How to Create a YouTube Channel in 2024

YouTube, the Google-owned video network, boasts over two billion monthly users — nearly half of all people on the Internet — and every day, people watch hundreds of millions of hours on YouTube and generate billions of views.

What’s more amazing is that 92% of Internet users watch some form of video content every day. So, there's no reason your business shouldn't be investing in YouTube as part of your social media strategy.

Video is becoming much easier and cheaper to create. This means there’s a huge opportunity for your business on YouTube.

If you’ve been debating getting started on YouTube or have maybe experimented a little and not yet found your feet, this post is for you. Throughout this post, we’ll dive into:

• The basics of getting your account set up
• How to create a YouTube channel
• How to create the perfect channel art
• Top tips for optimizing your channel.

Ready to start? Let’s go.

How to create a new YouTube channel (if you have a Google account)

If you have a Google account, you can watch, share, and comment on YouTube content. However, Google accounts don’t automatically create YouTube channels. Luckily, setting up your own YouTube channel is a simple and quick process.

1. Go to YouTube and sign in

Head over to YouTube.com and click ‘Sign in’ in the top right corner of the page:

Then log in using the Google account you’d like your channel to be associated with:

You should now have a YouTube account.

2. Head over to your YouTube settings

In the top right corner of the screen, click on your profile icon and then click "Create a channel."

3. Create your channel

Next, you’ll have the option to create a personal channel, or a create a channel using a business or other name. For this example, we’ll choose the "Use custom name" option, which is recommended for small businesses and brands:

Next, you'll name your channel.

Note: As you'll see from the settings at this step, creating a new channel name will also create a new Google account with its own settings and YouTube history. This account nests within your main Google account and can be fully managed from the Google settings. It's quite useful as you can use this new account to like and comment on other YouTube videos and participate in YouTube as your brand.

After this step, you'll have the chance to further customize your channel. You'll see options for:

• Uploading a profile picture
• Adding a description of your channel
• Adding links to your sites – this can include custom links to a website or blog as well as social links to Instagram or Twitter

Congratulations! You’ve just created a new YouTube channel! 🎉

Next, let’s fill out all the information and create some channel art to get your page looking awesome (click here to jump to the next section).

How to create a YouTube channel if you don’t already have a Google account

If you don’t already have a Google account set up, you’ll need to create one before you get started on YouTube. To do this, simply follow the below steps:

1. Head to YouTube.com
2. Click ‘Sign In’
3. Now, choose the option to create a Google account
4. Follow the steps to create your Google account

Now, you’re all set up with a Google account and can follow the above steps to create a YouTube channel.

How to create YouTube channel art

YouTube channel art is essentially YouTube’s version of the Facebook cover photo and is a great channel branding tactic.

Channel art features in a prominent place on your YouTube channel, like custom thumbnails do on your YouTube videos, which means it’s absolutely vital for any YouTube channel to use customized, eye-catching art to share your personality or more about your brand with your audience.

Here’s an example of Buffer’s YouTube channel art:

Our channel art serves multiple functions but is currently acting as a promotion tool for our Start Page feature.

Here are a couple of other examples for inspiration:

Ali Abdaal uses his channel art to introduce himself and his channel .

Skillshare uses its channel art to showcase the murals from a series that's also in its pinned video. The channel art reinforces its brand, showing off great art and brand design.

Now that you have some options in mind for what your channel art could be, here is what you need to know to create your optimal YouTube channel art.

The perfect sizes for YouTube channel art

The best place to start with your channel art is with an optimal image size that works across multiple devices. For the best results, YouTube recommends uploading a single 2560 x 1440 pixel image.

• Minimum width: 1235 x 338 px. This is the “safe area”, where text and logos are guaranteed not to be cut off when displayed on different devices.
• Maximum width: 2560 X 423 px. This means that the “safe area” is always visible; the areas to each side of the channel art are visible depending on the viewer’s browser size.
• File size: 6MB or smaller recommended.

It's interesting to note that YouTube is available on a ton of different devices – from as small as an iPhone to as large as a 60-inch TV. On TVs, the channel art appears in the background, behind the content on your YouTube channel. On desktop and mobile devices, it appears as a banner across the top. Test your channel art on different devices to make sure it doesn't pixelate when large.

Tools and tips for creating YouTube channel art

In the past, YouTube has supplied a Channel Art Template to help you figure out the perfect layout for your channel art and how it’ll look across platforms. Here's a preview of the template:

You can absolutely use the ideal dimensions that we mentioned above in order to create your channel art from scratch using a tool like Figma or Photoshop.

Nowadays, the easiest way to get up and running with your channel art is to hop into a free image creator like Canva or Adobe Express. These tools have ready-to-go YouTube templates you can quickly customize to your liking.

Here is an example of a channel art template within Canva:

Top tips for YouTube channel art

Here are some tips for getting the most out of your YouTube channel art:

1. Ensure any text and logos are within the "safe" area: The text and logo safe area is the 1235 x 338 pixel space at the center of the YouTube channel art template (see the template above). This is the area that will be displayed on YouTube when your channel is viewed on desktop screens.

Traditionally, the parts outside the safe area run the risk of being covered or illegible because of overlaid social links or profile pictures.

Be careful to ensure any important information, such as branding, text, taglines, and key images are within the safe space so that they're always displayed as part of your channel art across every device.

2. Consider your channel links: YouTube enables you to add links to your channel, and these are displayed in the bottom right corner, overlaid on top of your channel art. For example, check the bottom right of the channel art below:

When creating your channel art, it’s important to think about the space these links take up and ensure you don’t have anything important (such as logos) occupying that space within your design.

How to add art to your YouTube channel

If you’re just setting up your YouTube channel, you’ll notice the channel art space (along with the rest of your channel). To add art to your YouTube channel as well as make any other customizations, click the Customize Channel button in the top right.

Once you’ve clicked this link, you’ll go to another editor screen where you can click on the different parts of your profile in order to make changes.

There should be a blue button in the center to "Add channel art."

After this, you'll see a popup window that gives you the option to upload your own custom channel art. If you’d like to, you can also choose to use one of YouTube’s templates from the “Gallery” or choose to upload one of your photos from Google.

Adjusting the crop

Once you’ve uploaded your channel art, YouTube will show you a preview of how it looks on TV, desktop, and mobile.

At this point, you may want to adjust the cropping of your image so that you can ensure it’s all lined up correctly. The cropping tool can be accessed by clicking on "Adjust the crop."

This crop screen is very handy for checking how your design will look on various platforms. The clear section in the middle of the grid shows you the content that will be displayed on mobile and desktop and the rest of the banner image shows the image that will be displayed on TVs.

Once you’re happy with how your cover art looks, click “Select,” and your channel art will be added to your channel and saved.

Changing your current channel art

If you already have some channel art in place and would like to update it, head over to your channel homepage. From here, move your mouse over your cover art, and you’ll notice a little edit button appear in the top right-hand corner:

Once you’ve clicked on this icon, you can update your channel art.

This video from YouTube also explains how to add and edit your channel art:

How to add your channel icon (profile picture)

Each channel also has space for a profile icon/picture. This icon shows next to your videos and channel on all YouTube pages. The key here is to select something that will look good at very small resolutions – many brands opt to use their logo here.

Your channel icon should be 800 x 800 pixels and one of the following formats: JPG, GIF, BMP, or PNG file (no animated GIFs).

To update your channel icon, head to your channel homepage and hover over your current channel icon until you see the edit icon appear. Click on that icon, and you can upload a new profile icon.

5 ways to enhance your YouTube channel

Here are five enhancements you can make to increase your chances of having a successful YouTube channel.

1. Optimize your description

YouTube gives you a space on your channel to write a little about your brand and the content you share on YouTube. The description is limited to 1,000 characters, so you have a little room to be creative here.

The copy in your channel description won’t just appear on your channel page – it’s also a great way to boost your YouTube SEO. It's indexed by search engines and can also be featured across YouTube in suggested channel categories and YouTube search results. A good tactic is to include some relevant keywords and CTAs within the opening lines of your description.

And be especially mindful of the first 100-150 characters. Depending on where the description appears, the remaining text could be truncated.

Here's an example of a great YouTube channel description from Vox:

2. Add links to your channel

We briefly mentioned channel links earlier in this post. You can have up to five links appear in your channel's banner. The first link will appear expanded (see screenshot below), and the remaining links will show up as icons.

I’d love to share with you how to add these links in four super-quick steps:

1. Click the "Customize Channel" button on your channel's homepage.

2. Then click on the gear icon in the upper-right corner, just beneath your cover art.

3. You’ll see a Channel Settings lightbox appear. Here, you need to toggle on the option labeled “Customize the layout of your channel”:

3. Now that you’ve enabled customizations on your channel, pop back to your channel homepage and you’ll now see the option to “Edit Links” under the settings menu on your cover art.

4. Click the “Edit Links” option and you’ll then be taken to the “About” section of your channel. Here, you’ll have the option to add links and choose how many are displayed over your cover art:

3. Add a channel trailer

As soon as visitors land on your channel, you want to give them a picture of the type of content your channel covers and why they’ll want to subscribe and check out your videos. A channel trailer is the perfect way to do this – and you can get one up the same way you'd normally upload videos.

A short, to-the-point channel trailer can be a great way to introduce people to your content. A channel trailer should grab attention as soon as it starts and represent the type of content you create on YouTube.

It’s also important to think about the description you add to this video, as it features prominently on your channel homepage.

(These trailers only appear for people who are not yet subscribed to your channel.)

Here is a look at where this trailer appears on your channel homepage. Note how the video is on the left, and the title and description appear to the right? That's a lot of prime real estate!

4. Add your contact details (email address)

If you’re using YouTube as a business or a creator, it can be great to have your contact details on hand for easy discoverability for anyone who is interested in your work. YouTube has a section on each channel profile for you to list your contact details for business inquiries.

This can be found under the “About” section of your channel. To find it, go to your channel homepage, click “About” from the navigation, and then scroll down to “Details.” Here, you’ll see the option to share your email address:

Over to you

Thanks for reading. It’s been great fun to dive into how to create a YouTube channel, and I hope you picked up one or two tips from this post. If you want to explore how to optimize and grow your YouTube channel, check out our other articles:

• How to Boost Your Content in the YouTube Algorithm
• How to Use YouTube Studio to Edit Videos and Grow Your Channel
• How to Make Money on YouTube as a Creator
• How the YouTube Shorts Algorithm Works In 2023

If you create a YouTube channel or already have one up and running, we’d love to hear from you and learn from your experience on Twitter @buffer?