YouTube’s short-form video, TikTok competitor, was previously limited to 15-second music clips. Shorts have lifted the limit on most tracks.

Until now, one of the biggest downfalls of YouTube Shorts was the maximum 15-second audio limit imposed by the music picker on the app. This made cross-posting between different short-form video apps difficult, requiring shorter videos or other creative workarounds.

YouTube are now removing this restriction for all users. Shorts creators will be able to use up to 60 seconds (the maximum length of Shorts) of licensed music “for most tracks”. Some songs will keep the 15-second limit, depending on licensing agreements. The length of tracks can be seen in YouTube Shorts’ audio picker, to make finding the right music easier.

The update has started rolling out and will be available to all users on iOS and Android in the coming weeks.

Since the launch of Shorts, YouTube have been stepping up their game to keep up with short-form video leader TikTok. Now with 1.5 billion monthly active users of Shorts, a recent announcement of a proper monetization model, via ad-revenue sharing is arguably the biggest move we’ve seen in the short-form video space. This will undoubtedly pull many short-form creators towards YouTube.

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