YouTube (long-form) video codec and container support
YouTube's official encoding page recommends MP4 with H.264 video, AAC-LC, Opus or Eclipsa Audio, 48 kHz audio, progressive scan and the source frame rate. It lists common frame rates of 24, 25, 30, 48, 50 and 60 fps. This is a recommendation page, not a complete accepted-upload list, so it does not prove that MKV or AV1 uploads are rejected.
What the official pages state
| Surface | Documented fact | Official page |
|---|---|---|
| Recommended container and video | MP4, H.264 High Profile, progressive scan, 4:2:0 | YouTube encoding settings |
| Recommended audio | AAC-LC, Opus or Eclipsa Audio; 48 kHz | YouTube encoding settings |
| Frame rate | Upload in the recorded frame rate; common values 24, 25, 30, 48, 50, 60 | YouTube encoding settings |
YouTube serving VP9 or AV1 to viewers is playback behavior and does not establish which upload codecs are accepted.
Documented combinations
| Codec and container | Status | What the source says |
|---|---|---|
| H.264 / AVC in MP4 | Recommended | MP4 + H.264 + AAC is the safe default YouTube upload. |
| AAC in MP4 | Recommended | AAC is the standard YouTube audio codec. |
| Opus in WebM | Recommended | Opus is the default audio codec inside WebM. |
| H.264 / AVC in MOV (QuickTime) | Accepted | MOV is on YouTube's accepted upload list. |
| H.265 / HEVC in MP4 | Accepted | YouTube lists HEVC (H.265) among supported upload formats. |
| H.265 / HEVC in MOV (QuickTime) | Accepted | YouTube lists HEVC (H.265) among supported upload formats. |
| VP9 in WebM | Accepted | WebM (VP8 or VP9 video) is on YouTube's supported formats list. |
| VP8 in WebM | Accepted | VP8 inside WebM is supported. |
| AAC in MOV (QuickTime) | Accepted | AAC inside MOV works for YouTube. |
Quick answers
Does YouTube (long-form) support H.264 (AVC)?
Yes: YouTube (long-form) documents H.264 (AVC) in MP4 (recommended), MOV (accepted).
Does YouTube (long-form) support H.265 (HEVC)?
Yes: YouTube (long-form) documents H.265 (HEVC) in MP4 (accepted), MOV (accepted). H.264 in MP4 is the documented safe choice.
Does YouTube (long-form) support AV1?
YouTube (long-form)'s published upload documentation does not list AV1 in any container checked here. It may still upload; H.264 in MP4 is the documented safe choice.
Does YouTube (long-form) support VP9?
Yes: YouTube (long-form) documents VP9 in WebM (accepted). H.264 in MP4 is the documented safe choice.
Does YouTube (long-form) support VP8?
Yes: YouTube (long-form) documents VP8 in WebM (accepted). H.264 in MP4 is the documented safe choice.
Does YouTube (long-form) support MPEG-4 Part 2?
YouTube (long-form)'s published upload documentation does not list MPEG-4 Part 2 in any container checked here. It may still upload; H.264 in MP4 is the documented safe choice.
Does YouTube (long-form) support ProRes?
YouTube (long-form)'s published upload documentation does not list ProRes in any container checked here. It may still upload; H.264 in MP4 is the documented safe choice.
Every combination checked
Recommended: 3 · Accepted: 6 · Not documented: 23 · Non-standard mux: 16
| Codec | MP4 | MOV | WebM | MKV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| H.264 / AVC | Recommended | Accepted | Non-standard mux | Not documented |
| H.265 / HEVC | Accepted | Accepted | Non-standard mux | Not documented |
| AV1 | Not documented | Not documented | Not documented | Not documented |
| VP9 | Not documented | Non-standard mux | Accepted | Not documented |
| VP8 | Non-standard mux | Non-standard mux | Accepted | Not documented |
| MPEG-4 Part 2 | Not documented | Not documented | Non-standard mux | Not documented |
| ProRes | Not documented | Not documented | Non-standard mux | Not documented |
| Codec | MP4 | MOV | WebM | MKV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AAC | Recommended | Accepted | Non-standard mux | Not documented |
| MP3 | Not documented | Not documented | Non-standard mux | Not documented |
| Opus | Non-standard mux | Non-standard mux | Recommended | Not documented |
| FLAC | Non-standard mux | Non-standard mux | Non-standard mux | Not documented |
| PCM (uncompressed) | Non-standard mux | Not documented | Non-standard mux | Not documented |
- Recommended
- the platform names this as a recommended upload
- Accepted
- listed as accepted, not the default
- Not documented
- not in the platform's published list; it may still upload, but convert to be safe
- Non-standard mux
- this codec is not normally carried in this container; files like this are rare
Sources
- YouTube Supported File Formats: native upload; Shorts has additional shape + duration rules. Checked 2026-09-18.
- YouTube recommended upload encoding settings: Recommended upload settings, not a complete accepted-file list. Read 2026-10-08.
- YouTube Help: Supported file formats: Accepted upload file types; page availability varies. Read 2026-10-08.
Verdicts come from the published lists above. Where a list is silent, this page says “Not documented” rather than guessing.