vidpickr

YouTube Timestamp Link Generator

Share YouTube videos that start exactly there.

Paste a YouTube URL, type the start time (any common format), get a shareable link that jumps straight to that point. Bonus formats: short youtu.be, Markdown, HTML, Twitter share text. Free, browser-based, no signup.

1

Paste the YouTube URL

Any youtube.com/watch?v=… or youtu.be/… link. The tool extracts the video ID and discards any existing timestamp.

2

Type your start time

Use 1:30, 90, 1m30s, or 1:23:45 format. Optional end time for embed-only use cases.

3

Copy the formatted link

Multiple formats: long URL, short youtu.be, Markdown, HTML anchor, Twitter share text. One-click copy for each.

Why timestamp links matter

A 45-minute lecture has one part everyone wants to share — the tweet that goes viral has “watch from 12:34” in the text and a link that doesn’t actually jump there. The timestamp link fixes that. Single second of friction removed.

The URL parameter has been part of YouTube since the early 2010s (originally as #t=90 fragment, now as ?t=90s query parameter). Every YouTube client — web, mobile app, smart TV — respects it. Pasting a timestamp link into Twitter, Reddit, Discord, Slack, or any rich-link unfurler shows the video preview and the player jumps to the right second.

Frequently asked questions

Does this work for YouTube Shorts?
No — Shorts don't support timestamp deep-linking because they're short by design and lack a scrubbing UI. Timestamp links only make sense for regular YouTube videos (more than 60 seconds, with a progress bar).
Can I include both a start AND an end time?
Yes for embeds (the iframe URL supports both start and end parameters). For regular share links, YouTube only honors start time — the end time is dropped silently by the player. If you need both for a viewer, use the embed code generator instead.
What format should the timestamp be in?
Anything intuitive — "1:30", "90", "1m30s", "1:23:45", "5400" all work. The tool parses common time formats and converts to seconds (which is what YouTube's URL parameter actually expects).
Will the timestamp work in all browsers / apps?
Yes for browsers. The YouTube mobile app also respects timestamp links — tapping a shared link with ?t=90 opens the app and jumps to 90 seconds. The Twitter/X embed widget similarly honors timestamps.
Is this the same as YouTube's built-in "Share with timestamp" option?
Same end result, different starting point. YouTube's share dialog has a "Start at" checkbox that does the same thing. This tool lets you generate the link without visiting the YouTube page — useful when you already know the timestamp but don't have the video open.

Related tools

YouTube embed code generator

Full iframe code with start, end, controls, autoplay, more.

YouTube clip downloader

Download just the time range as a file, not a link.

YouTube thumbnail downloader

Save the video's thumbnail in any size.

YouTube video downloader

Save the full video instead of linking to it.