On YouTube, viewers are matched to the Shorts they are most likely to watch and enjoy. YouTube’s search and discovery system caters to each viewer and their varying interests. The goal is to connect each viewer with Shorts they want to watch so that they come back to YouTube regularly.
YouTube Search & Discovery: 'The Algorithm' and Performance FAQs
What kind of videos does the YouTube system favor?
Our system has no opinion about what type of Shorts you make. It also doesn’t favor any particular format. Shorts are ranked based on performance and viewer personalization. Shorts may be catered to viewers based on their watch and search history.
How does YouTube personalize recommendations?
YouTube takes many cues from the viewer and recommends Shorts by understanding which:
- Shorts or channels the viewer has enjoyed in the past. That way, the system can surface Shorts the viewer is most likely to enjoy.
- Topics or themes a viewer watches. That way, the system can identify what content to recommend to viewers.
- Trending songs or sampled audio they might have engaged with. That way, the system can suggest other Shorts based on the trend to viewers who are more likely to enjoy watching that trend.
How does the YouTube system look at video performance?
Our systems look at how a Short performs when it’s recommended to viewers. For example, when a Short is recommended to a viewer– do they choose to watch it, ignore it, or click “not interested”? Then, we look at whether or not viewers stick around. Our systems use the signals for % of viewers who chose to view, avg. view duration and avg. % viewed to inform ranking. Lastly, we look at whether or not viewers enjoyed the Short using likes/dislikes and post-watch survey results.
What external factors influence how many people see your videos?
There are three major factors that explain where your audience is coming from:
Topic interest
- Topic Interest is how many people worldwide are interested in and watching Shorts about a given topic.
- Some topics have more broad appeal than others, and that appeal can change over time.
Competition
- YouTube’s systems rank videos from all channels that a viewer might watch.
- Even if you have good metrics on your Short, you may get fewer impressions if Shorts from other channels are performing even better.
Seasonality
- YouTube traffic can vary at different times of year.
- Think about your audience, such as which country or region they live in or what’s going on in their lives. Expect fluctuations in viewership during major holidays.
What factors influence how videos are recommended?
A viewer’s watch history, a video’s performance & engagement metrics, and external factors that ultimately try to help viewers reach you influence YouTube systems.
How does the audience find your Shorts?
Shorts tab:
- Shorts are ranked based on their performance and relevancy to that individual viewer.
Home tab:
- Displays Shorts that we believe have the best chances to be enjoyed by a specific viewer.
Subs tab:
- Displays most recently uploaded Shorts by the channels that a viewer is subscribed to.
Search:
- Content is ranked based on various factors. These factors include how well the metadata matches the viewers’ search and whether or not the viewers click and watch the content.
Sounds & hashtags:
- Creators leaning into trends that feature popular sounds can increase their chances of appearing on sounds pages by using sounds from the Audio Library.
Its sad but true🥲#totheleft #shorts #comedyshorts #zayaanvids #zayaan
South African creator ZayaanFour uses popular songs like Nicki Minaj’s “Do We Have A Problem?” to act out relatable skits that use the lyrics as a punch line, garnering over 100 million views.
Things to keep in mind
- There is no minimum posting cadence required for your videos to perform well. We suggest you identify what works best for your audience and well-being to focus on creating great content.
- Shorts performance doesn’t negatively impact long form Video recommendations. Shorts can help with audience discovery but can’t hurt your Video performance.
We recommend
- Focus on what your audience likes. If you do that and people watch, recommendations will follow.
- Ask yourself, which Shorts does your audience enjoy most? How often do they like to watch my channel? To help with these questions, be sure to get to know your audience.
Next: check out podcast discovery tips