YouTube Live Redirect sends viewers to a selected Premiere or another channel’s live stream after your own live stream or Premiere ends. You set it up in YouTube Studio, but the destination must be available to you and, for another channel’s stream, that channel must allow the redirect.
Check your eligibility and the recipient’s settings before you troubleshoot a missing destination. The redirect is an end-of-broadcast hand-off, not a way to move viewers while your source is still live.
What YouTube Live Redirect does
Live Redirect is a setting on a source broadcast or Premiere. When that source finishes, YouTube can move viewers to the destination you selected. The destination may be one of your own Premieres or another channel’s eligible live stream; it is not an unrestricted link field where you can enter any video or channel.
The timing matters. Your viewers remain with the source while it is live. Only after it ends does YouTube present the hand-off, and autoplay can take viewers to the destination. A viewer who has autoplay disabled may need to press Play. YouTube recommends telling people to wait briefly while the screen reloads rather than assuming the stream has frozen.
This can be useful for a bhajan channel ending a scheduled devotional stream before a Premiere, or for a community event handing viewers to a partner channel’s live coverage. It does not merge the two broadcasts or transfer the source’s chat; the destination is a separate viewing experience. If you are building a longer looping broadcast, first make the source dependable: for example, see this guide to diagnosing a YouTube bhajan stream that goes offline after an FFmpeg reconnect.
YouTube’s instructions are the authority for current controls and restrictions. Its Live Redirect Help page describes the setup and viewer hand-off. The available controls can change, so use the labels currently visible in Studio if an older tutorial or screenshot differs.
Check eligibility and destination access
Before planning the hand-off, check whether your channel can send a redirect. YouTube’s current Help guidance says the sending channel needs more than 1,000 subscribers and must have no Community Guidelines strikes. The feature does not bypass those conditions, even if the destination channel is willing to receive viewers.
For a destination on another channel, its owner or an authorised manager must allow your channel to redirect viewers to it. Receiving channels can control who may send them viewers, including allowing all channels, selected approved channels, or subscribed channels, as described in YouTube’s current settings. Ask the recipient to confirm its preference before your event rather than relying on a last-minute picker search.
A destination also needs to be in a state YouTube can offer. Another channel’s stream must be live or scheduled and permitted for your channel. A Premiere must be available as a selectable destination. If a planned stream is private, not scheduled, or outside the recipient’s permission rules, it may not appear. YouTube’s guidance on live streaming is worth checking alongside the redirect instructions, particularly if the channel is new or its live access is not yet established.
Use this order when the destination is missing:
- Confirm that the source channel meets YouTube’s sending eligibility requirements.
- Ask the other channel to check the redirect permission setting and confirm that your channel is allowed.
- Confirm the destination is live or scheduled, or that the intended Premiere is set up and available.
- Refresh Studio and reopen the source’s Customization settings.
These checks separate account eligibility from recipient authorisation and destination availability. That saves time: repeatedly searching the selector cannot make an unauthorised channel appear. For a 24/7 broadcast, keep the source setup itself stable too; this checklist for a YouTube playlist stream when OBS loses its media file after reboot covers a different failure point that can disrupt the source before any redirect is relevant.
YouTube’s feature overview also distinguishes stream formats: its live-streaming feature table lists Live Redirect for horizontal live streams and not vertical live feeds. If your channel relies on a vertical live format, do not assume this hand-off setting is supported; check the official page for the latest status and plan another way to tell viewers where to go.
Open the source stream in YouTube Studio
For a live stream that will send viewers elsewhere when it ends, open YouTube Studio and select Content, then the Live tab. Find the source broadcast in the list, hover over it, and choose Edit. In the stream’s settings, open Customization and locate Redirect.
The practical point is to edit the source, not the destination. The redirect setting belongs to the broadcast whose viewers you want to move. Selecting Add under Redirect opens the destinations that YouTube currently makes available to your channel. If you do not see the control, check eligibility and source type before assuming that a Studio fault is responsible.
You can prepare this before going live. Doing so gives you time to verify the destination, recipient permission, and title rather than trying to configure a hand-off in the final moments of a broadcast. It is especially helpful for a scheduled programme with an announced finish. Avoid promising that every viewer will arrive automatically: autoplay settings and individual choices affect what each person sees.
A redirect is separate from keeping a stream online continuously. If your aim is to run a prerecorded loop around the clock, the source still needs to stay live until you deliberately end it. This article on looping a meditation video for YouTube Live explains the source-video side of that task; Live Redirect handles the audience hand-off only after a source ends.
Choose a redirect destination
In the source’s Customization settings, use Redirect, select Add, and choose an available destination. Depending on your workflow, that may be a Premiere or another channel’s live stream. Search and select only what Studio actually offers; there is no guarantee that a particular channel or broadcast will be selectable.
| Destination | Best fit | Check before selecting |
|---|---|---|
| Your Premiere | Send viewers from a live programme to your own scheduled release or event | Set up the Premiere first and confirm it is available in the selector |
| Another channel’s live stream | Hand viewers to a partner, local news channel, or event host that is already live or scheduled | Confirm the recipient allows your channel and that the stream is available |
Choose based on the next thing you want a viewer to see, not merely on who owns the channel. A Premiere suits a planned release when you want your audience to gather around your own content. A partner stream suits a coordinated programme where the other channel is continuing coverage or hosting the next segment. In either case, tell viewers what is happening before you end the source, including the name of the destination and that the hand-off happens afterwards.
For another channel’s stream, coordinate a test of the permission arrangement well in advance, without assuming an unlisted or private broadcast will appear. The recipient’s settings determine whether your channel is allowed. If you manage a local news loop, for instance, make sure the destination channel has intentionally allowed your channel rather than relying on a viewer-facing subscription relationship alone.
After selecting the destination, review the source’s remaining settings and save the changes if Studio presents a save action. Reopen the source settings to confirm the destination is still selected. Keep a separate announcement in the source chat or description as a fallback, because a viewer may not follow autoplay or may leave before the source ends.
Set a redirect from a Premiere
A Premiere can also be the source. In YouTube Studio, open Content, choose Live, find the Premiere, and select Edit. Go to Customization, then find Redirect, choose Add, and select an available Premiere or eligible live stream as the destination.
This is useful when a scheduled video release is the first part of a programme and viewers should then move to a live discussion or a second Premiere. The source Premiere needs to be configured as the thing ending; selecting a destination does not make that destination start early. Viewers are handed over only when the Premiere ends.
Set up the destination first so it is ready to select and so you can give viewers a clear instruction. YouTube’s Premieres Help page explains how to create and schedule a Premiere. If the destination is another channel’s live stream, the recipient permission requirement still applies; using a Premiere as the source does not remove it.
YouTube also recommends using the Premiere watch page’s live chat to point people towards the stream when that is the intended next step. A pinned message can name the destination and ask viewers to wait while the player changes. Keep that message accurate: if the stream is delayed, tell people where to find it rather than suggesting that the redirect has already happened.
Prepare the audience and the hand-off
A redirect setting is only one part of a smooth transition. Before the source ends, explain what is next in plain language: “When this stream finishes, wait a few seconds for the partner channel’s live coverage to open.” Avoid asking people to click immediately while the source is still playing, because the feature’s hand-off takes place after the source ends.
If the receiving programme has a different title or channel identity, name it. Viewers may otherwise see a new channel or player and assume they have landed somewhere unintended. For a devotional channel moving from a long bhajan stream to a scheduled Premiere, explain whether the next item is a new recording, a live prayer session, or a partner’s programme.
Do not treat the redirect as the only route to the next programme. You can also mention the destination in the source description or chat and ensure the destination’s own title and thumbnail make the next step recognisable. This is useful for viewers who disable autoplay, close the player, or arrive after the source has ended. It also gives moderators something specific to repeat if people ask where the broadcast went.
For a long-running source, end it deliberately when you are ready for the hand-off. A lost connection or an unexpected interruption is not a reliable transition plan. If the source is intended to run unattended, think through how it will be monitored and recovered; a discussion of why an always-on YouTube live stream can stop overnight is relevant to that separate operating problem. StreamNeo can remove the need to keep your own computer running a prerecorded source, so you can focus on the planned end-of-stream hand-off rather than nursing a local machine overnight.
What happens when the source ends
When the source stream or Premiere ends, YouTube displays a confirmation that viewers will be redirected, and autoplay can move them to the selected destination. This is when the hand-off occurs. Until then, the source continues to be the programme viewers are watching; redirect does not start the destination over the top of it.
Some viewers may need to press Play if they have disabled autoplay. YouTube advises allowing a few seconds for the player to reload. Tell viewers about that pause before the source ends, and avoid interpreting a brief blank or loading state as proof that the setup failed.
After the event, check the destination from a viewer’s perspective if possible. Confirm that it was the intended Premiere or stream and that its title and opening context make sense for people arriving from somewhere else. If viewers report that they stayed on the source’s end screen, check whether autoplay was disabled and whether the source actually ended; then verify the saved destination and permission rules before changing settings.
Live Redirect does not guarantee that every viewer transfers, nor does it grant access to another channel. It is a way for YouTube to offer an end-of-source transition under the platform’s eligibility and destination rules. Keep a fallback announcement available and use the current Studio interface and Help guidance when you plan the next broadcast.
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FAQ
Does Live Redirect start the next stream before mine ends?
No. The selected destination is offered after your source stream or Premiere ends. Viewers remain with the source until then, and the hand-off can take a few seconds to appear.
Why can’t I find another channel’s stream?
Your channel must meet YouTube’s eligibility requirements, and the recipient must allow your channel to redirect viewers. The destination also needs to be live or scheduled and available to YouTube’s selector; check those conditions before troubleshooting the interface.
Can I redirect viewers to a Premiere?
Yes. You can choose an available Premiere as a destination, and a Premiere can also be configured as the source whose viewers are redirected when it ends. Set up the destination first so you can confirm that it appears in Studio.
Does every viewer move automatically?
No. Autoplay can move viewers, but people who have turned autoplay off may need to press Play. Tell your audience to wait briefly for the player to reload and give them a clear fallback route to the destination.