[0:00] Not sure which title or thumbnail to use?
[0:02] Try “A/B  testing,”  a feature that lets you 
choose up to 3 video titles and/or  
[0:08] thumbnails to test with viewers to help 
pick your winner. Here’s how it works.
[0:12] Eligible creators can use the “A/B testing” 
feature through YouTube Studio desktop  
[0:17] when publishing a new video, or with an 
existing video. On the Video Details page,  
[0:22] click the icon under the ‘Title’ section 
or ‘Thumbnail section. From here,  
[0:26] choose if you want to run a Title 
only test, a Thumbnail only test,  
[0:31] or a Title and Thumbnail test.
For title only, you can add up  
[0:35] to three different titles to test. 
Titles must be under 100 characters. 
[0:39] For thumbnail only, you can upload three 
different images to learn which viewers  
[0:44] prefer. For title and thumbnail, you can add 
three different title and thumbnail combinations
[0:50] After you’ve added your titles, thumbnails or 
combinations of both, click Done. A/B testing is  
[0:55] only available for Public, long form videos, and 
the test will start once you publish your video.
[1:01] Here’s how the test works: 
[1:02] YouTube will show your chosen titles and/or 
thumbnails evenly across your video’s audience,  
[1:08] and will select a winning thumbnail based on 
which one generates the most watch time share 
[1:13] You can check the status of your test at 
any time by going to the Video Details  
[1:17] page and clicking “View test report” 
under the Title or Thumbnail section 
[1:22] You’ll see how much time is left for the 
test and how they’re performing. You can  
[1:26] also choose to stop the test and manually 
set one of the options as the winner 
[1:30] If you let the test run, the results 
may take a few hours or up to a couple  
[1:35] of weeks to be finalized.
How long it takes to get  
[1:37] the results is affected by factors like:
How similar your titles and/or thumbnails  
[1:43] are (the more they differ, the 
faster your test will finish) 
[1:46] And your video traffic (the more 
impressions that your video receives,  
[1:49] the faster your test will finish)
Once the test is finished,  
[1:52] the test report will show the results
If there’s a statistically significant result,  
[1:57] you’ll see a “Winner” label. YouTube will 
automatically update your video title and/or  
[2:01] thumbnail to this winner when the test is done.
You might also see a “Performed Same” label.  
[2:06] This result indicates that all test options had 
similar watch time performance. If there’s no  
[2:11] clear winner, or if the options “Performed 
Same,” the first title and/or thumbnail  
[2:15] will be selected and shown to your audience.
Remember that in either case, it’s ultimately  
[2:20] up to you – you can always manually select 
the video title and thumbnail you want to use. 
[2:24] You can also choose to run a new test, but 
note it will delete your old experiment
[2:29] Now let’s walk through some things 
to note and best practices for  
[2:33] using the “A/B testing” feature:
Titles and Thumbnails must follow  
[2:36] our Community Guidelines, and the tool will 
not work on videos that are designated as  
[2:41] made for kids, for mature audiences, or live.
Note that great titles and thumbnails serve  
[2:47] an important purpose beyond getting viewers to 
click. They help a viewer understand what the  
[2:52] video is about so that they don't waste 
their time clicking on the wrong videos. 
[2:56] Remember that your title and thumbnail should 
work together as a team. We highly encourage  
[3:01] testing title and thumbnail combinations 
to find which pairing works best to help  
[3:05] viewers understand what your video is about.
We suggest testing titles and thumbnails on  
[3:10] a limited selection of older videos for 
initial guidance, then a selection of more  
[3:15] recent videos you think will provide the most 
meaningful insights for your content strategy. 
[3:19] We also recommend testing thumbnail 
variations that explore different  
[3:23] layout compositions and changes to thumbnail 
elements (including background, text overlays, and  
[3:28] object placement) to learn which resonates most 
with your audience. Some tips to keep in mind: 
[3:34] Ensure your images are balanced, with a focal 
point to direct viewers attention towards 
[3:39] Utilize high contrast, allowing 
your subject to stand out against  
[3:43] the background in both light and dark mode.
With text, remember that fewer words can be  
[3:49] impactful, while too much text can be 
difficult to process while scrolling. 
[3:53] And finally when it comes to depth of field, keep 
your background in mind and play with blank space
[3:58] We hope the A/B testing feature will help you 
gain insights when it comes to making titles  
[4:03] and thumbnails, and help your overall video 
performance in the long run! For more info,  
[4:07] check out the links below. Thanks for watching!