step 6: Tap “Upload Video” or “Upload Short” button at the bottom of the screen. Your video will be automatically uploaded at your selected time.
Scheduled video on YouTube
Specialized YouTube content scheduling tools can help you plan, organize, and automate your video uploads. Let’s review the top two tools that can streamline your content management.
Planable is a powerful social media management tool that enables you to plan, organize, and schedule your YouTube videos and posts for seven other social media platforms.
With Planable, you can collaborate with team members, ensuring seamless content creation, and use the approval system for a smooth content workflow. Not only that, but Planable also supports scheduling, review and approval for various types of written content, making it a handy solution for social media managers. Plus, its content calendar is perfect for nailing your Youtube strategy, keeping your posts consistent and engaging.
Here’s the step-by-step guide to scheduling videos on YouTube using Planable:
Connecting a YouTube account in Planable
YouTube video upload in Planable
Edit YouTube video thumbnail in Planable
Sync On/Off feature in Planable
Your YouTube video will be automatically published, and you won’t have to post a bunch of videos manually anymore.
At the moment, Planable doesn’t offer a YouTube Shorts scheduling tool as a standalone product. However, there is a workaround you could use to publish Shorts. You need to ensure the video is under 60 seconds and has the hashtag “#shorts” in the caption. This way, your video will be published as a Short at your scheduled time.
While the YouTube native scheduler offers basic scheduling capabilities, Planable provides a robust set of features that can significantly enhance your content management process.
Let’s review the additional benefits of our YouTube scheduler:
The YouTube upload scheduler lets you schedule only YouTube videos. But as a social media marketing manager, you probably manage multiple platforms.
That’s where Planable comes in handy. You can upload one video and, in just a few clicks, schedule the same video to be published on multiple social media channels.
Plannable supports 9 social media platforms:
With features like next-to-the-post comments, activity history, and notifications, your team can efficiently manage multiple accounts and work together to create and refine content before publication. YouTube’s native scheduler lacks these collaborative features, making Planable a more suitable choice for teams.
With Planable, you can conveniently access all your video content through the media library. This feature allows you to store and organize your media assets, including images and videos, in a centralized location.
By having a media library at your fingertips, you can easily browse, search, and select the desired files when scheduling posts or creating content. Whether you need to reuse existing visuals or upload new ones, the media library in Planable simplifies the process, saving you time and ensuring consistency in your content creation efforts.
Planable offers multiple content views, including visual calendar, list, feed, and grid views. It provides you with versatile ways to visualize and manage your content.
Hootsuite is a social media management tool that offers a range of features for scheduling and managing content across various platforms, including YouTube.
Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to schedule YouTube uploads on Hootsuite:
Hootsuite makes YouTube scheduling straightforward, but if you need more advanced collaboration or better pricing, it’s worth exploring Hootsuite competitors that offer similar workflows with added flexibility.
Scheduling YouTube videos ahead of time offers several benefits that can simplify your YouTube channel management and enhance your overall content and YouTube marketing strategy. Here are some key reasons to consider scheduling YouTube videos in advance:
Scheduling videos on your YouTube channel doesn’t impact the number of views your video receives. The visibility and success of your video primarily depend on factors like content quality, relevance, promotion, and audience engagement. Scheduling allows you to release videos at strategic times, which can potentially optimize viewership if you align with your target audience’s preferences.
The best time to schedule a YouTube video is between 2 to 4 pm (EST) on weekdays and between 9 to 11 am (EST) on weekends.
There’s no specific limit on how many videos you can schedule, whether you schedule videos using YouTube Studio or Planable. You can plan and schedule as many videos as your YouTube content strategy requires. However, it’s important to ensure you maintain a consistent uploading schedule that aligns with your audience’s expectations and your production capabilities.
Kate Starr is a freelance SaaS and MarTech content writer. With an extensive background in marketing, she mostly covers topics like digital marketing, social media marketing, and sales. When Kate doesn’t create stunning content, you can find her at the gym or exploring new cities.
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