How to optimise a YouTube video
- Research the topic with YouTube autocomplete and what already ranks.
- Title: put the main keyword early and make it compelling. Keep it under about 70 characters so it isn't cut off.
- Thumbnail: a clear custom thumbnail that matches the title. It drives click-through rate.
- Description: the first two lines show in search, so summarise the video there. Add links, chapters and related keywords naturally.
- Chapters (timestamps): help viewers and can appear as "key moments" in Google.
- Captions: upload accurate captions or correct the automatic ones.
- Hook viewers early: the first 30 seconds decide retention.
- Playlists and end screens keep viewers watching your channel.
- Tags: minor. YouTube says they matter mainly for commonly misspelled terms.
Video SEO on your website
To rank videos in Google from your own site, give each important video its own page with a title, description and transcript, add VideoObject schema, and make sure the video is visible without clicks. Embedding YouTube videos is fine; the ranking video will usually be the YouTube version.
Questions answered
What is YouTube SEO?
YouTube SEO is optimising video titles, thumbnails, descriptions, captions and viewer engagement so videos rank in YouTube and Google search.
How do I do SEO on YouTube?
Research keywords, write a clear title with the keyword early, design a strong thumbnail, write a detailed description with chapters, add captions and keep viewers watching.
Do YouTube tags help SEO?
Only slightly. YouTube says tags play a minimal role, mainly helping with misspellings. Titles, thumbnails, descriptions and watch time matter far more.
What is a good SEO score on YouTube?
YouTube has no official SEO score. Scores in tools like TubeBuddy or vidIQ are estimates; focus on click-through rate and audience retention in YouTube Studio.
How long should a YouTube title be?
YouTube allows 100 characters, but keep the important words in the first 60 to 70 so they show in search.
How do I write a YouTube description for SEO?
Summarise the video in the first two lines, include the main keyword naturally, add chapters, links and a short call to action.
What is video SEO?
Video SEO is optimising videos so they rank in YouTube and in Google's video results, including on your own website with VideoObject schema and transcripts.
Do captions help YouTube SEO?
Yes. Accurate captions make your video accessible and give YouTube and Google text to understand the content.