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How to schedule YouTube videos and Shorts

Schedulely uploads one YouTube video per post at the time you choose, with a title, a privacy setting and the made for kids setting. A vertical video of up to 3 minutes is published as a Short automatically, so there is no separate Shorts switch to remember.

The post text becomes the video description, and the same vertical clip can go to TikTok and Reels from the same post.

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What can you schedule on YouTube with Schedulely?

Schedulely uploads one video per YouTube post, either a normal video or a Short. You set the title, choose public, unlisted or private, and answer whether the video is made for kids. The post text becomes the description, and the upload happens at the scheduled time in the client's own time zone.

YouTube connects through Google's own sign in, so nobody shares a password, and a client can connect their channel from a connect link. Schedulely reads which channel the person signed in with and posts there.

If you leave the title empty, Schedulely uses the first line of the post text, which saves a step for Shorts where the caption and the title are often the same. Titles can be 100 characters (no < or >), and descriptions 5,000 bytes (no < or >). That second limit is measured in bytes, so text in scripts such as Arabic or Hindi fits fewer characters than English.

Uploads are resumable. If a large file is interrupted, a retry asks YouTube how far it got and carries on from there, or picks up the finished video, so the same video is never uploaded twice. That matters for long videos, where restarting from the beginning would cost real time.

What you can schedule on YouTube with Schedulely
Post typeOfficial limitIn Schedulely
Video15 min unverified; verified up to 12 hours; 256 GBYes, one video per post
ShortUp to 3 minutes, square or verticalYes, a vertical video up to 3 minutes becomes a Short automatically
Title100 characters (no < or >)Your title, or the first line of the post text
Description5,000 bytes (no < or >)The post text
Privacy and audiencePublic, unlisted or private; made for kidsSet on each post
Community postSupported by YouTubeNot supported

Limits come from Google's YouTube Help Centre and YouTube Data API documentation.

How does a video become a YouTube Short in Schedulely?

There is no Shorts switch. YouTube treats a square or vertical video of up to 3 minutes as a Short, so when you schedule a vertical video of up to 3 minutes, it is published as a Short automatically. Landscape videos, or anything longer than 3 minutes, go up as normal videos.

YouTube's own rule for Shorts: Up to 3 minutes, square or vertical. Schedulely simply uploads the file with your title, description and settings, and YouTube decides the format from its shape and length. You do not need to add a hashtag or tick anything.

This has two practical effects. First, the same vertical clip you cut for TikTok and Instagram Reels can go to YouTube in the same post, and it lands as a Short. Second, if you want a vertical clip to appear as a normal video instead, make it longer than 3 minutes or export it in landscape; a vertical clip under the limit will always be a Short.

For long videos, YouTube's standard format is 16:9, and its full guidance is 16:9 standard (Shorts square or vertical); 426x240 to 7680x4320. Accounts that have not verified with YouTube are limited to shorter uploads: 15 min unverified; verified up to 12 hours. Verify the channel in YouTube before you schedule anything longer.

How do you schedule a YouTube video with Schedulely, step by step?

Connect the channel through Google's sign in, start a new post, add one video, write the description, set the title, privacy and made for kids answer, then pick a time. Schedulely uploads the video at that minute in the client's time zone, and YouTube processes it from there.

  • Connect the channel. Choose YouTube, sign in on Google's page and come back connected. A client can do this from a connect link.
  • Add one video. From your computer, your phone, a Google Drive link or the client's library. YouTube posts take exactly one video, so untick YouTube if the post has photos.
  • Write the description. The post text becomes the description. Put the key line first, because only the start shows under the video.
  • Set the options. Title, then public, unlisted or private, then whether it is made for kids.
  • Pick a time. The time follows the client's own time zone.

After upload, YouTube still needs time to process the video, so a long film may take a while to reach full quality. If an upload fails, it shows in Failed and 1 tap retries it, resuming where it stopped.

When is the best time to publish on YouTube?

It depends on the format. Buffer and SocialPilot both found Shorts strongest late in the week, especially Friday from 16:00 to 19:00. For long videos they differ: Buffer favours Sunday morning around 10:00, while SocialPilot points to weekday afternoons from 14:00 to 16:00, with Sunday morning its top single slot.

Both studies report times in the audience's local time and analyse long videos and Shorts separately, which is useful because the two behave differently.

  • Buffer analysed about 1.8 million videos. For long videos, the best days were Sunday, Tuesday and Monday, with Sunday at 10:00 top, then Sunday at 09:00 and Friday at 12:00, and mornings from 08:00 to 11:00 strong. For Shorts, Friday, Saturday and Thursday led, with Friday at 16:00, 18:00 and 19:00 best.
  • SocialPilot looked at 301,000 videos from more than 27,000 channels. For long videos it found Wednesday to Friday best, with weekday afternoons from 14:00 to 16:00, and Sunday from 08:00 to 10:00 as its top single slot. For Shorts it suggests 12:00 to 14:00 or 18:00 to 19:00, with Friday 16:00 to 19:00 strongest.

Long videos keep finding viewers for weeks through search, so the hour matters less than for Shorts. Check results in YouTube Studio, since Schedulely has no YouTube analytics.

What can't Schedulely do on YouTube yet?

Schedulely does not publish YouTube community posts, set custom thumbnails, add videos to playlists or add tags. YouTube comments are not in the inbox, which works with Instagram only, and there are no YouTube analytics. Each post carries exactly one video, so those finishing touches happen in YouTube Studio.

Here is what to plan around on YouTube.

  • Community posts. YouTube's post types are: Video, Short, community Post (text, image, GIF, poll, quiz, video, music). Schedulely uploads videos only.
  • Custom thumbnails. Not set by Schedulely. YouTube's thumbnail guidance: 3840x2160 recommended (Shorts 2160x3840), min width 640; JPG/PNG; 2 MB mobile / 50 MB desktop. Upload one in YouTube Studio after the video is live, or schedule the video as private or unlisted and add it before you make it public.
  • Playlists and tags. Add these in YouTube Studio.
  • Comments. The inbox is Instagram only.
  • Analytics. Use YouTube Studio.
  • A Shorts switch. Not needed: the video's shape and length decide.
  • Several videos in one post. Each YouTube post takes exactly one video. To upload a series, create one post per video, or use bulk schedule with one row per video.

A simple routine works well for long videos: schedule the upload as private or unlisted, let it process, add the thumbnail and playlist in YouTube Studio, then make it public.

Who it's for, and who it isn't

A good fit if you

  • Creators who post Shorts alongside TikTok and Instagram Reels from one clip
  • Agencies uploading videos for several clients' channels on one calendar
  • Teams who want long videos uploaded on time with title and privacy already set

Not the right fit if you

  • Channels that need custom thumbnails, playlists or tags set at upload
  • Anyone who wants YouTube community posts scheduled
  • People who need YouTube comments or analytics in the scheduler

Questions people ask

Can I schedule YouTube Shorts with Schedulely?

Yes. Add a vertical video of up to 3 minutes and Schedulely publishes it as a Short automatically, because YouTube treats square or vertical videos within that length as Shorts. There is no separate Shorts switch, and the same clip can go to TikTok, Instagram Reels and Facebook Reels from the same post.

Can I schedule YouTube videos for free?

Yes. Schedulely is free during early access, and YouTube uploads with title, privacy and made for kids options are included. When plans start, a YouTube channel counts as one channel, and plans are priced by channel, not by seat. You will be told well before anything is charged.

Does Schedulely upload YouTube videos automatically?

Yes. At the scheduled time, Schedulely uploads the video with your title, the post text as description, your privacy choice and the made for kids answer. If the upload is interrupted, a retry resumes from where it stopped, so the video is never uploaded twice. YouTube then processes it as usual.

Can I set a custom thumbnail when scheduling a YouTube video?

Not in Schedulely. A good routine is to schedule the video as unlisted or private, add the thumbnail in YouTube Studio once it has processed, then make it public. YouTube's thumbnail guidance is 3840x2160 recommended (Shorts 2160x3840), min width 640; JPG/PNG; 2 MB mobile / 50 MB desktop. Playlists and tags are also added in YouTube Studio.

How long can a scheduled YouTube video be?

YouTube's length limit depends on whether the channel is verified: 15 min unverified; verified up to 12 hours. Files can be up to 256 GB. Verify your channel in YouTube before scheduling anything over 15 minutes, or YouTube may reject the upload. Shorts are separate: Up to 3 minutes, square or vertical. Schedulely uploads one video per post, whatever its length.

What privacy options does Schedulely offer for YouTube?

Each YouTube post can be public, unlisted or private, and you also choose whether the video is made for kids, which YouTube asks of every upload. Unlisted and private uploads are useful when you want to add a thumbnail or playlist in YouTube Studio before releasing the video.

Sources

Every outside fact on this page comes from the source listed here, checked on 29 October 2026. Prices and features change, so check the source before you decide.

  1. YouTube Data API: Videos resource developers.google.com/youtube/v3/docs/videos
  2. YouTube Help: upload videos longer than 15 minutes support.google.com/youtube/answer/71673
  3. YouTube Help: YouTube Shorts length support.google.com/youtube/answer/15424877
  4. YouTube Help: recommended upload encoding settings support.google.com/youtube/answer/6375112
  5. YouTube Help: add video thumbnails support.google.com/youtube/answer/72431
  6. YouTube Help: community posts support.google.com/youtube/answer/9409631
  7. Buffer: Best time to post on YouTube buffer.com/resources/best-time-to-post-on-youtube/
  8. SocialPilot: Best time to post on YouTube in 2026 socialpilot.co/insights/best-time-to-post-on-youtube

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