YouTube Upload API

This section details how to upload videos to YouTube using the API. It supports standard video uploads with extensive metadata customization including privacy settings, scheduling, and COPPA compliance.

Base URL

https://api.multi-upload-tool.com/api/v1

Authentication

All requests require an API Token in the header: x-api-key: YOUR_API_TOKEN

Requirements

YouTube Video Requirements

File Size: Maximum: 256 GB
Accepted MIME Types: video/*, application/octet-stream
Important: Custom thumbnails are not supported for YouTube Shorts; they only apply to standard YouTube videos.

Validation & Limits

The following limits are enforced by the API during upload. These limits match YouTube’s official documentation (https://developers.google.com/youtube/v3/docs/videos ).

Content Limits

Field	Limit	Notes
Title	100 characters	Required. Used as video title on YouTube.
Description	5,000 characters	Optional. Full video description.
Tags	500 characters total	Comma-separated list. Limit counts commas and quotes around spaced tags (e.g., `"multi word"` = 13 chars). Oversized tag lists are truncated to fit.

Media Limits

Field	Limit	Notes
Video File	256 GB	Maximum file size.
Custom Thumbnail	2 MB, JPEG/PNG	Uploaded via `thumbnail` or `thumbnail_url`. Not supported for YouTube Shorts.

Privacy & Publishing

Field	Valid Values	Notes
Privacy Status	`public`, `unlisted`, `private`	Default: `public`. If `scheduledDate` is set, status is forced to `private` initially.
License	`youtube`, `creativeCommon`	Default: `youtube`.
Scheduled Date	ISO 8601 (future date, ≤365 days ahead)	When set, the video is initially published as `private` and automatically published at the scheduled time. Must be in the future; maximum 365 days ahead.

Language & Region

Field	Format	Notes
Default Language	BCP-47 code (e.g., `en`, `fr`, `en-US`)	Sets the language of the video content.
Default Audio Language	BCP-47 code (e.g., `en`, `es`)	Specifies the audio track language.
Allowed Countries	ISO 3166-1 alpha-2, comma-separated (e.g., `US,CA,MX`)	Whitelist of countries where the video can be viewed. Cannot be used with `blockedCountries`.
Blocked Countries	ISO 3166-1 alpha-2, comma-separated (e.g., `CN,RU`)	Blacklist of countries where the video cannot be viewed. Cannot be used with `allowedCountries`.

Flags & Declarations

Field	Type	Default	Notes
Made for Kids	boolean	`false`	Read-only in YouTube API. Use `selfDeclaredMadeForKids` to declare COPPA compliance during upload.
Self-Declared Made for Kids	boolean	(optional)	Sets COPPA compliance status. Required for channels targeting minors.
Embeddable	boolean	`true`	Allows the video to be embedded on external sites.
Public Stats Viewable	boolean	`true`	Makes view count publicly visible.
Contains Synthetic Media	boolean	`false`	Declare if content includes realistic AI-generated or synthetic media (per YouTube’s AI disclosure policy).
Paid Product Placement	boolean	`false`	Declare if the video contains paid product promotion.
Notify Subscribers	boolean	`true`	Notify channel subscribers about the new upload.

Field	Valid Values	Notes
Category ID	String (YouTube category ID)	Default: `22` (People & Blogs). Common IDs: `1` (Film & Animation), `10` (Music), `20` (Gaming), `25` (News & Politics), `27` (Education), `28` (Science & Technology). See YouTube category IDs .

Upload Video

Upload a video file to a connected YouTube channel.

Endpoint

POST /upload

Content-Type

multipart/form-data

Parameters

Query Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`async`	string	No	Default `"true"`. If `"false"`, the API waits for upload completion. Passed as a query string value.

Body Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`accountId`	string	Yes	The ID of the connected YouTube account.
`video`	File	Yes	The video file to upload.
`title`	string	Yes	The title of the video. (Or `youtube_title`).
`description`	string	No	The description of the video. (Or `youtube_description`).
`tags`	string \| string[]	No	Comma-separated tags or array of strings.
`categoryId`	string	No	YouTube category ID (e.g., “22” for People & Blogs). Default: `22`.
`privacyStatus`	string	No	Visibility: `public` (default), `private`, or `unlisted`.
`scheduledDate`	string	No	ISO 8601 date string for scheduled publishing (must be within 365 days). Note: Setting this forces `privacyStatus` to `private` initially.
`thumbnail`	File	No	Custom thumbnail image file.
`thumbnail_url`	string	No	URL of the thumbnail image (alternative to file).
`embeddable`	boolean	No	Whether the video can be embedded on other sites. Default: `true`.
`license`	string	No	`youtube` (Standard) or `creativeCommon`. Default: `youtube`.
`publicStatsViewable`	boolean	No	Whether view counts are publicly visible. Default: `true`.
`madeForKids`	boolean	No	Whether the video is made for kids (COPPA compliance). Default: `false`. Note: this field is read-only in the YouTube API. Use `selfDeclaredMadeForKids` to set the value during upload.
`selfDeclaredMadeForKids`	boolean	No	Self-declaration for COPPA. This is the field that actually sets the made-for-kids status during upload.
`containsSyntheticMedia`	boolean	No	Whether content is AI-generated or synthetic. Default: `false`.
`hasPaidProductPlacement`	boolean	No	Whether the video contains paid promotion. Default: `false`.
`defaultLanguage`	string	No	BCP-47 language code (e.g., `en`, `fr`, `en-US`).
`defaultAudioLanguage`	string	No	BCP-47 language code for audio (e.g., `en`, `fr`).
`allowedCountries`	string	No	Comma-separated list of allowed country codes (uppercase ISO 3166-1 alpha-2, e.g. `US,FR`). Cannot be used together with `blockedCountries`.
`blockedCountries`	string	No	Comma-separated list of blocked country codes (uppercase ISO 3166-1 alpha-2). Cannot be used together with `allowedCountries`.
`recordingDate`	string	No	Date when the video was recorded (ISO 8601).
`notifySubscribers`	boolean	No	Whether to notify subscribers about the upload. Default: `true`.

Example Request


curl -X POST https://api.multi-upload-tool.com/api/v1/upload \
  -H "x-api-key: YOUR_API_TOKEN" \
  -F "accountId=acc_123456789" \
  -F "video=@/path/to/video.mp4" \
  -F "title=My Amazing Video" \
  -F "description=Check out this cool content!" \
  -F "privacyStatus=public" \
  -F "tags=vlog,lifestyle,travel" \
  -F "madeForKids=false" \
  -F "containsSyntheticMedia=true"

Example Response


{
  "success": true,
  "message": "Upload queued successfully",
  "data": {
    "uploadId": "upl_987654321",
    "status": "pending",
    "jobId": "job_123"
  }
}