YouTube Create is a free phone app for editing Shorts and long-form YouTube videos. Before you start, check that you can sign in, that your phone meets YouTube’s requirements, and that Create is available where you live.
It is not a desktop editor: the documented workflow starts with a supported Android phone or iPhone, and finishes by saving a video to that phone or uploading it to YouTube. This guide takes you through the checks, project setup, editing tools and export choices, including the limits that can affect captions and music.
Check that you can use YouTube Create
You need a Google account to sign in and a supported phone. YouTube Help currently lists Android phones with at least 4 GB of RAM, or an iPhone XR or newer running iOS 17 or later. These are eligibility requirements, not a guarantee that every feature will appear on every qualifying phone.
You also need to be in a country or region where the app is available. YouTube’s list includes Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States. Availability can change, so check the current YouTube Create availability page before planning a project around it.
The broad device and location check is separate from eligibility for individual tools. For example, YouTube says some AI features are experimental and limited to selected creators and locations. The availability list for one feature may not match another, and it should not be taken as a promise that the feature will appear in your app.
YouTube Help describes Create as a free app without ads for editing Shorts and long-form videos. That does not make it a desktop workflow: if you want to cut footage on a computer, organise a large project on a big screen, or rely on desktop-only controls, choose a suitable desktop editor instead. You can still transfer a finished phone export elsewhere later, but the editing steps here take place in the app.
For a 24/7 channel, think of Create as a way to prepare an individual video, not a way to run a continuous live broadcast. If you are exploring the separate question of turning recordings into an always-on channel, this overview of cloud streaming and streaming proxies explains the difference in broad terms. It is not a prerequisite for using Create.
Start a project on your phone
Install YouTube Create from the relevant app store if it is available to you, open it and sign in with the Google account you intend to use. The account matters again when you upload: Create associates an upload with the channel signed in within the app, so pause before editing if you manage multiple channels.
To begin, tap the plus button to create a project. Choose photos and videos from your phone’s gallery, or import media from another app, then tap Import. You can add multiple photos and videos to a project. The app’s project flow is built around bringing source material into the phone editor before arranging and refining it.
Keep the project’s purpose in mind before importing everything. A short vertical clip for a Short may need a different selection of shots from a longer explainer, devotional reading or local-news update. Choosing the useful source material first makes it easier to find the right moments on the timeline and reduces the chance that you spend time polishing footage you will later remove.
If you are filming specifically for the edit, a smartphone tripod is an optional way to steady the phone while recording. It is not an app requirement, and YouTube does not require an add-on to start a project. You can also import footage you have already recorded; the key is that the media must be accessible to the phone workflow.
Treat a project as work in progress, not as your only copy of a finished video. YouTube’s troubleshooting guidance warns that existing projects can be lost if you delete the app or move to a new phone. Export completed work to your device gallery before either change, and keep any source footage you may need to edit again.
Choose and import your media
After tapping Import, look over the selected clips and images in context. Check that the important parts are present, that the order makes sense, and that the footage is suitable for the shape and duration you have in mind. A project can contain both still images and video, which is useful for a simple sequence of spoken footage, title cards and supporting images.
You do not have to use every imported item. Start with the essential opening, the main material and a clear ending, then decide whether extra shots add useful information. For a study or ambience video, that might mean choosing the visual you want to hold on screen; for a news loop, it might mean selecting the clips that support the update rather than adding unrelated footage simply because it is available.
YouTube also documents templates, which provide ready-made structures for categories such as cooking, travel and fashion. The template flow is to browse and choose a structure, add gallery or imported media, select portions of clips, then export or open the full editor. The cited template guidance specifies Android phones with at least 4 GB of RAM; do not assume template support on iPhone based on that guidance. Check the current in-app options on your own device.
A template can be a useful starting point when its structure fits your material, but it does not replace editorial decisions. Review the clip selections and timing rather than assuming the suggested arrangement tells the story you want. If a template is unavailable, you can work from a standard project and build the sequence with the editing tools.
For creators producing material for an always-on channel, a Create export can become one prepared video asset rather than the continuous broadcast itself. If you are considering how a prerecorded playlist is turned into a channel, this guide to starting a 24/7 YouTube playlist stream with OneStream Live in India discusses a different workflow. Create handles phone-based editing; it does not replace the separate process of keeping a live stream running.
Work with the editing tools
The timeline is where you bring the imported material into a sequence and refine it. Start by checking the order and the cuts, then add editorial elements where they help someone follow the video. Avoid adding text, effects or transitions merely because they are available: each layer should clarify what is happening or make the finished piece easier to watch.
Text controls include plain text and text effects. You can edit the wording, change its size, font, colour, background and formatting, and apply an outline or shadow. Text can be animated and dragged to a position on screen. You can also split a text layer, which is useful when one phrase needs to end before the next appears or when wording should change over the course of a clip.
Check text against the image behind it. A title that is readable over a plain wall may disappear over a busy devotional image or a moving street scene. Preview the timing as well as the styling: leave the words visible long enough to read, and make sure they do not cover a face, a relevant detail or other text that needs to remain on screen.
Create can generate captions by transcribing speech or an in-app voiceover. The generated words are a draft to inspect, not a reason to skip proofreading. Names, devotional terms, local place names and speech in a noisy recording deserve particular attention. You can edit and style captions in the app, but YouTube Help says caption generation is not available for clips longer than 60 seconds. If your clip is longer, plan to add captions another way or work within the documented limit rather than expecting generation to cover it.
Voiceover and caption language choices should be checked in the app. Do not assume that a language option or generated result will be available for every account or recording. Once captions are edited, review them against the audio from beginning to end; a transcription error can change the meaning even when the line looks neatly formatted.
You may see AI options, but treat them as limited experiments rather than core steps in the workflow. As listed by YouTube Help in September 2026, Gemini Omni creates vertical clips up to 10 seconds and is listed for Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand and the United States. Nano Banana image generation is listed for users over 18 in those same locations, with English or Hindi prompts. YouTube also lists Edit with AI separately for Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Türkiye and the United States; its initial voiceover languages are Bengali, English, Hindi and Portuguese. These rollout details are volatile. Check YouTube’s AI features guidance and what appears in your own app before relying on an AI feature.
Shape the edit for Shorts or long-form video
YouTube Create supports both Shorts and long-form editing, but the intended destination affects choices throughout the project. For a Short, decide early which moment should make sense in a vertical frame, then keep text and important visual details within that composition. A clip that looks balanced in a wider frame may crop out a speaker or a key part of the scene when viewed vertically.
For a longer video, consider the sequence as a whole. Give the viewer enough context to understand the subject, make changes in the image or supporting material serve a purpose, and check that text remains relevant for its full appearance. A series of stills may work for a devotional explanation, while an interview or local update may need cuts that follow the speaker and retain the important parts of what they say.
Music needs special attention if you use tracks from the Shorts Audio Library. YouTube Help describes different outcomes depending on how you finish the project: a local export longer than 15 seconds has that library music automatically removed, while direct upload supports licensed music clips up to 60 seconds. These rules make the destination an editing decision, not merely a final button to press.
If the music must remain with a local file, do not assume that a track from that library will survive export. Check the current YouTube guidance, select a route that fits your intended use, and review the exported or uploaded result. A direct upload’s music allowance is not a blanket statement about all music, all uses or every destination.
The same destination thinking applies to captions and graphics. A short phone export intended for another platform, a YouTube Short, and a longer upload may each call for a different edit. If you are developing clips as source material for a continuing channel, this article on growing a 24/7 YouTube sleep music stream without annoying viewers covers channel-level considerations; it is separate from Create’s editing features.
Review the finished project
Before finishing, play the project from the beginning rather than checking only the last edit you made. Look for missing or repeated shots, abrupt cuts, text that appears too late, captions that do not match the speech, and effects or transitions that distract from the material. Listening while watching is important even when the visuals appear complete.
Check the intended viewing format as well. For a Short, inspect whether framing and text work vertically. For a longer video, check that the opening gives enough context and that the ending does not stop midway through a sentence or musical phrase. If you have used captions, correct the transcript and confirm that its appearance is readable against the video.
A complex project may fail to export on a phone that is near its capacity. YouTube’s troubleshooting guidance suggests removing overlapping video layers, stickers, effects or transitions, or reducing export quality from 1080p to 720p. Treat that as a practical troubleshooting step, not a general quality recommendation: first try simplifying the project, then decide whether a lower export quality is acceptable for your use.
If a preview or export behaves unexpectedly, simplify one layer at a time and test again. That makes it easier to identify whether an overlap, effect or transition is causing trouble. Keep the source media available until you have checked the output, especially if the project would take time to reconstruct.
Export, upload and keep a copy
Once the preview is right, choose whether to export the video to your phone at a selected quality or upload directly to YouTube. Exporting gives you a local file in the device gallery to review and retain; direct upload is useful when the intended destination is the channel signed in within Create. Confirm that this is the correct account and channel before you upload, particularly if you switch between a personal channel and a business or community channel.
An upload also depends on a strong connection. If it stalls, check the connection and make sure Create is signed in to the account associated with the channel you intend to use. The app’s signed-in channel determines where the video is associated, so do not assume that a later account selection elsewhere on your phone changes the destination.
Music can change your choice. For Shorts Audio Library tracks, YouTube Help says local exports longer than 15 seconds lose the music automatically, while direct uploads support licensed clips up to 60 seconds. If you need a file on your phone for review or another step, consider whether the music will be absent and whether that is acceptable before you export.
After finishing, keep a copy of the output in your device gallery before deleting Create or changing phones. YouTube warns that projects can be lost in either case; an exported video preserves the rendered result, though it is not the same as a fully editable project. Keep original footage too if you expect to make substantial changes later.
For creators whose next step is a continuous prerecorded channel, the edit and the broadcast are separate jobs. StreamNeo can remove the need to keep your own computer switched on to carry a prepared video into a 24/7 YouTube stream; Create remains the phone app for making and exporting the source video.
Before committing, compare the operating options on the pricing page. When the file and channel are ready, start free — 24-hour trial, no card.
FAQ
Is YouTube Create available on a computer?
No. YouTube Create is a phone app, with eligibility guidance for supported Android phones and iPhones. If you need to edit on a computer, use a desktop editor rather than expecting the Create workflow to run there.
Can I use YouTube Create in India?
India is on YouTube Help’s supported locations list, and the app also has device and sign-in requirements. Check the current availability guidance and your phone’s requirements before planning a project around it.
Can Create generate captions for a long video?
YouTube Help says Create cannot generate captions for clips longer than 60 seconds. For longer material, plan to add captions another way or divide the work according to your needs, then proofread any captions you do generate.
Will Shorts Audio Library music stay in my exported video?
Not necessarily. YouTube Help says that music is automatically removed from a local export longer than 15 seconds; direct upload supports licensed clips up to 60 seconds. Check the current guidance and preview the result through the route you intend to use.