YouTube chapters formatter: paste timestamps, check, copy.

How YouTube chapters work

Chapters split a video into sections. Viewers see them as marks on the progress bar and as a list under the video, and they can jump straight to the part they care about. On long videos, podcast episodes and stream highlights, that is often what keeps someone watching instead of leaving after a minute.

You add chapters yourself by putting a list of timestamps and titles in the description. According to YouTube Help, four rules apply:

• The first timestamp is 00:00.
• There are at least three timestamps.
• Timestamps are in ascending order.
• Each chapter is at least 10 seconds long.

If one rule is broken, YouTube shows no chapters at all, and it does not tell you why. That is exactly what the tool above checks. Chapters you write in the description take priority over chapters YouTube suggests itself.

Using timestamps from Twitch and VODs

Streamers often note strong moments during the stream, as Twitch markers or as timestamps in chat. When the stream later becomes a YouTube video, the start is usually gone: the waiting screen and the greeting are cut, and every time is off. That is what the offset field is for. If you cut 1:30 from the start, enter -1:30 and every timestamp moves forward. Anything that would land before the start is dropped.

The tool reads Twitch-style times like 1h05m10s the same as 1:05:10. Brackets, bullets and separators such as “[12:04] – Topic” or “Topic – 12:04” are fine too.

Good chapter titles

A chapter title says what happens in that section, not just “Part 2”. Short and specific works best: “Setup and mic”, “The money question”, “Boss in round 3”. Titles with words people search for can also help in search, because YouTube can show chapters as separate sections.

• Prefer 5 to 15 meaningful chapters over 40 very short ones.
• The first chapter can be called “Intro”, but a title that names the topic is better.
• No angle brackets < and >: YouTube does not accept them in descriptions.

Chapters for podcasts

For video podcasts, chapters are close to essential. Listeners want to jump to the guest, the question or the story. You can often reuse the same list in your Spotify episode description. If you are getting a video podcast off the ground, read our guide on how to start a video podcast.

Rules according to YouTube Help on chapters, As of October 25, 2026.