--- title: "How to Make YouTube Shorts From Long Videos" description: "Turn a long video into YouTube Shorts: 3 methods (free in YouTube Studio, AI clipping, manual edit) plus the 2026 rules: 3-minute limit, 9:16, 1080p." url: https://exemplary.ai/blog/how-to-create-youtube-shorts-guide published: 2024-06-19 updated: 2026-09-25 author: "Hethal Solanki" publisher: "Exemplary AI (https://exemplary.ai)" --- # How to Make YouTube Shorts From Long Videos To create YouTube Shorts from a long video, pick a 15 to 60 second moment that makes sense on its own, crop it to a vertical (9:16) or square frame, add captions, and upload it as a video of **3 minutes or less**. YouTube treats any square or vertical upload of up to three minutes as a Short ([YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/15424877?hl=en)). You can do this three ways: for free inside YouTube Studio, with an AI clipping tool that finds the moments for you, or by hand in a video editor. This guide covers all three, plus the current Shorts rules that changed in 2024 to 2026. *Updated September 2026. Platform rules below are quoted from YouTube Help pages as of September 25, 2026; they change often, so check the linked pages before you rely on a limit.* ## YouTube Shorts rules in 2026 (what actually counts as a Short) | Rule | Current value | Source | |---|---|---| | Maximum length | Up to 3 minutes (for uploads since October 15, 2024) | [Understand three-minute Shorts](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/15424877?hl=en) | | Aspect ratio | Square or vertical. 16:9 uploads stay long-form | [Upload YouTube Shorts](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/12779649?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DDesktop) | | Maximum resolution | 1080p | [Get started creating Shorts](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/10059070?hl=en) | | Bulk upload from a computer | Up to 15 Shorts at a time, each finished with "Edit draft" | [Upload YouTube Shorts](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/12779649?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DDesktop) | | Hashtags | Optional. More than 60 hashtags and YouTube ignores all of them | [Hashtags on YouTube](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/6390658?hl=en) | | Content ID on 1 to 3 minute Shorts | From September 24, 2026, new Shorts over one minute with an active Content ID claim are no longer automatically blocked | [Understand three-minute Shorts](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/15424877?hl=en) | Two older "rules" you will still see repeated elsewhere are out of date: Shorts are no longer capped at 60 seconds, and you do not need `#Shorts` in the title for a vertical video to be treated as a Short. ## Method 1: Free, inside YouTube Studio YouTube now has its own clipping tool. In YouTube Studio, open **Content > Videos**, choose a long video, and select **Clips and Shorts** in the left menu. You pick the segment from the transcript or timeline, or use AI-suggested segments where available, and publish it as a Short ([YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/15824265)). What to know: - **AI suggestions are limited.** YouTube lists them as available in select countries (including India, the US, the UK, Brazil and Mexico) and select languages (English, French, German, Hindi, Korean, Portuguese and Spanish). - **Your Short links back to the source video.** The original is added as the Short's related video, unless the Short is private, unlisted or made for kids. - **No penalty for reusing your own footage.** YouTube states you won't be penalized for using your content in a clip or Short. - **On the mobile app**, "Remix > Edit into a Short" lets you select up to 60 seconds of a public long-form video you uploaded. Videos with third-party copyright claims can't be used ([YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/12836917?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DAndroid)). **Best for:** occasional Shorts from videos already on your channel, when you don't need styled captions or reframing control. ## Method 2: An AI clipping tool (fastest for many Shorts) AI clipping tools take a long video (an upload or a YouTube link), transcribe it, suggest the moments most likely to work as standalone clips, reframe the speaker into a vertical frame and add animated captions. They're worth it when you publish several Shorts a week, when the source isn't on YouTube yet (a podcast recording, a webinar, a Zoom call), or when your language isn't covered by YouTube's AI suggestions. *Disclosure: Exemplary AI is our product. Other tools that do the same job include Opus Clip, Vizard and Klap; we compare them in [our Opus Clip alternatives guide](https://exemplary.ai/blog/top-opus-pro-alternatives) and [AI tools for YouTube Shorts](https://exemplary.ai/blog/best-ai-tools-for-youtube-shorts).* Here's the workflow in [Exemplary AI's AI Clips](https://exemplary.ai/ai-clips): 1. **Add your video.** Upload a file or paste a video link. 2. **Generate clips.** The AI transcribes the video and suggests clips built around its most engaging moments. Transcription covers 99 languages as of September 2026, so this works for Hindi, Tamil, Spanish or Arabic videos, not just English. 3. **Check the framing.** Active speaker detection keeps the person talking in frame when a landscape video becomes vertical. Switch between fit, fill and split layouts if the default crop cuts something off. 4. **Edit by text.** Trim the clip by editing its transcript, remove silences and filler words, and adjust the start and end so the first line is a strong hook. 5. **Style captions.** Pick an animated caption template, add emojis if they suit your audience, and apply your brand colours and fonts. 6. **Export.** Download the clip as an MP4, then upload it to YouTube (or TikTok and Reels) yourself. Generate a title and description with AI if you need a starting point. Treat the AI's picks as a shortlist, not a verdict. Watch each suggested clip start to finish before you publish; a clip that sounds good in a transcript can still open mid-sentence or depend on something said earlier. **Best for:** repurposing podcasts, interviews, webinars and talks into many Shorts, TikToks and Reels at once. ## Method 3: By hand in a video editor Any editor that can set a 9:16 canvas works (CapCut, DaVinci Resolve, Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro). The steps: 1. Set the project to 1080 x 1920 (9:16). 2. Import the long video and cut the segment you want. 3. Scale and position the frame so the speaker or subject stays centred; keyframe the position if they move. 4. Add captions. They help anyone watching with the sound off or in a second language. 5. Export at 1080p or lower (YouTube's Shorts maximum) and upload through YouTube Studio or the YouTube app. **Best for:** a few high-stakes Shorts where you want full creative control. ## How to pick the right moments Whichever method you use, the clip choice matters more than the tool. A good Short from a long video usually has: - **A self-contained point.** Someone who never saw the full video should understand it. - **A hook in the first line.** Open on the claim, the question or the surprising result, not on "So, um, the next thing is…". - **One idea.** If the segment covers two points, make two Shorts. - **A natural ending.** End on the payoff, then stop. You can point to the full video through the related video link. Your own analytics are the best guide to which long videos to mine. In YouTube Studio, look at the retention graph of a long video: the spikes where viewers rewind or keep watching are good candidates. ## After you publish: what to measure YouTube changed how Shorts views are counted on March 31, 2025: **Views** now count every time a Short starts or replays, with no minimum watch time, while the older metric is reported as **Engaged views**. Partner Program eligibility and Shorts revenue sharing are still based on engaged views ([YouTube announcement](https://support.google.com/youtube/thread/333869549/a-change-to-how-we-count-views-on-shorts?hl=en)). Also check **Viewed (vs. swiped away)** in the Shorts analytics: it shows how often people stayed on your Short when it appeared in the feed ([YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/12942217?hl=en-GB&co=YOUTUBE._YTVideoType%3Dshorts)). A low rate usually means the first second or two isn't working, which you fix in the edit, not with hashtags. ![Why convert long videos into YouTube Shorts](https://exemplary.ai/img/blog/how-to-create-youtube-shorts-guide/image-1.png) ## Titles, descriptions and hashtags - **Title:** say what the viewer gets, in plain words. A [YouTube title generator](https://exemplary.ai/youtube-video-title-generator) can give you options to edit. - **Description:** one or two lines of context and a pointer to the full video. - **Hashtags:** a few relevant ones are enough; YouTube shows up to three above the title and ignores every hashtag on a video that has more than 60 ([YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/6390658?hl=en)). See [our YouTube Shorts hashtags guide](https://exemplary.ai/blog/best-hashtags-for-youtube-shorts) for how to choose them. > **Turn a long video into Shorts** > Upload a video or paste a link and get vertical clips with captions you can edit. > [Try the Shorts maker](https://exemplary.ai/youtube-shorts-maker) ## FAQ ### How long can a YouTube Short be in 2026? Up to 3 minutes. Square or vertical videos of three minutes or less uploaded since October 15, 2024 are categorized as Shorts; wider videos such as 16:9 remain long-form ([YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/15424877?hl=en)). ### Is there a minimum length for a Short? YouTube's help pages don't set a minimum. In practice most Shorts made from long videos land between 15 and 60 seconds, because a single idea rarely needs more. ### Can I make Shorts from my long videos for free? Yes. YouTube Studio's Clips and Shorts tool lets you cut a Short from any of your own long-form videos, with AI-suggested segments in supported countries and languages ([YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/15824265)). Third-party AI clipping tools, including Exemplary AI, also have free plans with usage limits; check each tool's pricing page. ### Do I need to add #Shorts to the title? No. YouTube decides a video is a Short from its length (up to 3 minutes) and its square or vertical aspect ratio ([YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/12779649?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DDesktop)). Hashtags help with discovery, not classification. ### Will reposting clips from my own long video hurt my channel? YouTube says you won't be penalized for using your own content in a clip or Short, and Shorts made with its tool link back to the source video ([YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/15824265)). ### What resolution should I export Shorts at? 1080 x 1920 (9:16). YouTube's maximum resolution for Shorts is 1080p, so exporting higher only makes the file bigger ([YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/10059070?hl=en)). ### What happens to a Short over one minute that uses copyrighted music? From September 24, 2026, new Shorts between one and three minutes with an active Content ID claim are no longer automatically blocked and may stay playable, but a Short that is blocked globally isn't eligible for monetization ([YouTube Help](https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/15424877?hl=en)). > Exemplary AI is a browser-based AI tool that turns long videos and recordings into short captioned clips, transcripts in 99 languages, subtitles, translations into 116 languages, and written posts such as summaries, blog posts and YouTube chapters. It is built for YouTubers, podcasters and marketing teams; the Free plan includes 500 one-time credits with watermarked video exports. Pricing: https://exemplary.ai/pricing