How to Share a YouTube Video at a Specific Time (Timestamp Links Explained)
The complete guide to YouTube timestamp URLs: how to create them, share them across platforms, and generate them for any moment in seconds.
Sharing a specific moment in a long video is one of those small workflows that saves hours over a year. YouTube supports it natively — you just need to know the URL pattern, or use a Timestamp Link Generator that does the math for you.
The URL pattern
For any YouTube video, appending ?t=<seconds> (or &t=<seconds> if the URL already has query parameters) makes the video start at that second offset:
https://youtu.be/dQw4w9WgXcQ?t=43
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ&t=43
Both work. The youtu.be short form is one character less. Both work on desktop, mobile web, and inside the mobile app.
Human-readable timestamps
You can also use 1h2m3s-style timestamps:
https://youtu.be/dQw4w9WgXcQ?t=1h2m3s
YouTube's copy-link-with-timestamp feature (right-click a video, choose "Copy video URL at current time") uses the seconds form. Both work identically.
When to share a timestamp vs. share the whole video
Use a timestamp when:
- Answering a specific question that a video covers at a specific point.
- Pointing to a controversial or interesting moment.
- Referencing a chapter you want the reader to watch, not the whole video.
Skip the timestamp when:
- The video's power is cumulative — sharing "the ending" of a documentary robs the viewer of the setup.
- Attribution is important — some creators prefer viewers see the whole video to boost watch time (helpful for the algorithm and their revenue).
Ranges via the embed player
The t= parameter is only for starting the video. To limit a range, you need the embed URL:
https://www.youtube.com/embed/VIDEOID?start=90&end=180
This embeds the video and plays only from 1:30 to 3:00. Useful for embedding a specific segment in a blog post or documentation.
Common mistakes
Mixing up t= and time_continue=. You may see YouTube's own share dialog output &t=90s or &time_continue=90&t=90s. All variants work; the simple t=90 form is the cleanest.
Forgetting the URL scheme. If you paste youtube.com/watch?v=xxx&t=90 without https://, most chat apps will not autolink it. Always include the full URL when sharing.
Timestamp beyond video length. If you set t= past the video's duration, YouTube plays from the beginning silently. Test your link before sharing.
Using the generator
The Timestamp Link Generator is the least-friction way to make a timestamp link if you do not want to compute seconds mentally:
- Paste the video URL.
- Enter hours, minutes, and seconds.
- Copy the generated link.
The generator handles all URL formats (youtu.be, full URLs, shorts) and normalizes them to the compact share form.
Try it
Pick a video with a moment worth sharing, drop the URL into the Timestamp Link Generator, and share the resulting link with a friend.