Creating a new playlist on YouTube takes less than a minute

You can create a YouTube playlist directly from your account without any special tools or permissions. A playlist is a collection of videos you save together under one name — you might group music videos, cooking tutorials, or clips from a channel you follow. Once you create a playlist, you can add videos to it, share it with others, or keep it private for yourself.

The fastest way to start is from any video page. Click the Save button (it looks like a plus sign or bookmark icon below the video), then select Create new playlist. Give it a name, choose whether it's public or private, and you're done. The video you were watching gets added automatically.

Key Takeaways

  • You create a playlist by clicking Save under any video and selecting Create new playlist from the dropdown menu.
  • You can make a playlist public so anyone can find and watch it, or private so only you can see it.
  • After you create a playlist, you add more videos by clicking Save on any video and picking the playlist name from the list.
  • You can rename, delete, or change the privacy setting of a playlist anytime from your library.
  • YouTube playlists work on phones, tablets, and computers — changes sync across all your devices.

The Save button method: the quickest way to start

Open any YouTube video. Below the video player, you'll see several buttons: Like, Dislike, Share, and Save. Click Save. A small menu appears with options including "Watch later" and "Create new playlist."

Click Create new playlist. A box pops up asking for a name. Type whatever you want — "Road Trip Music," "Cooking Videos," "Funny Clips," anything that makes sense to you. Below the name field, you'll see a dropdown that says Visibility. This controls who can see your playlist. Choose Public if you want to share it with friends or let anyone find it, or Private if you want to keep it to yourself.

Click Create. YouTube adds the video you were watching to the new playlist and shows you a confirmation message. That's it — your playlist exists now.

Creating a playlist from your library

If you want to create an empty playlist before adding videos, you can do that from your YouTube library. Click your profile picture in the top right corner, then select Your channel. On the left side menu, click Playlists.

Look for a button that says Create playlist or shows a plus sign. Click it. Enter a name for your playlist and set the visibility to Public or Private. Click Create. Your empty playlist is now ready, and you can add videos to it whenever you find ones you want to save.

This method is useful if you know you want to build a collection around a specific topic but haven't found videos yet. You can come back and add videos later without having to create the playlist in the moment.

Adding videos to your playlist after creation

Once you have a playlist, adding videos is straightforward. Find any video you want to save. Click the Save button below the video. Instead of "Create new playlist," you'll now see a list of your existing playlists. Click the name of the playlist where you want to add the video.

The video gets added immediately. You'll see a checkmark next to the playlist name, confirming the save. You can add the same video to multiple playlists if you want — there's no limit to how many playlists can contain the same video.

On mobile phones and tablets, the Save button works the same way. Tap it, select your playlist, and the video is saved. Your playlists sync across devices, so a video you add on your phone appears in the playlist on your computer.

Changing privacy settings and managing your playlists

You can change whether a playlist is public or private anytime. Go to your library, click Playlists, and find the playlist you want to adjust. Click the three dots next to the playlist name. Select Edit playlist.

In the edit window, you'll see the Visibility dropdown. Change it from Public to Private or vice versa. You can also edit the playlist name or description here. Click Save when you're done. The changes take effect immediately.

If you want to remove a video from a playlist, open the playlist, find the video, and click the three dots next to it. Select Remove from playlist. To delete an entire playlist, go to your playlists list, click the three dots next to the playlist name, and select Delete playlist. This removes the playlist but doesn't delete the videos themselves from YouTube.

Sharing your playlist with others

If your playlist is public, anyone with the link can watch it. Open the playlist, and look for a Share button near the top. Click it to copy the link. You can paste this link in messages, emails, or social media to send it to friends.

People who receive the link can watch all the videos in your playlist without needing a YouTube account. They can't edit your playlist or add videos to it — only you can do that. If you want to let someone else edit the playlist, you'll need to give them access through YouTube's collaboration features, though this is less common for personal playlists.

If your playlist is private, only you can see it, and you can't share the link with others. You'd need to change it to public first if you want to share it.

Organizing playlists when you have many

If you create several playlists, you can organize them by renaming them clearly and grouping related videos together. Use specific names like "2024 Favorites" or "Learn Spanish" instead of generic ones like "Playlist 1." This makes it easier to find what you want later.

YouTube doesn't have a built-in folder system for playlists, so you can't nest playlists inside each other. However, you can use descriptions to add notes about what each playlist contains. When you edit a playlist, add a description explaining its purpose or contents. This helps you remember what each one is for, especially if you have many.

You can also create a "master" playlist that links to other playlists by adding videos that are introductions or overviews, though this is a workaround rather than a native feature.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I make a playlist with videos from different channels?

Yes. A playlist can contain videos from any channel on YouTube. You're not limited to one creator or topic — mix and match however you want. This is useful for creating themed collections like "Workout Videos" that might include clips from different fitness creators.

What happens if I delete a video from YouTube — does it disappear from my playlists?

If the original creator deletes a video, it disappears from your playlist too. The spot where it was shows as unavailable. If a video is just made private by the creator, it also becomes unwatchable in your playlist. You can remove it manually, but it won't play either way.

Can I reorder videos in a playlist?

Yes. Open your playlist and look for a drag handle (usually three horizontal lines) next to each video. Click and drag videos to rearrange them in the order you want. On mobile, long-press a video to grab it and drag it to a new position. The new order saves automatically.

Do other people see my private playlists?

No. Private playlists are visible only to you. No one else can find them, search for them, or access them even if they have your YouTube link. Only you can see them in your library.

How many videos can I add to one playlist?

YouTube doesn't set a hard limit on playlist size. You can add hundreds or thousands of videos to a single playlist. However, very large playlists can take longer to load, so some people split large collections into multiple playlists for easier browsing.