Create a YouTube QR code

A YouTube QR code bridges something physical and something you would rather show than explain. A product box that links to the setup video. A recipe card that plays the tricky step. A poster for a gig that opens the band's channel. Scanning opens the YouTube app on the exact video, channel or playlist, and with a start time the video begins at the moment that matters instead of the intro.

How to use it

• In YouTube, tap Share under the video, Short, playlist or channel and copy the link.
• Paste it above, or type a channel handle such as @yourchannel to link the channel.
• For a single video, add a start time like 1:30 to skip straight to that point. Shorts, channels and playlists do not support one.
• The si tracking code YouTube adds to shared links is removed, which keeps the pattern smaller.
• Download the image and scan it with a phone before you print it on anything.

Good places for a video code

Instruction leaflets and packaging, where a two-minute video saves a page of diagrams. Classroom worksheets and textbooks. Estate agent boards linking a video tour. Conference slides, so the audience can rewatch the demo. Wedding invitations that open a save-the-date film. Printed ads, where the video carries the story a headline cannot.

Unlisted and private videos

Unlisted videos work well with a QR code: anyone who scans can watch, but the video does not appear in search or on your channel. Private videos only play for the accounts you have invited, so everyone else who scans sees an error. The code is made in your browser and the link is encoded directly, so it never expires. Any QR is not affiliated with YouTube or Google.