The best target bitrate for YouTube depends on resolution, frame rate, and whether the video is SDR or HDR. For most creators, the practical answer is simple: export with high-quality VBR, match the original frame rate, and use YouTube's recommended upload bitrate as the floor.
Quick Answer
Updated June 2, 2026: For standard SDR uploads, YouTube recommends 8 Mbps for 1080p at 24-30 fps, 12 Mbps for 1080p at 48-60 fps, 35-45 Mbps for 4K at 24-30 fps, and 53-68 Mbps for 4K at 48-60 fps.
Those numbers are upload recommendations, not playback bitrates. YouTube transcodes every upload, so your goal is to send it a clean source file with enough data for a good encode.
Fast setting recommendation
1080p SDR: 8 Mbps for 24/25/30 fps, 12 Mbps for 48/50/60 fps.
4K SDR: 35-45 Mbps for 24/25/30 fps, 53-68 Mbps for 48/50/60 fps.
Export mode: VBR, progressive, same frame rate as the source, with clean audio at 48 kHz.
YouTube Bitrate Table for SDR Uploads
Use this table for standard dynamic range videos. If you shoot and grade normal Rec.709 video, this is the table most creators need.
| Resolution | 24, 25, or 30 fps | 48, 50, or 60 fps |
|---|---|---|
| 8K | 80-160 Mbps | 120-240 Mbps |
| 2160p / 4K | 35-45 Mbps | 53-68 Mbps |
| 1440p / 2K | 16 Mbps | 24 Mbps |
| 1080p | 8 Mbps | 12 Mbps |
| 720p | 5 Mbps | 7.5 Mbps |
| 480p | 2.5 Mbps | 4 Mbps |
| 360p | 1 Mbps | 1.5 Mbps |
YouTube HDR Bitrate Table
HDR needs more bitrate than SDR because it carries wider brightness and color information. If your video was shot or graded for HDR, use YouTube's HDR table instead of the SDR table.
| Resolution | 24, 25, or 30 fps | 48, 50, or 60 fps |
|---|---|---|
| 8K HDR | 100-200 Mbps | 150-300 Mbps |
| 2160p / 4K HDR | 44-56 Mbps | 66-85 Mbps |
| 1440p / 2K HDR | 20 Mbps | 30 Mbps |
| 1080p HDR | 10 Mbps | 15 Mbps |
| 720p HDR | 6.5 Mbps | 9.5 Mbps |
| 480p HDR | Not supported | Not supported |
| 360p HDR | Not supported | Not supported |
If your HDR upload looks flat, washed out, or too dark, the problem is usually not just bitrate. Check color space, transfer settings, and whether your export is actually tagged correctly for HDR.
Recommended Export Settings
YouTube's recommended upload path is MP4 with H.264 video, progressive scan, High Profile, CABAC, 4:2:0 chroma subsampling, and variable bitrate. Audio should use AAC-LC, Opus, or Eclipsa Audio with a 48 kHz sample rate.
Keep your upload at the same frame rate it was recorded. If your footage is interlaced, deinterlace before uploading; for example, 1080i60 should become 1080p30 rather than staying interlaced.
For most creators, the clean recipe is:
- Export progressive, not interlaced.
- Use VBR rather than forcing a low CBR ceiling.
- Match source frame rate unless you intentionally changed it in the edit.
- Use YouTube's recommended bitrate or slightly above it for a clean master.
- Do not crush the file just to make the upload smaller if quality matters.
For the CBR/VBR tradeoff, see CBR or VBR for YouTube. If you are trying to understand why a higher upload bitrate can still look compressed after processing, read High Bitrate vs Adaptive High Bitrate.
YouTube Shorts
YouTube Shorts do not need a separate bitrate table. Use the same upload logic based on resolution, frame rate, and SDR or HDR.
The bigger Shorts-specific issues are vertical aspect ratio, captions, framing, audio loudness, and whether the edit survives mobile compression. A 1080p vertical Short at 30 fps can use the 1080p SDR recommendation; a 60 fps Short should use the higher-frame-rate number.
If you edit Shorts in Premiere Pro, the workflow details matter more than chasing a magic bitrate. Use the Premiere Pro export settings for YouTube Shorts guide for a Shorts-specific setup.
Should You Go Higher?
Going higher than YouTube's recommendation can help when the source is visually complex: fast movement, screen recordings, detailed landscapes, confetti, gaming footage, film grain, or heavy color grading. It gives YouTube's transcode a cleaner starting point.
There is a point of diminishing returns. A massive file will not force YouTube to preserve your original bitrate, and it can slow uploads, processing, and revision cycles.
My practical rule: use YouTube's recommendation for normal edits, add a modest buffer for complex motion or client work, and keep a local high-quality master if the video may need future revisions.
Troubleshooting Upload Quality
If your YouTube upload looks bad, do not only raise the bitrate. Work through the actual failure path.
- It looks soft right after upload: wait for HD, 4K, or HDR processing to finish.
- Fast motion breaks apart: raise bitrate modestly and check whether your timeline has noisy, grainy, or oversharpened footage.
- It looks washed out: check SDR/HDR color management and export tags.
- Audio sounds wrong: use 48 kHz audio and avoid unnecessary re-encoding passes.
- The file is huge: use VBR and stop exporting far above the recommendation unless the footage actually needs it.
Sources Checked
Bitrate and upload-setting recommendations were checked against YouTube Help: recommended upload encoding settings on June 2, 2026.
FAQ
What bitrate should I use for YouTube 1080p?
Use 8 Mbps for SDR 1080p at 24, 25, or 30 fps, and 12 Mbps for SDR 1080p at 48, 50, or 60 fps.
What bitrate should I use for YouTube 4K?
Use 35-45 Mbps for SDR 4K at 24, 25, or 30 fps, and 53-68 Mbps for SDR 4K at 48, 50, or 60 fps.
Should I use CBR or VBR for YouTube?
Use VBR for most uploads. YouTube recommends variable bitrate and says no bitrate limit is required, while providing recommended bitrates for reference.
Do Shorts need different bitrate settings?
No separate Shorts bitrate table is needed. Use the normal YouTube upload recommendation for the Short's resolution, frame rate, and SDR or HDR format.