Compilation videos dominate YouTube. "Top 10" lists, sports highlight reels, gaming montages, best-of compilations from streams, and fail compilations consistently rank among the most viewed content types. The format is simple: multiple short clips joined into a single video, often with transitions, title cards, and background music.
Creating a basic compilation requires only joining clips. No complex timeline editing, no effects, no transitions. Just the clips, in order, as one file.
Preparing clips for a cohesive compilation
Before merging, make each clip consistent:
Resolution: Decide on a target resolution. For YouTube, 1920x1080 (1080p) is the standard. If some clips are 720p or 4K, resize them all to 1080p first. Upscaling 720p to 1080p does not add detail, but it prevents resolution changes during playback that cause the YouTube player to rebuffer.
Aspect ratio: Use 16:9 for landscape compilations. If mixing landscape and vertical clips, either crop the vertical ones to 16:9 (losing top and bottom content) or pillarbox them (adding black bars on the sides). Consistent aspect ratio throughout is important for viewer experience.
Frame rate: Normalize to 30fps or 60fps. Mixing frame rates causes stuttering at the transitions between clips.
Audio levels: Clips from different sources often have wildly different volume levels. One clip might be whisper-quiet while the next blasts at full volume. Normalizing audio levels before merging prevents jarring volume jumps.
Adding intro and outro cards
YouTube compilations typically have a title card at the beginning (showing the compilation title, channel branding, or a preview of the best moments) and a card at the end (subscribe prompt, links to other videos).
You can create simple title cards as images (1920x1080 PNG) and convert them to short video clips (3-5 seconds each) before adding them to the merge sequence. Some tools accept images directly alongside video clips in the merge queue.
Copyright considerations for compilations
If your compilation includes clips from other creators' content, you must understand copyright:
- Using your own clips: No issue. You own the content.
- Using clips from Creative Commons sources: Allowed if you follow the license terms (attribution, share-alike, etc.).
- Using clips from other YouTube videos: Likely a copyright violation unless you have explicit permission or the use qualifies as fair use (criticism, commentary, education). YouTube's Content ID system will detect copyrighted material and may demonetize or remove your video.
- Using clips from streaming services, TV shows, or movies: Almost certainly a copyright violation without a license.
If you are making a compilation of your own gaming highlights, travel clips, or original recordings, there is no issue.
Optimal export settings for YouTube
YouTube recommends these settings for uploads:
- Container: MP4
- Video codec: H.264 (YouTube accepts H.265 but processes H.264 faster)
- Resolution: 1920x1080 for Full HD, 3840x2160 for 4K
- Frame rate: Match the source (30fps or 60fps)
- Bitrate: YouTube re-encodes everything, so upload at high quality. CRF 18 or 8-12 Mbps for 1080p.
- Audio: AAC-LC, 48 kHz, stereo, 384 kbps
Upload the highest quality version you can. YouTube will re-encode it into multiple resolutions and bitrates for streaming. The better your source, the better the final result looks to viewers. The MediaBrew merge tool produces MP4/H.264 output by default, which matches YouTube's recommended format. For clips with different resolutions or formats, the tool re-encodes to normalize parameters automatically.