Link and auto-post to YouTube

YouTube auto-posts from the web app and the mobile app once the channel is linked. At the scheduled time Planoly uploads the video to your channel with the title, description, and visibility you set.

Link YouTube

1. Select the YouTube avatar in the channel row at the top right. If it is not in the row, select + to see the rest.
2. Choose Link Account.
3. Sign in with Google and allow Planoly access to your YouTube account. Planoly asks Google to show the permission screen on every link, even if you allowed it before.
4. Under Select a YouTube page, pick the channel you want and choose Connect. The list holds every channel on that Google account, each labelled Channel, and appears even when there is only one.

If the Google account has no channel yet, linking stops with This Google account doesn't have a YouTube channel yet. Create a channel on YouTube, then reconnect.

When the link completes you return to the page you started from.

On mobile, open the workspace's channel list, tap the YouTube row, then tap Link account.

Schedule a YouTube post

1. Select Create Post, then add YouTube to the post.
2. Upload one video. YouTube takes a single video and no images.
3. Check the banner under the media. Planoly reads the file and shows This video will post as a Short or This video will post as a long-form video. A vertical video of 3 minutes or less shows as a Short, anything else as long-form. There is no post type picker; YouTube makes the final call when the upload lands.
4. Add a Title at the top of the caption box. It is required and can run to 100 characters.
5. Write the description in the caption box. An auto-post needs at least one character.
6. Set Visibility and Notify subscribers from the tools under the caption. See below.
7. Under Posting method, choose Auto-post.
8. Pick a date and time at least 10 minutes ahead, then schedule the post.

YouTube options

• Visibility — Public, Unlisted, or Private. A new post starts as Public.
• Notify subscribers — on by default. Turn it off to upload without sending your subscribers a notification.

Neither the title nor the description can contain < or >. Planoly flags either one before you can schedule.

The upload carries the title, description, visibility, and the notify choice. Planoly does not set a thumbnail, playlist, tags, or category.

Limits

Planoly checks these before it will schedule a YouTube auto-post, except the daily cap, which it checks at publish time.

• One video per post. Images are not accepted.
• Title: 1 to 100 characters, with no < or >.
• Description: 5,000 bytes. Planoly counts UTF-8 bytes, so an accented letter costs two and most emoji four. The counter under the caption shows the byte count.
• 5 YouTube posts per workspace in any 24 hours, counting auto-posts and reminder posts you mark as posted. Planoly fails the sixth at publish time.

Duration, file size, aspect ratio, and the hashtag cap are in Media requirements for auto-post.

Frequently asked questions

How do I post a Short?

Upload a vertical video that runs 3 minutes or less and is no taller than 9:16. The banner under the media confirms it will post as a Short. A vertical video taller than 9:16 is still treated as a Short and rejected for its aspect ratio. The banner shows a vertical video longer than 3 minutes, or any landscape or square video, as long-form; YouTube decides the final format, and a square clip of 3 minutes or less may still land as a Short.

Can I choose a thumbnail?

Not from Planoly. There is no thumbnail picker on the YouTube tab in the web or mobile post builder.

Why did my video fail with a daily upload limit?

Planoly allows 5 YouTube posts per workspace in any 24 hours, counting auto-posts and reminder posts you mark as posted. The sixth fails when its time comes. Move it to a later day.

Can I give YouTube a different description from the other channels in the same post?

Yes. Add the channels to one post and select each channel's tab to write its own description, swap its media, and set its own options. Under scheduling, Customize per channel also lets each channel go out at its own time.

What happens when I unlink the channel?

Unlink Account switches the channel to reminder mode and converts its scheduled YouTube posts to reminders. Link Account on the same avatar turns auto-post back on for the channel. Posts that unlinking converted stay reminders; open each one and set Posting method back to Auto-post.