Know About the Longest Video On YouTube In The World!

Since YouTube is one of the most popular social media platforms online, it is no surprise to know that people are pushing their limits and doing everything possible on the platform, including ‘uploading extremely long videos’!

So, today in this article, we are specifically going to discuss YouTube video length and everything related to it like how long can a YouTube video be, which is the longest YouTube video in the world, who holds the record for the longest YouTube video uploaded and much more.

About YouTube

Albeit, YouTube is such a popular video-sharing application and social media platform that it doesn’t need any kind of introduction. But, just to follow the format, let us tell you that founded in 2005, YouTube became the global hub of internet video in no time and has a wide reach across the globe.

It is one of the most successful and influential social media applications for video streaming worldwide where users can watch over a billion videos.

But, most importantly, the selling point of YouTube as a platform is that the users can also create their own videos and upload them in the form of reels and shorts.  

Currently, YouTube has over 1.3 billion videos, with over 300 hours of video uploaded per minute. As a result, by the time you finish reading this article, more than 30 hours of video will have been uploaded on this video platform.

How Long Can a YouTube Video Be?

If you also decide to upload a video to YouTube and thus are curious to know how long a YouTube video can be, note that YouTube gradually lifted its upload time limit in 2010. While on one hand the selected users were given 15 minutes, on the other hand the rest were started at 10 minutes.

Now, all users can upload videos up to 15 minutes long by default. However, to upload videos longer than 15 minutes, users must first verify their Google account.

In reference to this, it should be mentioned that as per YouTube’s Help Centre, the maximum upload size of a video is 128GB or 12 hours, whichever is less.

How Long Can a YouTube Live Stream Be?

Whether you know it or not, YouTube is also the second most popular livestream site, just behind Twitch.

YouTube’s live streaming feature lets you reach your community in real time. Basically, it allows you to interact with your audience with a video feed, chat, and more.

You can use your webcam to go live on YouTube and, if your channel has more than 1,000 subscribers, you also have the option to go live via a smartphone.

Now, coming to the main point, there is no limit to the length of the live stream on YouTube. 

The longest live-stream video ever is 624 hr 37 min 55 sec long in duration, and was on the name of Zhejiang Luyuan Electric Vehicle Co., Ltd. in Jinhua, Zhejiang, China. It was live-streamed from 16 August to 11 September 2022.

Who	ZHEJIANG LUYUAN ELECTRIC VEHICLE CO., LTD.
What	624:37:55 HOUR(S): MINUTE(S): SECOND(S)
Where	CHINA (JINHUA)
When	11 SEPTEMBER 2022

However, if you plan on using the video on YouTube after you’ve finished streaming, there are some restrictions.

To be precise, if you want your live stream to be available on YouTube after streaming, then it needs to be less than 12 hours because YouTube only archives live streams that are less than 12 hours in length.

What Is The Longest Video On YouTube Presently?

While most of you might know that the video marking the platform’s debut was called “Me at the Zoo,” but right now, the video that holds the record for the longest stay on YouTube is 200 hours long.

You can find the current longest running YouTube video with the title “200 Hour Countdown Timer Video – Longest Timer in the World on YouTube.” It was posted by ‘Mac Peverick’ on Aug 10, 2020. The duration of this video is a little over 8 days. That is, it will take 1 weeks and 1 day or simply 200 hours to watch the video non-stop from beginning to end.

Previously, the video titled “100 Hour Timer Countdown 100 Hours Video, 100 Hours Video Countdown, 100 Stunden Timer,” was the longest YouTube video. It was also uploaded by none other than ‘Mac Peverick’ on January 06, 2020.

What is the World-Record for the Longest Video on YouTube?

The world record for longest video on YouTube is titled as “THE LONGEST VIDEO ON YOUTUBE – 596.5 HOURS.”

Uploaded by ‘Jonathan Harchick’ of ‘Moldy ToastMedia’ on December 14, 2011, this video (that simply a slideshow of Harchick’s photographs) is of 596.5 hours duration. 

Needless to say, it holds the Guinness record for being the world’s longest video on YouTube.

Release Date	December 14, 2011
Created By	Jonathan Harchick
Country of Origin	United States
Official Website	Official YouTube
Language	None
Production Company	Moldy Toaster Media

Now, when you know which video holds the record for the longest video on YouTube, you’ll be curious to see it, right! But here’s what you need to know that – the video is so big that some devices can’t even play it!

However, if you still want to try watching it, that’s completely your choice. But, remember, it will take 3 weeks and 3 days to watch the video non-stop from start to finish. So, if you have more than 24 days to spare then, this could be your next vacation goal!

Coming back to the point, Jonathan Harchick’s video is 549 megabytes in size, which indicates poor video quality. This means that the size of videos longer than 24 days must be smaller than 128GB. And, given the size of such video, it has to be in standard or low-quality resolution.

Who Holds the Previous World Record Holder for the Longest Video on YouTube?

Interestingly, the previous record holder also belonged to Harchick. Apart from this video titled “THE LONGEST VIDEO ON YOUTUBE – 596.5 HOURS”, he has also uploaded these two longest videos listed below—

• The longest video on YouTube 590 hours (Uploaded 2012)
• The longest video on YouTube 580 hours (Uploaded 2015)

So, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that, Moldy Toaster Media finally made the “596.5 hours long video”, with the intention of breaking its own world record.

Who Is Moldy Toaster Media’s Jonathan Harchick?

Since Jonathan Harchick holds the world record for the longest video on YouTube, it would be unfair not to talk about him. He is one of the members of Moldy Toaster Media who enjoys browsing YouTube. His account, (dubbed as “TV Network for the Web”) which was created in July 2009, claims to feature “cutting edge, gritty, highly-targeted, and intense forms of entertainment”. 

In addition to the 596.5-hour long video, which is the longest YouTube video in the world, the rest of  Moldy Toaster Media’s YouTube videos  range in length from short to long. To be precise, some of his videos are only a few seconds to a minute long, while others, such as “Hayden 50 Hours” and “The World’s Longest Fart 50 Hours,” can be played for two consecutive days.

However, it must be mentioned here that despite having the longest video on the platform, Moldy Toaster Media does not have a huge fan base.

They only have around 55,600 subscribers as of 2021, compared to YouTubers like Swedish gamer  PewDiePie  (110+ million) and Indian music video channel  T-Series (190+ million subscribers).

In fact, with only 12.3 million views, it is way behind the music video for Psy’s “Gangnam Style.” It was the first-ever video to reach one billion views on YouTube in 2012. Since then, several other videos, including Luis Fonsi’s “Despacito” and “Baby Shark Dance” from Pinkfong Kids Songs & Stories have got billions of views.

Bonus: What Are The Monetization Guidelines For YouTube?

By reading that Harchick’s videos-views aren’t particularly impressive, despite having the account with the longest videos on YouTube, you might be wondering why Moldy Toaster Media and their longest video aren’t doing so well in terms of user engagement, right!

So, let’s tell you that if you’re new to making money on YouTube, keep in mind that video length isn’t the only criterion for getting monetization for ads. Rather, you must also meet the following criteria—

• You must have successfully set up your AdSense account.
• You comply with the YouTube website’s policies and guidelines.
• Your channel has at least 1,000 subscribers.
• Your videos must have generated at least 4,000 views in the last 12 months.

So, having the longest YouTube video on your channel won’t help you if you’re not following the other guidelines! Understand it with this example: The world’s longest YouTube video, with 12 million views and 54,000 subscribers, is less than KPOP Group BTS’s 3-minute music video or Markiplier’s 30-minute live stream gaming video.

That’s why, despite holding the record for the YouTube’s longest video, Moldy Toaster Media’s figures are underwhelming for advertisers. Understood! So, if you are considering advertising on the longest videos, you need to reconsider it.

Suggestion: Don’t Make Long YouTube Videos If You Don’t Have A Good Reason

If you want to earn passive income by posting very long YouTube videos like Moldy Toaster Media, know that this strategy will no longer work. So, instead of making the longest YouTube videos possible to up your game, try to publish content that your audience will enjoy.

Here, what you have to remember is that viewers mainly visit YouTube for two reasons –

1. For entertainment and 
2. To find a solution to a problem.

So, if you upload great content for these two reasons, i.e., for fun and to solve problems, you will be able to enjoy a decent share of advertising revenue. In other words, your audience is more likely to share your content if you create rich and engaging content. 

Bottom Line

That’s all we have in our bags to tell you about the YouTube’ long videos trend! 

Compared to these days where you can only upload videos with a maximum duration of 12 hours, there were some really tall contenders until YouTube implemented restrictions on the videos’ time duration.

Now you know very well what is the longest YouTube video, who is the world record holder of longest video on YouTube and which video is currently the longest running video on YouTube, etc.

FAQs on the Longest Video on YouTube