YouTube says a maximum of 5,000 videos can be displayed in a playlist, and the same 5,000 cap applies to your Liked videos playlist. Playlist titles can be up to 150 characters and descriptions up to 5,000, and there's a separate daily limit on how many public playlists a channel can create.
Most people never come close to 5,000 videos. The ones who do are long-running music collections, course libraries and anyone who's been pressing Like for a decade, and they're usually the ones who notice older videos seem to vanish from the list.
Here's every playlist limit YouTube publishes, what to do when you hit one, and the restrictions that catch people sooner.
All the playlist limits in one table
| Limit | What YouTube says |
|---|---|
| Videos shown in a playlist | A maximum of 5,000 can be displayed |
| Videos shown in Liked videos | A maximum of 5,000 can be displayed |
| Playlist title | Up to 150 characters |
| Playlist description | Up to 5,000 characters |
| Public playlists created per day | Limited per channel, across YouTube, YouTube Music and the API; raised with advanced features |
Notice the wording: YouTube says 5,000 can be displayed. It doesn't publish what happens to anything past that point, so if your playlist is near the cap, plan as though the extra videos won't show.
What to do if you're near 5,000
- Split the playlist by theme, year or series, so each one stays well under the cap.
- Use the filter chips at the top of a playlist (All, Shorts, Videos) to check what's in it. The Shorts filter is only on computers.
- For Liked videos, remove likes you no longer need, so newer ones stay inside the 5,000 shown.
- Give each new playlist a clear title, using the 150 characters to say what's in it.
The daily limit on creating playlists
This one surprises busy channels. YouTube says there's a limit to how many public playlists a channel can create each day, counted across the main YouTube app, YouTube Music and the YouTube API. It doesn't publish the number, but you can raise your daily limit by getting access to advanced features. If you're bulk-building playlists, spread the work over a few days.
Other playlist rules worth knowing
- Characters: titles and descriptions can't include the angle brackets or the invisible line separator character.
- Made for kids videos: if you're on the homepage, you can't add a made for kids video or channel to a playlist, though you can still add it from search results.
- Reordering: you can drag videos up and down, but reordering isn't available for playlists that only contain Shorts.
- Deleting: a deleted playlist may still show in viewers' watch histories, and its analytics stop being attributed to it.
- Collaborators: in YouTube Studio you can invite collaborators from the playlist details, under More, then Collaborate.
- Supervised accounts: the playlist feature may not be available.
Where to find your playlists
On YouTube, open the guide and click You. Playlists you've created, public, private and unlisted, are under Playlists, with Watch later and Liked videos listed separately. YouTube notes you may not see every section in your You tab.
To save a video to an existing playlist, go to its watch page, click More, then Save, and choose a playlist such as Watch later. A message at the bottom of the screen confirms where it went.
Public, private or unlisted
| Setting | Who can see the playlist |
|---|---|
| Private | Only you |
| Unlisted | Anyone with the link |
| Public | Anyone, and it can appear on your channel |
Public playlists are the ones that count towards the daily creation limit, so if you're organising things for yourself, private playlists keep you clear of it.
How to make a playlist
From any video or Short: go to its watch page, click More, then Save, then Create new playlist. Enter a name, choose the privacy setting (private means only you can see it) and click Create. In YouTube Studio, click Create, then New playlist, add a title and description, choose visibility and how videos are arranged, then add videos.
If you're building playlists of music, transferring a Spotify playlist to YouTube Music saves a lot of manual adding. And clipping a YouTube video is handy when you only want one moment rather than a whole video.
Keep big playlists easy to use
A playlist with thousands of videos is hard for anyone to browse, including you. On a computer, the filter chips at the top let you switch between All, Shorts and Videos, which helps when a playlist mixes formats. Drag the videos you most want people to watch to the top, and give the description a sentence that tells people what the playlist is for. You've got 5,000 characters there, so there's plenty of room to explain it.
My verdict
Five thousand is plenty for almost everyone, but treat it as a display limit, not a promise that more will show. Keep big collections split into themed playlists, and if you run a channel, build public playlists a few at a time so the daily cap never stops you.
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Frequently asked questions
How many videos can a YouTube playlist hold?
YouTube says a maximum of 5,000 videos can be displayed in a playlist.
Is there a limit on YouTube Liked videos?
Yes. YouTube says a maximum of 5,000 videos can be displayed in the Liked videos playlist.
How long can a YouTube playlist title be?
Up to 150 characters, with up to 5,000 characters for the description.
Is there a limit on how many playlists I can create?
There's a daily limit on public playlists per channel across YouTube, YouTube Music and the API. Advanced features raise it.
Can other people add videos to my YouTube playlist?
Yes, if you invite them. In YouTube Studio, open the playlist details and use More, then Collaborate.
What happens when I delete a YouTube playlist?
It may still appear in viewers' watch histories, and its analytics data stops being attributed to that playlist.
Can I save made for kids videos to a playlist?
Not from the homepage. YouTube says you can still add them to a playlist from search results.
Where are my playlists on YouTube?
Open the guide and click You. Your playlists, including private and unlisted ones, are under Playlists.
Why can't I reorder my YouTube playlist?
YouTube says reordering isn't available for playlists that only contain Shorts.
