YouTube publishes MP4, H.264, and HDR upload specs
YouTube has published its recommended upload encoding settings for videos, detailing specifications for container format (MP4), audio codecs (AAC-LC, Opus, Eclipsa Audio), video codec (H.264), frame rates, and bitrates for Standard Dynamic Range (SDR) and High Dynamic Range (HDR) content. The guidelines also specify color space recommendations for SDR uploads, primarily BT.709, and outline how YouTube standardizes or converts color space values during processing.
Key Takeaways
- MP4 uploads should use no Edit Lists and keep the moov atom at the front of the file for Fast Start processing.
- YouTube recommends AAC-LC, Opus, or Eclipsa Audio at 48kHz, with 128 kbps mono, 384 kbps stereo, and 512 kbps for 5.1.
- For video, YouTube specifies H.264, progressive scan, High Profile, 2 consecutive B frames, closed GOP, CABAC, variable bitrate, and 4:2:0 chroma subsampling.
- SDR bitrate guidance tops out at 80–160 Mbps for 8K and 35–45 Mbps for 2160p, while HDR guidance goes to 100–200 Mbps for 8K and 44–56 Mbps for 2160p.
- YouTube recommends BT.709 for SDR uploads and says it will standardize or convert unsupported color spaces during processing.
Why It Matters
For content owners using YouTube Studio Content Manager, the document removes guesswork from delivery specs by spelling out accepted container, codec, bitrate, and color-space settings. It also shows how YouTube normalizes mixed or missing metadata, which matters for SDR playback consistency and for avoiding processing issues tied to unsupported matrices or interlaced video. The clearest signal to watch is whether YouTube expands the same level of detail to HDR guidance in the linked HDR upload article, since this page explicitly defers those settings there.
Read full article at support.google.com
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