Chapter Requirements

• The 00:00 Rule: Your very first timestamp must be 00:00 (or 0:00). Usually, people label this "Intro" or "Start."
• The Minimum Count: You must have at least 3 chapters listed in chronological order.
• The 10-Second Rule: Each chapter must be at least 10 seconds long.
• The Placement: While they can be anywhere, it is best practice to put them on their own lines at the very bottom of your description.

Chapter Specs

• Videos Under 1 Hour (MM:SS) For most videos, you use a two-part timecode. Example: 00:00 Intro 02:15 The Setup 05:40 Deep Dive 09:10 Final Thoughts
• Videos Over 1 Hour (HH:MM:SS) If your video is long, you must include the hour digit, even for the early chapters. Example: 0:00:00 Stream Start 0:45:12 Halfway Point 1:15:00 Q&A Session
• Avoid Overlaps: If a user tries to save a chapter at 02:10 and then another at 02:15, your UI should warn them (or your code should auto-merge them) because a 5-second chapter will "break" the YouTube timeline.
• Sanitize Titles: Keep titles under 40 characters. Longer titles get cut off on mobile devices when users scrub the timeline.
• The Separator: Use a consistent separator like - (Space-Hyphen-Space). It is the most readable for both humans and the YouTube algorithm.
  • Correct: 02:15 - How to Bake
  • Risky: 02:15How to Bake (The algorithm might miss it)

Example

CHAPTERS:
00:00 - Introduction
01:30 - Unboxing the Product
04:15 - Feature Walkthrough
08:00 - Performance Testing
12:45 - Pros and Cons
15:20 - Final Verdict & Summary