Guide
You edit a YouTube Short like a TikTok, except for the length and the links
Updated
A good Short starts on its point, has captions, and cuts every um and long pause. YouTube adds a few rules of its own, and Cutroom's Magic Editor can make the whole edit for you.
In short
- A good YouTube Short starts on its point, has captions, cuts the ums and long pauses, and ends with one clear thing to do next.
- YouTube allows Shorts of up to 3 minutes, and links in a Short's description can't be clicked.
- Cutroom's Magic Editor turns one clip of you talking into a finished vertical Short, and you change it by asking Jacob, its AI editor, in a chat.
A budgeting app founder's savings tip, before and after Cutroom's Magic Editor
Each chat message makes a new version, and the earlier versions stay.
Drawing of an example clip, not a customer video
Before · the clip as filmed
A 50-second phone video of a budgeting app founder sharing a savings tip to camera
“So today I want to share my favourite savings tip. Um, move a tenth of every payday into a separate pot , uh, before you spend anything. … (pause) My app does that for you on its own.”
struck through = what Jacob cuts
After · Jacob's first edit, Steps style
“So today I want to share my favourite savings tip. move a tenth of every payday into a separate pot before you spend anything. My app does that for you on its own.”
- On “payday”: the word payday set big under your screenshot
- On “pot”: your screenshot savings-pot.png in a floating window
- Under the whole video: captions of every word, in the picture itself
- On “app”: you on camera at the end, with your logo as a sticker
window: savings-pot.png
Then you ask Jacob
- “Cut the first sentence”v2the same edit, now starting on "move a tenth of every payday"
- “Change the call to action to Try it free”v3the same edit, ending on the typed words Try it free
How should you edit a YouTube Short?
Keep it simple. One clip, one idea, and nothing that makes people wait for the point.
- Start on your point. Cut the hello and the intro.
- Keep to one idea per Short. A second tip can be its own Short.
- Put captions on, for people who watch with the sound off.
- Cut the ums and long pauses.
- Keep the music quiet under your voice, so every word is clear.
- End with one clear thing to do next. Say it out loud and show it as text on screen too.
The rules YouTube adds
YouTube also has a few rules of its own that change how you edit.
- A Short can be up to 3 minutes long, according to YouTube's help page. Shorter is still easier to watch to the end.
- Film upright. YouTube's help page says to upload vertical videos for Shorts.
- Links you paste in a Short's description or comments can't be clicked. YouTube says this is to stop spam and scams. So don't end with "link in the description".
- You can link one of your own videos to a Short instead, in YouTube Studio. It shows as a clickable link under your channel name.
How Cutroom's Magic Editor edits a video like this
Jacob is the AI editor inside Cutroom's Magic Editor: it edits your video for you, then changes it when you ask in a chat.
The 4 styles, as example edits
Steps
Three steps, four angles
Skit
Hook, hard stop, demo card
Verdict
The tester's verdict
Poster
Typography does the talking
Hover or tap an example to play it, without sound. These are example edits of each style; the presenters in them are generated with AI.
- Your take: one video of you talking, up to 3 minutes
- Your style: one of 4: Steps, Skit, Verdict or Poster
- Your files: screenshots, a screen recording or a logo, if you have them
- Your goal: what the video is for, in a few words, if you like
- Jacob makes it: normally 10 to 15 minutes, and you get an email
- Your edit: ask Jacob for changes in a chat, then export
Then you ask Jacob, for example
- “Make this about 10 seconds shorter”
- “Put a clip on the strongest sentence”
- “Change the music to something calmer”
Each change is a new version, and going back is free. First cut 250 credits, each change 40, questions free, export 30 credits per started minute.
What YouTube's own Shorts editor can do
YouTube's app has a timeline editor for Shorts. You tap Edit, and you get your clips, text, stickers, music and voiceover in one place.
- Trim each clip and drag clips into a new order.
- Put several lines of text over the video and change their colour, style and position.
- Add a song or a sound, or record a voiceover.
- Add stickers such as a poll or a quiz, and pick a filter.
- YouTube's help page for the editor says nothing about captions, so plan to add those yourself or in another app.
Editing a Short with Cutroom's Magic Editor
Cutroom's Magic Editor makes the edit before you upload. You film one clip of you talking, up to 3 minutes, and press "Make my video". It normally takes 10 to 15 minutes, and you get an email when your first cut is ready.
Jacob, its AI editor, cuts the ums, puts captions into the picture itself and shows your screenshots on the right words. Then you change the edit by typing in the chat, like "Make this about 10 seconds shorter".
- The call to action at the end can be up to 48 characters.
- You get a vertical MP4, 1080 by 1920, 30 frames a second, with the sound levelled. It's already vertical, so it fits a Short. You upload it to YouTube yourself; Cutroom doesn't post for you.
- A chat message that changes the video costs 40 credits. Every change Jacob makes is a new version. The earlier versions stay, and going back to one is free.
- Jacob can't move a sentence to another place, so film your strongest line early or ask Jacob to cut what comes before it.
Questions people ask
- How long can a YouTube Short be?
- Up to 3 minutes, according to YouTube's help page. The video has to be vertical.
- Can you put a clickable link in a YouTube Short?
- Not in the description or comments. YouTube makes those links unclickable to stop spam. You can link one of your own videos to the Short, which shows as a clickable link under your channel name.
- Can you add captions in YouTube's Shorts editor?
- YouTube's help page for the Shorts editor doesn't list captions. It lists text, stickers, music, voiceover and filters. So add captions in another editor before you upload.
- Is editing a Short different from editing a TikTok?
- Only a little. The basics are the same. The two big differences are the 3-minute length limit and description links that can't be clicked.
Film one clip of you talking and let Jacob make the Short. Your first video is free.