--- title: "Connecting and Publishing to YouTube | Maeve Social" description: "Connect a YouTube channel, prepare Shorts and regular videos, and set titles, thumbnails, and visibility." url: "https://maevesocial.com/guides/channel-management/youtube" --- On this page 1. [Home](https://maevesocial.com/) 2. [Guides](https://maevesocial.com/guides) 3. [Channel Management](https://maevesocial.com/guides/channel-management) 4. Connecting and Publishing to YouTube # Connecting and Publishing to YouTube Updated September 12, 2026 Attach one video and enter a title to publish to YouTube from Maeve. The video's dimensions and duration determine whether Maeve treats it as a Short or a regular video. Regular videos also require a custom thumbnail. ![The Maeve composer with YouTube selected, showing the video title field, the description field and a live YouTube Shorts preview on the right](https://maevesocial.com/marketing/screenshots/app/channel-management/composer-youtube.webp) YouTube asks for a title as well as a description. A vertical video up to three minutes previews as a Short. 1. 1Pick the network 2. 2Approve on the network 3. 3Connected Connect available channels 3 / 20 YouTubeYouTube channelConnect InstagramBusiness or creatorConnect FacebookBusiness PageConnect TikTokBusiness or CreatorConnect ## Before You Connect You need to be the owner or a manager of the channel, and you sign in with the Google account that holds it. If your Google account has several channels, select the ones you want to add. Each channel uses one social connection. ## Connecting a Channel 1. 1 ### Open Settings, then Social channels Select **YouTube** from the connection grid. 2. 2 ### Sign in with Google Sign in on Google's sign-in page. Maeve does not receive or store your password. 3. 3 ### Approve the Requested Permissions Approve upload, channel, and analytics access. If Maeve reports missing permissions, repeat the connection steps and approve the requested access. 4. 4 ### Pick the channels With one channel on the account, Maeve connects it without asking. With several, tick the ones you want in this workspace and add them together. 5. 5 ### Confirm the Connected Channel Maeve shows the channel name and picture it connected. If it is not the one you meant, you picked the wrong channel or signed in with the wrong Google account. ## What Maeve Asks Permission For | Permission | What stops working without it | | ------------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Upload | Maeve cannot publish posts | | Read-only channel access | Maeve cannot read the channel name or list your videos | | Full channel access | YouTube comments are unavailable in your inbox, and you cannot reply from Maeve | | Analytics read | Analytics and posting-time data are unavailable | An old connection may publish but show no comments If an older connection can publish but cannot load comments, reconnect it and approve comment access. ## Shorts and Regular Videos Maeve treats a video as a Short when it meets both requirements: * It is square or vertical, with an aspect ratio of 1:1 or narrower. * It is 180 seconds or shorter. A 200-second vertical video is a regular video. A 30-second landscape video is also a regular video. Attach a custom thumbnail for a regular video. Maeve requires one before publishing. For Shorts, choose the thumbnail in the YouTube app. ## What You Can Publish Select YouTube in the composer, attach one video, and fill in the title. YouTube section YouTube Caption Title Max 100 chars Write for YouTube... 0 / 5,000 Media for YouTube 0 of 1 selectedOne video. Images are not accepted at all YouTube Settings * Visibility * Category * License * Custom Thumbnail * Notify Subscribers * Allow Embedding * Made for Kids Will not publish without * A title * A custom thumbnail on anything longer than a Short What YouTube gives you in the composer, and what it asks for. Every limit here is the one Maeve checks against, not the one the network advertises. * **Regular videos.** MP4 or MOV, and a custom thumbnail you have to supply * **Shorts.** MP4 or MOV, square or taller and 180 seconds or less, with no thumbnail ## The Limits | What | Limit | | ----------------- | ------------------------ | | Title | 100 characters, required | | Description | 5,000 characters | | Videos per post | 1 | | Video size | 512MB | | Video formats | MP4 and MOV | | Short length | 180 seconds or less | | Thumbnail size | 2MB | | Thumbnail formats | JPEG and PNG | Transform Aspect Ratio Landscape (16:9) Square (1:1) Shorts (9:16) 16:9 The shapes YouTube's cropper offers, under YouTube's own names for them. Cropping for one network leaves the file untouched everywhere else. ## The Settings on a Video Open the YouTube settings in the composer and review these fields: * **Visibility.** Public, Unlisted or Private * **Category.** Choose the category for the video * **Tags.** Enter tags separated by commas * **License.** Standard YouTube License or Creative Commons Attribution * **Custom thumbnail.** Required on a regular video, JPEG or PNG up to 2MB. YouTube may require channel verification to accept custom thumbnails. Check the published video: a thumbnail upload failure does not stop the video publishing * **Notify subscribers.** Whether the upload goes out to your subscriber feed * **Allow embedding.** Whether other sites can embed the video * **Made for Kids.** Indicate whether the video is made for children. YouTube limits features on videos marked this way ## What Will Stop a Post * **A post with no video.** YouTube has no text or image post * **An image attached as post media.** Remove it and attach a video * **More than one video.** One per post * **A missing title.** YouTube will not take an untitled upload * **A regular video with no custom thumbnail.** Attach a JPEG or PNG thumbnail. Shorts do not require one * **A thumbnail over 2MB**, or one that is not a JPEG or PNG * **A video over 512MB**, or in a format other than MP4 or MOV YouTube will refuse Add a YouTube title before publishing. 5 of the ones people hit What YouTube sends back, word for word. These are the strings Maeve shows you, so searching this page for the one on your screen should find it. ## When the Connection Breaks If an account shows **Needs reconnecting**, restore its connection before the next scheduled post is due. 1. Open **Settings**, then **Social channels**. 2. Find the affected account and select **Reconnect**. 3. Sign in to the same account and approve the requested permissions. Reconnecting keeps scheduled posts attached to the account. After reconnecting, retry any posts that failed while the connection was unavailable. Your connected channels 2 YouTube Your Channel YouTube Channel Re-sync Your Other Channel Needs reconnecting Reconnect This account's connection has expired. Reconnect it in Settings and try again. Select Reconnect beside the affected account and complete the platform authorization steps. ## Errors YouTube Returns | Error message | What to do | | -------------------------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Select a custom YouTube thumbnail before publishing long-form videos | The video is not a Short and has no thumbnail | | YouTube custom thumbnails must be 2 MB or smaller | The thumbnail is too large. Compress it or choose another | | YouTube API quota exceeded for today | The channel has used its daily upload allowance at YouTube. The post fails and is not retried | | Thumbnail must be a JPEG or PNG image | The thumbnail is in another format. Convert it | | Add a YouTube title before publishing | The post has no title. YouTube requires one on every upload | | YouTube requires at least one media item before publishing | The post has a description and no video | | YouTube supports video files only | An image is attached. Remove it | | This account's connection has expired | Reconnect the channel in Settings, Social channels, then retry the post | ## Questions ### What makes a video a Short rather than a regular video? A Short is square or vertical and no longer than 180 seconds. Videos outside those dimensions or duration are treated as regular videos. ### Why is Maeve asking for a thumbnail? Maeve requires a custom thumbnail for regular videos. Attach a JPEG or PNG up to 2MB. Shorts do not require a custom thumbnail. ### Can I schedule a private or unlisted YouTube video? Yes. Select Public, Unlisted, or Private in the post's YouTube visibility settings. ### Why are YouTube comments not showing in my inbox? Your connection may be missing comment access. Reconnect the channel and approve the requested permissions. ### Can I upload more than one video in a post? No. Create a separate post for each video. ### Do I need a verified YouTube channel? YouTube may require channel verification for custom thumbnails. If a thumbnail is missing after publishing, check the channel's verification status in YouTube. In Maeve Social * [YouTube Scheduler](https://maevesocial.com/features/youtube-scheduler) * [Social Media Scheduler](https://maevesocial.com/social-media-scheduler)