YouTube
YouTube usually needs more metadata than short-form networks. UniPost exposes those controls in `platform_options.youtube` while keeping the publish flow consistent with the rest of the platform set.
Single-video publishing with rich metadata, Shorts, and playlist insertion.
At a glance
Publishing
Supported
Scheduling
Supported
Analytics
Limited
Inbox
Not supported
Connection
OAuth via Google — Quickstart and White-label both supported
Feature matrix
| Feature | Support | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Video posts | ✓ | Exactly 1 video |
| Shorts | ✓ | Use platform_options.youtube.shorts |
| Scheduling | ✓ | Use scheduled_at or platform_options.youtube.publish_at |
| Playlist insertion | ✓ | Use platform_options.youtube.playlist_id |
| Analytics | Partial | Likes, comments, and view count today |
| Text-only posts | X | Video-first platform |
| Image posts | X | Not a native publish target |
| Inbox / comments | X | Not part of the UniPost inbox today |
Known constraints
| Limitation | Why |
|---|---|
| Daily safety cap | 50 publishes/day per connected YouTube channel (UTC reset). Failed uploads do not count toward the cap. |
| Title is required and does not fall back to caption | platform_options.youtube.title must be set explicitly |
made_for_kids must be explicit | YouTube refuses uploads without an audience choice |
| No inbox surface | Comment moderation is not in UniPost inbox today |
Publishing
Ready to publish?Use the shared Publishing guide for hosted URLs, local file uploads, preflight validation, and async publish status. Then use the YouTube examples below for platform-specific payload shape.
Publish examples by surface
Each example calls POST/v1/posts with Bearer auth. Swap the account_ids for your own, then copy the snippet for your language.
Long-form video from a hosted URL
Long-form video from UniPost media library
med_uploaded_video_1 is a placeholder for the media ID returned by POST/v1/media after you reserve the upload and PUT the video bytes to UniPost storage.
Scheduled private upload with playlist insertion
Media & field requirements
| Field | Required | Limits | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| media_urls or media_ids | Required | Exactly 1 video | Prefer media_ids when starting from a local file. Create the media ID with POST/v1/media, upload the file to the returned upload_url, then publish. |
| caption | Optional | 5,000 chars | Used as YouTube description text. |
| platform_options.youtube.title | Required | max 100 chars | Required video title. This does not fall back to caption. |
| platform_options.youtube.made_for_kids | Required | boolean | Explicit audience selection required before publish. |
| platform_options.youtube.privacy_status | Optional | private / public / unlisted | Dashboard defaults to public, but YouTube may still force private for unverified API projects. |
| platform_options.youtube.shorts | Optional | boolean | Routes the upload toward Shorts behavior |
Hosted URLs: pass the public URL in media_urls. Local files: reserve an upload with POST/v1/media, PUT the bytes to the returned upload_url, then publish with media_ids. Full flow in the Publishing guide.
Media specifications
Per-surface limits for text, images, and video. These are the source of truth UniPost uses for preflight validation and media optimization — treat hard-limit values as enforced and "recommended" values as platform guidance.
Video (long-form)
Default YouTube upload surface. Metadata (title + audience) is required; thumbnail is optional.
| Type | Requirement | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Text | Title | 100 chars (required, cannot fall back to caption) |
| Text | Description | 5,000 chars |
| Text | Tags | 500 chars total across all tags |
| Text | Made for kids | Required boolean — no default |
| Image | Thumbnail formats | JPG, PNG, GIF (2 MB max) |
| Image | Thumbnail dimensions | 1,280 × 720 recommended (min 640 wide), 16:9 |
| Image | Thumbnail support | Video only — Shorts do not accept custom thumbnails |
| Video | Formats | MP4, MOV, WebM (UniPost v1 — YouTube also accepts AVI / WMV / FLV / 3GPP / MPEG-PS via direct upload, but UniPost rejects those at validate) |
| Video | Max file size | 256 GB |
| Video | Duration | Verified channels: up to 12 hr. Unverified: 15 min. |
| Video | Aspect ratio | 16:9 standard (others pillar-/letterboxed by YouTube) |
| Video | Resolution | Min 240p; up to 4,320p (8K). 1,080p or 2,160p recommended |
| Video | Frame rate | 24, 25, 30, 48, 50, or 60 fps (progressive) |
| Video | Codec | H.264 high profile recommended; H.265 accepted |
| Video | Bitrate | 8 Mbps (1080p SDR) – 68 Mbps (2160p HDR) |
| Video | Audio | AAC-LC stereo or 5.1, 48 kHz, up to 384 kbps |
Shorts
Vertical short-form upload. Classified as a Short automatically when the upload is ≤ 3 min and vertical.
| Type | Requirement | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Text | Title | 100 chars (required) |
| Text | Description | 5,000 chars |
| Text | #shorts tag | Optional — adding to title/description historically boosted Shorts surfacing |
| Video | Max file size | 256 GB (rarely used in practice) |
| Video | Duration | ≤ 3 min (Oct 2024 cap) |
| Video | Aspect ratio | 9:16 vertical |
| Video | Dimensions | 1,080 × 1,920 recommended |
| Video | Frame rate | 30 fps typical (24 – 60 accepted) |
| Video | Codec | H.264 |
| Video | Audio | AAC-LC stereo, 128 kbps |
Platform-specific options
| Option | Values | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| platform_options.youtube.category_id | string | YouTube category ID |
| platform_options.youtube.tags | string[] | Tag list for snippet metadata |
| platform_options.youtube.default_language | string | BCP-47 style language tag such as en or en-US. |
| platform_options.youtube.recording_date | string | Recording date as YYYY-MM-DD or RFC3339 datetime. |
| platform_options.youtube.publish_at | string | RFC3339 datetime. Requires privacy_status: private. |
| platform_options.youtube.notify_subscribers | boolean | Defaults to true when omitted. |
| platform_options.youtube.embeddable | boolean | Whether the video can be embedded off YouTube. |
| platform_options.youtube.license | youtube / creativeCommon | YouTube license selection. |
| platform_options.youtube.public_stats_viewable | boolean | Controls extended public stats visibility. |
| platform_options.youtube.contains_synthetic_media | boolean | Disclosure flag for realistic altered/synthetic media. |
| platform_options.youtube.playlist_id | string | If set, UniPost calls playlistItems.insert after the upload succeeds. |
Analytics
| Metric | Support | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Video views | ✓ | Supported |
| Likes | ✓ | Supported |
| Comments | ✓ | Supported |
| Impressions | X | YouTube Data API does not expose impressions per video |
| Reach | X | Not exposed by YouTube Data API |
| Shares | X | Not exposed by YouTube Data API |
| Saves | X | Not exposed by YouTube Data API |
Connection modes
Pick the setup that matches how the account is owned. Quickstart is fastest when you publish to your own accounts; White-label is required when your customers bring their own accounts through a branded flow. Full setup details in Quickstart and White-label.
| Mode | Best for | App / credentials | Availability |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quickstart | Fast setup — UniPost handles OAuth | UniPost-managed app | Free / paid quota |
| White-label | Your customers connect their own accounts | Your OAuth app | Paid plans only |
| Verification | Unverified Google projects cap uploads and may force private | Complete YouTube API verification for public uploads | — |
Validation errors
| Code | What it means |
|---|---|
| media_required | YouTube requires exactly one video |
| too_many_media | More than one media asset supplied |
| invalid_privacy_status | YouTube privacy value is not recognized |
| youtube_made_for_kids_required | YouTube requires an explicit made_for_kids value |
| youtube_publish_at_requires_private | YouTube publish_at only works with private visibility |
| invalid_license | YouTube license value is not recognized |