Creative Commons Legalities Explained Simply

How to Use Creative Commons Copyright Licenses [Complete Guide]

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

You might have noticed that, when you post a video, you get to choose how you want to copyright it: standard license, or creative commons. You’ve also probably noticed that when you looking for royalty-free music or stock footage a lot of it is licensed through creative commons.

So, what exactly are creative commons ?

To hold the copyright to a creative work means that you own it, and anybody who wants to use your work for anything (i.e. uses a song you composed in their YouTube video) has to do so on your terms. When you license your work through creative commons you do not give up your rights to your creative work (a common misconception).

When you use a creative commons license you are outlining the terms under which other creators are allowed to use your creations in their projects for free if they credit you for your work.

If you do not want anyone using your work for free in any context, you stick to traditional copyrighting.

But if you’ve created a piece of music, a photograph, or a clip that you wouldn’t mind other people using, potentially as a way to get your name out there, you might want to consider creative commons.

There are 6 different creative commons licenses. Which is right for you will depend on your answers to these two questions:

Are you okay with a creator making money off of something they create using your work?

Are you okay with a creator producing a derivative of your work?

To say ‘no derivatives’ is to say ‘I’m okay with people using it, so long as they don’t change it’. One example of a derivative is a techno remix of a song. If you are alright with other creators making derivatives of your work, you may also want to require them to ‘ShareAlike’. ShareAlike means that the creator of that techno remix of your song has to use the same creative commons license you used for your original to distribute the remix.

An example of a derivative someone might make of a YouTube video would be auto-tuning it to make a song or cutting up your video to make one that’s just ‘the funny parts’.

Here are the 6 creative commons licenses, and a chart you can use as a quick reference tool.

Attribution – CC BY

If you’re using music or other media with this license, all you need to do is credit the artist.

If you license your video this way, people can do whatever they like with any element of it (video or sound) so long as they credit you. I.e. if someone wanted to mute your clips and use you as stock footage in a bigger project, they could.

Attribution-ShareAlike – CC BY-SA

If you use music, photos, or any other media licensed this way, then you must both credit the artist and license your video this same way. Meaning, you can’t use YouTube’s standard license and must instead allow for others to use your work the way you are using the licensed media.

If you apply this license to your video, you’re saying you don’t mind people using all or portions of your video for their project so long as they allow others to use their work in the same way.

Attribution-NoDerivs – CC BY-ND

This one can get tricky.

Essentially, you can use media licensed this way so long as you don’t alter it or create a different version. For example, you can’t take a song licensed this way and use it in a mashup with another song. That part is clear. Where it gets tricky is when you want to use a song in your video.

Under normal copyright rules, using a royalty-free song in the background of your video would not count as creating a derivative. The definition of derivative according to creative commons is a bit broader and includes ‘syncing’. This means you can’t take an ‘Attribution-NoDerivs’ song and create any kind of music video for it.

For example, you can’t edit clips of yourself snowboarding so that they’re in sync with a song that has this license.

Whether or not you can play the song in the background of your vlog while you are speaking can be a bit of a grey area. In theory, it shouldn’t be a problem, but if you’re accessing the music through a social site like SoundCloud then it might be best to ask the artist first.

There’s no reason to license your YouTube videos this way. If people cannot alter your video, all that’s left is for them to repost it. Even though they’d also be crediting you, they’d still essentially be stealing views and ad revenue from your original video.

Attribution-NonCommercial – CC BY-NC

If you’re using stock footage, music, or stock photos licensed this way then you should still be able to monetize your video. YouTube monetization and commercial use are different things. However, there is a lot of confusion about this issue, and chances are the rights holder intends for this license to mean ‘no monetization’.

What you definitely could not do with a NonCommercial license is to use the song/other media in an actual commercial for a product, including product placement that a brand is paying you for.

If you license your video this way, people can use it in whatever way they like so long as they credit you and don’t try to make money off of it. Once again, that doesn’t mean they can’t use it in a YouTube video which they monetize because, technically, they’d be making money off of the ad that ran ahead of the video and not the video itself.

The thing to be careful of with this license is that it’s not ‘ShareAlike’. So, if you license your video this way somebody could use your clips as stock footage and then provide them - as part of their project – for free to a third person to use in a project they were making money off of.

Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike – CC BY-NC-SA

Music and other media with an ‘Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike’ license can be used in and altered for your videos, so long as you aren’t making money off those videos. You must also use this same license for the video you create using elements licensed this way.

If you license your video this way, people can use it or a portion of it in their project if they credit you. They must also use this same license for their video if they do. This protects you from the situation where a third person who never licensed your original content is making money off of it.

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs – CC BY-NC-ND

There aren’t many situations where you would be using media licensed this way in your YouTube videos. You can’t alter it, sync videos to it, or make money from any video that uses it.

You also probably shouldn’t use this license for your videos. ‘NoDerivs’ means there are not many ways people could use your content, except to repost full videos and steal your views.

Edit Video with the Most Excellent Video Editor

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

You might have noticed that, when you post a video, you get to choose how you want to copyright it: standard license, or creative commons. You’ve also probably noticed that when you looking for royalty-free music or stock footage a lot of it is licensed through creative commons.

So, what exactly are creative commons ?

To hold the copyright to a creative work means that you own it, and anybody who wants to use your work for anything (i.e. uses a song you composed in their YouTube video) has to do so on your terms. When you license your work through creative commons you do not give up your rights to your creative work (a common misconception).

When you use a creative commons license you are outlining the terms under which other creators are allowed to use your creations in their projects for free if they credit you for your work.

If you do not want anyone using your work for free in any context, you stick to traditional copyrighting.

But if you’ve created a piece of music, a photograph, or a clip that you wouldn’t mind other people using, potentially as a way to get your name out there, you might want to consider creative commons.

There are 6 different creative commons licenses. Which is right for you will depend on your answers to these two questions:

Are you okay with a creator making money off of something they create using your work?

Are you okay with a creator producing a derivative of your work?

To say ‘no derivatives’ is to say ‘I’m okay with people using it, so long as they don’t change it’. One example of a derivative is a techno remix of a song. If you are alright with other creators making derivatives of your work, you may also want to require them to ‘ShareAlike’. ShareAlike means that the creator of that techno remix of your song has to use the same creative commons license you used for your original to distribute the remix.

An example of a derivative someone might make of a YouTube video would be auto-tuning it to make a song or cutting up your video to make one that’s just ‘the funny parts’.

Here are the 6 creative commons licenses, and a chart you can use as a quick reference tool.

Attribution – CC BY

If you’re using music or other media with this license, all you need to do is credit the artist.

If you license your video this way, people can do whatever they like with any element of it (video or sound) so long as they credit you. I.e. if someone wanted to mute your clips and use you as stock footage in a bigger project, they could.

Attribution-ShareAlike – CC BY-SA

If you use music, photos, or any other media licensed this way, then you must both credit the artist and license your video this same way. Meaning, you can’t use YouTube’s standard license and must instead allow for others to use your work the way you are using the licensed media.

If you apply this license to your video, you’re saying you don’t mind people using all or portions of your video for their project so long as they allow others to use their work in the same way.

Attribution-NoDerivs – CC BY-ND

This one can get tricky.

Essentially, you can use media licensed this way so long as you don’t alter it or create a different version. For example, you can’t take a song licensed this way and use it in a mashup with another song. That part is clear. Where it gets tricky is when you want to use a song in your video.

Under normal copyright rules, using a royalty-free song in the background of your video would not count as creating a derivative. The definition of derivative according to creative commons is a bit broader and includes ‘syncing’. This means you can’t take an ‘Attribution-NoDerivs’ song and create any kind of music video for it.

For example, you can’t edit clips of yourself snowboarding so that they’re in sync with a song that has this license.

Whether or not you can play the song in the background of your vlog while you are speaking can be a bit of a grey area. In theory, it shouldn’t be a problem, but if you’re accessing the music through a social site like SoundCloud then it might be best to ask the artist first.

There’s no reason to license your YouTube videos this way. If people cannot alter your video, all that’s left is for them to repost it. Even though they’d also be crediting you, they’d still essentially be stealing views and ad revenue from your original video.

Attribution-NonCommercial – CC BY-NC

If you’re using stock footage, music, or stock photos licensed this way then you should still be able to monetize your video. YouTube monetization and commercial use are different things. However, there is a lot of confusion about this issue, and chances are the rights holder intends for this license to mean ‘no monetization’.

What you definitely could not do with a NonCommercial license is to use the song/other media in an actual commercial for a product, including product placement that a brand is paying you for.

If you license your video this way, people can use it in whatever way they like so long as they credit you and don’t try to make money off of it. Once again, that doesn’t mean they can’t use it in a YouTube video which they monetize because, technically, they’d be making money off of the ad that ran ahead of the video and not the video itself.

The thing to be careful of with this license is that it’s not ‘ShareAlike’. So, if you license your video this way somebody could use your clips as stock footage and then provide them - as part of their project – for free to a third person to use in a project they were making money off of.

Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike – CC BY-NC-SA

Music and other media with an ‘Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike’ license can be used in and altered for your videos, so long as you aren’t making money off those videos. You must also use this same license for the video you create using elements licensed this way.

If you license your video this way, people can use it or a portion of it in their project if they credit you. They must also use this same license for their video if they do. This protects you from the situation where a third person who never licensed your original content is making money off of it.

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs – CC BY-NC-ND

There aren’t many situations where you would be using media licensed this way in your YouTube videos. You can’t alter it, sync videos to it, or make money from any video that uses it.

You also probably shouldn’t use this license for your videos. ‘NoDerivs’ means there are not many ways people could use your content, except to repost full videos and steal your views.

Edit Video with the Most Excellent Video Editor

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

You might have noticed that, when you post a video, you get to choose how you want to copyright it: standard license, or creative commons. You’ve also probably noticed that when you looking for royalty-free music or stock footage a lot of it is licensed through creative commons.

So, what exactly are creative commons ?

To hold the copyright to a creative work means that you own it, and anybody who wants to use your work for anything (i.e. uses a song you composed in their YouTube video) has to do so on your terms. When you license your work through creative commons you do not give up your rights to your creative work (a common misconception).

When you use a creative commons license you are outlining the terms under which other creators are allowed to use your creations in their projects for free if they credit you for your work.

If you do not want anyone using your work for free in any context, you stick to traditional copyrighting.

But if you’ve created a piece of music, a photograph, or a clip that you wouldn’t mind other people using, potentially as a way to get your name out there, you might want to consider creative commons.

There are 6 different creative commons licenses. Which is right for you will depend on your answers to these two questions:

Are you okay with a creator making money off of something they create using your work?

Are you okay with a creator producing a derivative of your work?

To say ‘no derivatives’ is to say ‘I’m okay with people using it, so long as they don’t change it’. One example of a derivative is a techno remix of a song. If you are alright with other creators making derivatives of your work, you may also want to require them to ‘ShareAlike’. ShareAlike means that the creator of that techno remix of your song has to use the same creative commons license you used for your original to distribute the remix.

An example of a derivative someone might make of a YouTube video would be auto-tuning it to make a song or cutting up your video to make one that’s just ‘the funny parts’.

Here are the 6 creative commons licenses, and a chart you can use as a quick reference tool.

Attribution – CC BY

If you’re using music or other media with this license, all you need to do is credit the artist.

If you license your video this way, people can do whatever they like with any element of it (video or sound) so long as they credit you. I.e. if someone wanted to mute your clips and use you as stock footage in a bigger project, they could.

Attribution-ShareAlike – CC BY-SA

If you use music, photos, or any other media licensed this way, then you must both credit the artist and license your video this same way. Meaning, you can’t use YouTube’s standard license and must instead allow for others to use your work the way you are using the licensed media.

If you apply this license to your video, you’re saying you don’t mind people using all or portions of your video for their project so long as they allow others to use their work in the same way.

Attribution-NoDerivs – CC BY-ND

This one can get tricky.

Essentially, you can use media licensed this way so long as you don’t alter it or create a different version. For example, you can’t take a song licensed this way and use it in a mashup with another song. That part is clear. Where it gets tricky is when you want to use a song in your video.

Under normal copyright rules, using a royalty-free song in the background of your video would not count as creating a derivative. The definition of derivative according to creative commons is a bit broader and includes ‘syncing’. This means you can’t take an ‘Attribution-NoDerivs’ song and create any kind of music video for it.

For example, you can’t edit clips of yourself snowboarding so that they’re in sync with a song that has this license.

Whether or not you can play the song in the background of your vlog while you are speaking can be a bit of a grey area. In theory, it shouldn’t be a problem, but if you’re accessing the music through a social site like SoundCloud then it might be best to ask the artist first.

There’s no reason to license your YouTube videos this way. If people cannot alter your video, all that’s left is for them to repost it. Even though they’d also be crediting you, they’d still essentially be stealing views and ad revenue from your original video.

Attribution-NonCommercial – CC BY-NC

If you’re using stock footage, music, or stock photos licensed this way then you should still be able to monetize your video. YouTube monetization and commercial use are different things. However, there is a lot of confusion about this issue, and chances are the rights holder intends for this license to mean ‘no monetization’.

What you definitely could not do with a NonCommercial license is to use the song/other media in an actual commercial for a product, including product placement that a brand is paying you for.

If you license your video this way, people can use it in whatever way they like so long as they credit you and don’t try to make money off of it. Once again, that doesn’t mean they can’t use it in a YouTube video which they monetize because, technically, they’d be making money off of the ad that ran ahead of the video and not the video itself.

The thing to be careful of with this license is that it’s not ‘ShareAlike’. So, if you license your video this way somebody could use your clips as stock footage and then provide them - as part of their project – for free to a third person to use in a project they were making money off of.

Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike – CC BY-NC-SA

Music and other media with an ‘Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike’ license can be used in and altered for your videos, so long as you aren’t making money off those videos. You must also use this same license for the video you create using elements licensed this way.

If you license your video this way, people can use it or a portion of it in their project if they credit you. They must also use this same license for their video if they do. This protects you from the situation where a third person who never licensed your original content is making money off of it.

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs – CC BY-NC-ND

There aren’t many situations where you would be using media licensed this way in your YouTube videos. You can’t alter it, sync videos to it, or make money from any video that uses it.

You also probably shouldn’t use this license for your videos. ‘NoDerivs’ means there are not many ways people could use your content, except to repost full videos and steal your views.

Edit Video with the Most Excellent Video Editor

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

0

You might have noticed that, when you post a video, you get to choose how you want to copyright it: standard license, or creative commons. You’ve also probably noticed that when you looking for royalty-free music or stock footage a lot of it is licensed through creative commons.

So, what exactly are creative commons ?

To hold the copyright to a creative work means that you own it, and anybody who wants to use your work for anything (i.e. uses a song you composed in their YouTube video) has to do so on your terms. When you license your work through creative commons you do not give up your rights to your creative work (a common misconception).

When you use a creative commons license you are outlining the terms under which other creators are allowed to use your creations in their projects for free if they credit you for your work.

If you do not want anyone using your work for free in any context, you stick to traditional copyrighting.

But if you’ve created a piece of music, a photograph, or a clip that you wouldn’t mind other people using, potentially as a way to get your name out there, you might want to consider creative commons.

There are 6 different creative commons licenses. Which is right for you will depend on your answers to these two questions:

Are you okay with a creator making money off of something they create using your work?

Are you okay with a creator producing a derivative of your work?

To say ‘no derivatives’ is to say ‘I’m okay with people using it, so long as they don’t change it’. One example of a derivative is a techno remix of a song. If you are alright with other creators making derivatives of your work, you may also want to require them to ‘ShareAlike’. ShareAlike means that the creator of that techno remix of your song has to use the same creative commons license you used for your original to distribute the remix.

An example of a derivative someone might make of a YouTube video would be auto-tuning it to make a song or cutting up your video to make one that’s just ‘the funny parts’.

Here are the 6 creative commons licenses, and a chart you can use as a quick reference tool.

Attribution – CC BY

If you’re using music or other media with this license, all you need to do is credit the artist.

If you license your video this way, people can do whatever they like with any element of it (video or sound) so long as they credit you. I.e. if someone wanted to mute your clips and use you as stock footage in a bigger project, they could.

Attribution-ShareAlike – CC BY-SA

If you use music, photos, or any other media licensed this way, then you must both credit the artist and license your video this same way. Meaning, you can’t use YouTube’s standard license and must instead allow for others to use your work the way you are using the licensed media.

If you apply this license to your video, you’re saying you don’t mind people using all or portions of your video for their project so long as they allow others to use their work in the same way.

Attribution-NoDerivs – CC BY-ND

This one can get tricky.

Essentially, you can use media licensed this way so long as you don’t alter it or create a different version. For example, you can’t take a song licensed this way and use it in a mashup with another song. That part is clear. Where it gets tricky is when you want to use a song in your video.

Under normal copyright rules, using a royalty-free song in the background of your video would not count as creating a derivative. The definition of derivative according to creative commons is a bit broader and includes ‘syncing’. This means you can’t take an ‘Attribution-NoDerivs’ song and create any kind of music video for it.

For example, you can’t edit clips of yourself snowboarding so that they’re in sync with a song that has this license.

Whether or not you can play the song in the background of your vlog while you are speaking can be a bit of a grey area. In theory, it shouldn’t be a problem, but if you’re accessing the music through a social site like SoundCloud then it might be best to ask the artist first.

There’s no reason to license your YouTube videos this way. If people cannot alter your video, all that’s left is for them to repost it. Even though they’d also be crediting you, they’d still essentially be stealing views and ad revenue from your original video.

Attribution-NonCommercial – CC BY-NC

If you’re using stock footage, music, or stock photos licensed this way then you should still be able to monetize your video. YouTube monetization and commercial use are different things. However, there is a lot of confusion about this issue, and chances are the rights holder intends for this license to mean ‘no monetization’.

What you definitely could not do with a NonCommercial license is to use the song/other media in an actual commercial for a product, including product placement that a brand is paying you for.

If you license your video this way, people can use it in whatever way they like so long as they credit you and don’t try to make money off of it. Once again, that doesn’t mean they can’t use it in a YouTube video which they monetize because, technically, they’d be making money off of the ad that ran ahead of the video and not the video itself.

The thing to be careful of with this license is that it’s not ‘ShareAlike’. So, if you license your video this way somebody could use your clips as stock footage and then provide them - as part of their project – for free to a third person to use in a project they were making money off of.

Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike – CC BY-NC-SA

Music and other media with an ‘Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike’ license can be used in and altered for your videos, so long as you aren’t making money off those videos. You must also use this same license for the video you create using elements licensed this way.

If you license your video this way, people can use it or a portion of it in their project if they credit you. They must also use this same license for their video if they do. This protects you from the situation where a third person who never licensed your original content is making money off of it.

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs – CC BY-NC-ND

There aren’t many situations where you would be using media licensed this way in your YouTube videos. You can’t alter it, sync videos to it, or make money from any video that uses it.

You also probably shouldn’t use this license for your videos. ‘NoDerivs’ means there are not many ways people could use your content, except to repost full videos and steal your views.

Edit Video with the Most Excellent Video Editor

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Amplify Views Effortlessly: Discovering the Best 20 YouTube Techniques

YouTube Shortcuts You Should Know in 2024

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

YouTube, as one of the most popular free streaming video portals, the majority of people use it, probably several times a day. However, how many of you know that there are more than 20 shortcuts that help you use the website comparatively more conveniently?

With that said, the following two-columned tables give you detailed information on the shortcut keys and their respective functions, so you don’t have to grab the mouse every time you want to navigate through the YouTube videos, or do any such similar tasks.

Amazing YouTube Keyboard Shortcuts You May Not Know

To make things convenient for you, the shortcut keys are placed under their corresponding categories, where each category is in the form of a two-columned table.

Category 1: YouTube Playback Hotkeys

While watching a YouTube video, there might be instances when you want to pause and resume the playback. This category teaches how this can be done using the keyboard:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘K’	Play and Pause (Works as a toggle key)
‘Spacebar’	Play and Pause (Works as a toggle key)

Category 2: Scrolling YouTube Videos Back and Forth

This section talks about the shortcut keys to skim the video forward and backward during playback:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘L’	Skip the video 10 seconds forward
‘J’	Skip the video 10 seconds backward
‘→’ (Right Arrow)	Skip the video 5 seconds forward
‘←’ (Left Arrow)	Skip the video 5 seconds backward
‘SHIFT’ + ‘N’	Skip to the next video in the playlist or to the next suggested video
‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’; then ‘.’ (Period)	Pressing ‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’ pauses the video; pressing the ‘.’ (Period) key repeatedly moves the video forward one frame at a time (Period key on the Numpad isn’t supported)
‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’; then ‘,’ (Comma)	Pressing ‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’ pauses the video; pressing the ‘,’ (Comma) key repeatedly moves the video backward one frame at a time (Period key on the Numpad isn’t supported)
‘0’ (Zero)	Takes the video to the beginning

If you’re watching videos on YouTube mobile app, you can use double-tap on the right side of the video player to skip 10 seconds forward, and double-tap on the left side of the video player to skip the video 10 seconds backward. Every double-tap forwards/rewinds the video in 10-seconds increments. E.g., Tapping 6 times on the right skips the video 30 seconds forward. Tapping 6 times on the left skips the video 30 seconds backward.

Long press the Video Player and swipe right will navigate the video forward; and long press the video player and wwipe left will navigate the video backward.

Category 3: Manage Playback Speed

This category contains information on increasing or decreasing the playback speed of a YouTube video:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘SHIFT’ + ‘.’ (Period)	Increase playback speed
‘SHIFT’ + ‘,’ (Comma)	Decrease playback speed

Category 4: Managing the Captions

This category talks about managing the video captions using the shortcut keys:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘C’	Enable or disable captions (Works as a toggle key)
‘O’ (The letter O)	Increase or decrease the brightness level of the captions (Works as a toggle key)
‘W’	Enable, increase, and disable the background transparency of the captions (Press multiple times to manage intensity)
‘-‘ (Minus Key)	Reduce the font size of the captions (Minus key on the Numpad isn’t supported)
‘+’ (Plus Key)	Increase the font size of the captions (Plus key on the Numpad isn’t supported)

Category 5: Managing the Audio Video

This category shows the shortcut keys to manage audio for a YouTube video:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘M’	Mute YouTube video
‘↑’	Increase volume by 5%
‘↓’	Decrease volume by 5%

Category 6: Switching Between Screen Modes

The shortcut keys given in this table enable you to switch between different screen modes:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘F’	Switch between the full-screen and normal mode (Works as a toggle key)
‘T’	Switch between the theater and normal mode (Works as a toggle key)
‘I’	Switch between the independent player and normal mode (Works as a toggle key)

Double press F/T/I on the keyboard will exit the full-screen/theater model/independent mode accordingly.

If you are watching video on YouTube mobile app, you can swipe up the video slightly to enter the full screen mode, and swipe down the video slightly to exit the full screen.

Category 7: Viewing 360o/VR Videos

In this category, the navigation and management of shortcut keys for 360o and Virtual Reality (VR) view are discussed:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘W’, ‘A’, ‘S’, ‘D’	Up, left, down, and right camera panning respectively
‘+’ (Plus Key on Numpad)	Zoom in
‘-‘ (Minus Key on Numpad)	Zoom out
‘-‘ (Minus Key on Keyboard)	Decrease font size
‘+’ (Plus Key on Keyboard)	Increase font size

Bonus: How to Get the YouTube Shortcut List with One-Click

In this section, you will learn how to pull up the list of important YouTube shortcuts by pressing merely one key:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘SHIFT’ + ‘?’	Show the important keyboard shortcuts assigned for YouTube

So, when you press the Shift+? on YouTube, you will see a full list of shortcuts.

Conclusion

Watching videos on YouTube is fun, and you can enjoy the clips, movies, tutorials, etc. more if you are well-aware of the important shortcut keys. This not only helps you navigate through the videos faster but also gives you relief from the additional efforts that you would otherwise have to make while grabbing the mouse, and then looking for and using the correct option.

As one of the most popular video editing software among YouTubers, Filmora provides lots of effects, title templates, transitions, and elements as well as powerful video editing tools such as instant cutter tool, scene detection , beat detection , motion tracking , animation keyframe, and much more. All these editing features and effects makes Filmora as one of the best video editing software for all creators.

Download Mac Version ](https://tools.techidaily.com/wondershare/filmora/download/ )

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

YouTube, as one of the most popular free streaming video portals, the majority of people use it, probably several times a day. However, how many of you know that there are more than 20 shortcuts that help you use the website comparatively more conveniently?

With that said, the following two-columned tables give you detailed information on the shortcut keys and their respective functions, so you don’t have to grab the mouse every time you want to navigate through the YouTube videos, or do any such similar tasks.

Amazing YouTube Keyboard Shortcuts You May Not Know

To make things convenient for you, the shortcut keys are placed under their corresponding categories, where each category is in the form of a two-columned table.

Category 1: YouTube Playback Hotkeys

While watching a YouTube video, there might be instances when you want to pause and resume the playback. This category teaches how this can be done using the keyboard:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘K’	Play and Pause (Works as a toggle key)
‘Spacebar’	Play and Pause (Works as a toggle key)

Category 2: Scrolling YouTube Videos Back and Forth

This section talks about the shortcut keys to skim the video forward and backward during playback:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘L’	Skip the video 10 seconds forward
‘J’	Skip the video 10 seconds backward
‘→’ (Right Arrow)	Skip the video 5 seconds forward
‘←’ (Left Arrow)	Skip the video 5 seconds backward
‘SHIFT’ + ‘N’	Skip to the next video in the playlist or to the next suggested video
‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’; then ‘.’ (Period)	Pressing ‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’ pauses the video; pressing the ‘.’ (Period) key repeatedly moves the video forward one frame at a time (Period key on the Numpad isn’t supported)
‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’; then ‘,’ (Comma)	Pressing ‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’ pauses the video; pressing the ‘,’ (Comma) key repeatedly moves the video backward one frame at a time (Period key on the Numpad isn’t supported)
‘0’ (Zero)	Takes the video to the beginning

If you’re watching videos on YouTube mobile app, you can use double-tap on the right side of the video player to skip 10 seconds forward, and double-tap on the left side of the video player to skip the video 10 seconds backward. Every double-tap forwards/rewinds the video in 10-seconds increments. E.g., Tapping 6 times on the right skips the video 30 seconds forward. Tapping 6 times on the left skips the video 30 seconds backward.

Long press the Video Player and swipe right will navigate the video forward; and long press the video player and wwipe left will navigate the video backward.

Category 3: Manage Playback Speed

This category contains information on increasing or decreasing the playback speed of a YouTube video:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘SHIFT’ + ‘.’ (Period)	Increase playback speed
‘SHIFT’ + ‘,’ (Comma)	Decrease playback speed

Category 4: Managing the Captions

This category talks about managing the video captions using the shortcut keys:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘C’	Enable or disable captions (Works as a toggle key)
‘O’ (The letter O)	Increase or decrease the brightness level of the captions (Works as a toggle key)
‘W’	Enable, increase, and disable the background transparency of the captions (Press multiple times to manage intensity)
‘-‘ (Minus Key)	Reduce the font size of the captions (Minus key on the Numpad isn’t supported)
‘+’ (Plus Key)	Increase the font size of the captions (Plus key on the Numpad isn’t supported)

Category 5: Managing the Audio Video

This category shows the shortcut keys to manage audio for a YouTube video:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘M’	Mute YouTube video
‘↑’	Increase volume by 5%
‘↓’	Decrease volume by 5%

Category 6: Switching Between Screen Modes

The shortcut keys given in this table enable you to switch between different screen modes:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘F’	Switch between the full-screen and normal mode (Works as a toggle key)
‘T’	Switch between the theater and normal mode (Works as a toggle key)
‘I’	Switch between the independent player and normal mode (Works as a toggle key)

Double press F/T/I on the keyboard will exit the full-screen/theater model/independent mode accordingly.

If you are watching video on YouTube mobile app, you can swipe up the video slightly to enter the full screen mode, and swipe down the video slightly to exit the full screen.

Category 7: Viewing 360o/VR Videos

In this category, the navigation and management of shortcut keys for 360o and Virtual Reality (VR) view are discussed:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘W’, ‘A’, ‘S’, ‘D’	Up, left, down, and right camera panning respectively
‘+’ (Plus Key on Numpad)	Zoom in
‘-‘ (Minus Key on Numpad)	Zoom out
‘-‘ (Minus Key on Keyboard)	Decrease font size
‘+’ (Plus Key on Keyboard)	Increase font size

Bonus: How to Get the YouTube Shortcut List with One-Click

In this section, you will learn how to pull up the list of important YouTube shortcuts by pressing merely one key:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘SHIFT’ + ‘?’	Show the important keyboard shortcuts assigned for YouTube

So, when you press the Shift+? on YouTube, you will see a full list of shortcuts.

Conclusion

Watching videos on YouTube is fun, and you can enjoy the clips, movies, tutorials, etc. more if you are well-aware of the important shortcut keys. This not only helps you navigate through the videos faster but also gives you relief from the additional efforts that you would otherwise have to make while grabbing the mouse, and then looking for and using the correct option.

As one of the most popular video editing software among YouTubers, Filmora provides lots of effects, title templates, transitions, and elements as well as powerful video editing tools such as instant cutter tool, scene detection , beat detection , motion tracking , animation keyframe, and much more. All these editing features and effects makes Filmora as one of the best video editing software for all creators.

Download Mac Version ](https://tools.techidaily.com/wondershare/filmora/download/ )

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

YouTube, as one of the most popular free streaming video portals, the majority of people use it, probably several times a day. However, how many of you know that there are more than 20 shortcuts that help you use the website comparatively more conveniently?

With that said, the following two-columned tables give you detailed information on the shortcut keys and their respective functions, so you don’t have to grab the mouse every time you want to navigate through the YouTube videos, or do any such similar tasks.

Amazing YouTube Keyboard Shortcuts You May Not Know

To make things convenient for you, the shortcut keys are placed under their corresponding categories, where each category is in the form of a two-columned table.

Category 1: YouTube Playback Hotkeys

While watching a YouTube video, there might be instances when you want to pause and resume the playback. This category teaches how this can be done using the keyboard:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘K’	Play and Pause (Works as a toggle key)
‘Spacebar’	Play and Pause (Works as a toggle key)

Category 2: Scrolling YouTube Videos Back and Forth

This section talks about the shortcut keys to skim the video forward and backward during playback:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘L’	Skip the video 10 seconds forward
‘J’	Skip the video 10 seconds backward
‘→’ (Right Arrow)	Skip the video 5 seconds forward
‘←’ (Left Arrow)	Skip the video 5 seconds backward
‘SHIFT’ + ‘N’	Skip to the next video in the playlist or to the next suggested video
‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’; then ‘.’ (Period)	Pressing ‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’ pauses the video; pressing the ‘.’ (Period) key repeatedly moves the video forward one frame at a time (Period key on the Numpad isn’t supported)
‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’; then ‘,’ (Comma)	Pressing ‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’ pauses the video; pressing the ‘,’ (Comma) key repeatedly moves the video backward one frame at a time (Period key on the Numpad isn’t supported)
‘0’ (Zero)	Takes the video to the beginning

If you’re watching videos on YouTube mobile app, you can use double-tap on the right side of the video player to skip 10 seconds forward, and double-tap on the left side of the video player to skip the video 10 seconds backward. Every double-tap forwards/rewinds the video in 10-seconds increments. E.g., Tapping 6 times on the right skips the video 30 seconds forward. Tapping 6 times on the left skips the video 30 seconds backward.

Long press the Video Player and swipe right will navigate the video forward; and long press the video player and wwipe left will navigate the video backward.

Category 3: Manage Playback Speed

This category contains information on increasing or decreasing the playback speed of a YouTube video:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘SHIFT’ + ‘.’ (Period)	Increase playback speed
‘SHIFT’ + ‘,’ (Comma)	Decrease playback speed

Category 4: Managing the Captions

This category talks about managing the video captions using the shortcut keys:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘C’	Enable or disable captions (Works as a toggle key)
‘O’ (The letter O)	Increase or decrease the brightness level of the captions (Works as a toggle key)
‘W’	Enable, increase, and disable the background transparency of the captions (Press multiple times to manage intensity)
‘-‘ (Minus Key)	Reduce the font size of the captions (Minus key on the Numpad isn’t supported)
‘+’ (Plus Key)	Increase the font size of the captions (Plus key on the Numpad isn’t supported)

Category 5: Managing the Audio Video

This category shows the shortcut keys to manage audio for a YouTube video:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘M’	Mute YouTube video
‘↑’	Increase volume by 5%
‘↓’	Decrease volume by 5%

Category 6: Switching Between Screen Modes

The shortcut keys given in this table enable you to switch between different screen modes:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘F’	Switch between the full-screen and normal mode (Works as a toggle key)
‘T’	Switch between the theater and normal mode (Works as a toggle key)
‘I’	Switch between the independent player and normal mode (Works as a toggle key)

Double press F/T/I on the keyboard will exit the full-screen/theater model/independent mode accordingly.

If you are watching video on YouTube mobile app, you can swipe up the video slightly to enter the full screen mode, and swipe down the video slightly to exit the full screen.

Category 7: Viewing 360o/VR Videos

In this category, the navigation and management of shortcut keys for 360o and Virtual Reality (VR) view are discussed:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘W’, ‘A’, ‘S’, ‘D’	Up, left, down, and right camera panning respectively
‘+’ (Plus Key on Numpad)	Zoom in
‘-‘ (Minus Key on Numpad)	Zoom out
‘-‘ (Minus Key on Keyboard)	Decrease font size
‘+’ (Plus Key on Keyboard)	Increase font size

Bonus: How to Get the YouTube Shortcut List with One-Click

In this section, you will learn how to pull up the list of important YouTube shortcuts by pressing merely one key:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘SHIFT’ + ‘?’	Show the important keyboard shortcuts assigned for YouTube

So, when you press the Shift+? on YouTube, you will see a full list of shortcuts.

Conclusion

Watching videos on YouTube is fun, and you can enjoy the clips, movies, tutorials, etc. more if you are well-aware of the important shortcut keys. This not only helps you navigate through the videos faster but also gives you relief from the additional efforts that you would otherwise have to make while grabbing the mouse, and then looking for and using the correct option.

As one of the most popular video editing software among YouTubers, Filmora provides lots of effects, title templates, transitions, and elements as well as powerful video editing tools such as instant cutter tool, scene detection , beat detection , motion tracking , animation keyframe, and much more. All these editing features and effects makes Filmora as one of the best video editing software for all creators.

Download Mac Version ](https://tools.techidaily.com/wondershare/filmora/download/ )

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

YouTube, as one of the most popular free streaming video portals, the majority of people use it, probably several times a day. However, how many of you know that there are more than 20 shortcuts that help you use the website comparatively more conveniently?

With that said, the following two-columned tables give you detailed information on the shortcut keys and their respective functions, so you don’t have to grab the mouse every time you want to navigate through the YouTube videos, or do any such similar tasks.

Amazing YouTube Keyboard Shortcuts You May Not Know

To make things convenient for you, the shortcut keys are placed under their corresponding categories, where each category is in the form of a two-columned table.

Category 1: YouTube Playback Hotkeys

While watching a YouTube video, there might be instances when you want to pause and resume the playback. This category teaches how this can be done using the keyboard:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘K’	Play and Pause (Works as a toggle key)
‘Spacebar’	Play and Pause (Works as a toggle key)

Category 2: Scrolling YouTube Videos Back and Forth

This section talks about the shortcut keys to skim the video forward and backward during playback:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘L’	Skip the video 10 seconds forward
‘J’	Skip the video 10 seconds backward
‘→’ (Right Arrow)	Skip the video 5 seconds forward
‘←’ (Left Arrow)	Skip the video 5 seconds backward
‘SHIFT’ + ‘N’	Skip to the next video in the playlist or to the next suggested video
‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’; then ‘.’ (Period)	Pressing ‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’ pauses the video; pressing the ‘.’ (Period) key repeatedly moves the video forward one frame at a time (Period key on the Numpad isn’t supported)
‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’; then ‘,’ (Comma)	Pressing ‘K’ or ‘Spacebar’ pauses the video; pressing the ‘,’ (Comma) key repeatedly moves the video backward one frame at a time (Period key on the Numpad isn’t supported)
‘0’ (Zero)	Takes the video to the beginning

If you’re watching videos on YouTube mobile app, you can use double-tap on the right side of the video player to skip 10 seconds forward, and double-tap on the left side of the video player to skip the video 10 seconds backward. Every double-tap forwards/rewinds the video in 10-seconds increments. E.g., Tapping 6 times on the right skips the video 30 seconds forward. Tapping 6 times on the left skips the video 30 seconds backward.

Long press the Video Player and swipe right will navigate the video forward; and long press the video player and wwipe left will navigate the video backward.

Category 3: Manage Playback Speed

This category contains information on increasing or decreasing the playback speed of a YouTube video:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘SHIFT’ + ‘.’ (Period)	Increase playback speed
‘SHIFT’ + ‘,’ (Comma)	Decrease playback speed

Category 4: Managing the Captions

This category talks about managing the video captions using the shortcut keys:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘C’	Enable or disable captions (Works as a toggle key)
‘O’ (The letter O)	Increase or decrease the brightness level of the captions (Works as a toggle key)
‘W’	Enable, increase, and disable the background transparency of the captions (Press multiple times to manage intensity)
‘-‘ (Minus Key)	Reduce the font size of the captions (Minus key on the Numpad isn’t supported)
‘+’ (Plus Key)	Increase the font size of the captions (Plus key on the Numpad isn’t supported)

Category 5: Managing the Audio Video

This category shows the shortcut keys to manage audio for a YouTube video:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘M’	Mute YouTube video
‘↑’	Increase volume by 5%
‘↓’	Decrease volume by 5%

Category 6: Switching Between Screen Modes

The shortcut keys given in this table enable you to switch between different screen modes:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘F’	Switch between the full-screen and normal mode (Works as a toggle key)
‘T’	Switch between the theater and normal mode (Works as a toggle key)
‘I’	Switch between the independent player and normal mode (Works as a toggle key)

Double press F/T/I on the keyboard will exit the full-screen/theater model/independent mode accordingly.

If you are watching video on YouTube mobile app, you can swipe up the video slightly to enter the full screen mode, and swipe down the video slightly to exit the full screen.

Category 7: Viewing 360o/VR Videos

In this category, the navigation and management of shortcut keys for 360o and Virtual Reality (VR) view are discussed:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘W’, ‘A’, ‘S’, ‘D’	Up, left, down, and right camera panning respectively
‘+’ (Plus Key on Numpad)	Zoom in
‘-‘ (Minus Key on Numpad)	Zoom out
‘-‘ (Minus Key on Keyboard)	Decrease font size
‘+’ (Plus Key on Keyboard)	Increase font size

Bonus: How to Get the YouTube Shortcut List with One-Click

In this section, you will learn how to pull up the list of important YouTube shortcuts by pressing merely one key:

Keyboard Shortcut	Function
‘SHIFT’ + ‘?’	Show the important keyboard shortcuts assigned for YouTube

So, when you press the Shift+? on YouTube, you will see a full list of shortcuts.

Conclusion

Watching videos on YouTube is fun, and you can enjoy the clips, movies, tutorials, etc. more if you are well-aware of the important shortcut keys. This not only helps you navigate through the videos faster but also gives you relief from the additional efforts that you would otherwise have to make while grabbing the mouse, and then looking for and using the correct option.

As one of the most popular video editing software among YouTubers, Filmora provides lots of effects, title templates, transitions, and elements as well as powerful video editing tools such as instant cutter tool, scene detection , beat detection , motion tracking , animation keyframe, and much more. All these editing features and effects makes Filmora as one of the best video editing software for all creators.

Download Mac Version ](https://tools.techidaily.com/wondershare/filmora/download/ )

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

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