YouTube

Writers often split or hyphenate brand names by mistake. The most common error here is writing "You Tube" or "You-Tube" instead of the correct one-word form, YouTube.

Quick answer

Write YouTube as one word with internal capitalization: YouTube. No space, no hyphen. Possessive: YouTube's.

• Correct: YouTube (capital Y and T).
• Wrong: You Tube, You-Tube, youtube (lowercase).
• Possessive: YouTube's (attach 's' directly).

Core explanation: why it's one word

YouTube is a proper noun and a brand that uses internal capitalization. Treat the brand as a single token: changing spacing or inserting a hyphen breaks the official form and looks incorrect.

• Preserve the brand's exact spelling and capitalization.
• Internal capitalization (camel-style) is part of the name.

• Wrong: You Tube
• Right: YouTube

Spacing and hyphenation: what to avoid

Avoid spaces or hyphens inside single-token brand names. Splitting YouTube into "You Tube" or "You-Tube" can break links, hurt searchability, and look unprofessional. If a line break is tight, reword rather than hyphenate the brand name.

• Avoid: You Tube, You-Tube -
  Use: YouTube.
• Broken-token example: spacing would break a copied URL (youtube.com must stay together).
• If you must shorten a headline, rephrase other words instead of altering the brand.

• Wrong: Please upload the file to You Tube.
• Right: Please upload the file to YouTube.
• Wrong: You-Tube's new layout looks cleaner.
• Right: YouTube's new layout looks cleaner.
• Wrong: Visit youtube .com for the tutorial.
• Right: Visit youtube.com for the tutorial.

Grammar and capitalization details

YouTube is capitalized because it's a proper noun. Form the possessive by attaching 's directly: YouTube's. Use lowercase only in very casual contexts, but prefer the brand's capitalization in any public or formal writing.

• Possessive: YouTube's community guidelines.
• Compound phrases: a YouTube channel, a YouTube video.
• Avoid lowercase 'youtube' in formal or published writing.

• Wrong: youtube's copyright policy is strict.
• Right: YouTube's copyright policy is strict.
• Wrong: i posted the link on You Tube.
• Right: I posted the link on YouTube.

Real usage and tone: work, school, and casual examples

The spelling never changes; tone and surrounding wording do. Below are paired wrong/right examples grouped by context to copy directly.

• Work: concise, clear-focus on actions like embed, upload, timestamp.
• School: treat videos like other sources-include channel and date when citing.
• Casual: keep it simple; correct spelling still helps links and search.

• Work - Wrong: Please check the demo on You Tube before the meeting.
• Work - Right: Please check the demo on YouTube before the meeting.
• Work - Wrong: Embed the clip from You-Tube in the client deck.
• Work - Right: Embed the clip from YouTube in the client deck.
• School - Wrong: I referenced a clip from You Tube in my essay.
• School - Right: I referenced a clip from YouTube in my essay.
• School - Wrong: Cite the video from youTube in the bibliography.
• School - Right: Cite the video from YouTube in the bibliography.
• Casual - Wrong: I'll post it to You Tube later.
• Casual - Right: I'll post it to YouTube later.
• Casual - Wrong: Check out my vid on you-tube 😄
• Casual - Right: Check out my vid on YouTube 😄

Try your own sentence

Test the whole sentence rather than just the phrase. Context usually clarifies the right phrasing.

Examples: copy-ready wrong/right pairs

Quick templates for emails, captions, and citations-include single-word, possessive, and hashtag forms.

• Wrong: You Tube
• Right: YouTube
• Wrong: You-Tube's new interface is confusing.
• Right: YouTube's new interface is confusing.
• School - Wrong: I cited a clip from youtube in my bibliography.
• School - Right: I cited a clip from YouTube in my bibliography.
• Casual - Wrong: Watch the tutorial on You Tube: example link.
• Casual - Right: Watch the tutorial on YouTube: example link.
• Work - Wrong: Upload the file to You-Tube and share the URL.
• Work - Right: Upload the file to YouTube and share the URL.
• Casual - Wrong: You Tube channel: @example
• Casual - Right: YouTube channel: @example
• Casual - Wrong: Add #You Tube in the caption.
• Casual - Right: Add #YouTube in the caption.

Rewrite help: fix your sentence in three quick steps

Three steps: (1) Replace any 'You Tube', 'You-Tube', or 'youtube' with 'YouTube'. (2) Adjust surrounding verbs (post/upload/watch/embed). (3) Check possessives and URLs.

Pattern rewrites you can adapt:

• Pattern: 'I saw it on You Tube' → 'I watched it on YouTube.'
• Pattern: 'uploaded to You-Tube' → 'uploaded to YouTube' (or 'shared on YouTube').
• Citation pattern: 'YouTube, channel name, upload date, URL.'

• Rewrite:
  Wrong: I saw it on You Tube. -
  Rewrite: I watched it on YouTube.
• Rewrite:
  Wrong: You-Tube has a clip about this. -
  Rewrite: YouTube has a short clip about this topic.
• Rewrite:
  Wrong: Check youtube for more. -
  Rewrite: Check YouTube for more information.
• Work - Rewrite:
  Wrong: Upload the demo to You Tube before Friday. -
  Rewrite: Upload the demo to YouTube by Friday.
• School - Rewrite:
  Wrong: I referenced a You Tube clip in my paper. -
  Rewrite: I referenced a YouTube clip in my paper (see bibliography).
• Casual - Rewrite:
  Wrong: I'll post it on You Tube tonight. -
  Rewrite: I'll post it to YouTube tonight.

Memory trick and quick editorial checks

Mnemonic: think of 'You' and 'Tube' glued together-the capital T is part of the name. Use quick searches or simple macros to catch slips before publishing.

• Search for patterns: "You " (You followed by a space), "You-", and lowercase "youtube".
• Find-and-replace: replace "You Tube" and "You-Tube" with "YouTube"; verify each match.
• Typing youtube.com forces the one-word form when checking links.

• Usage: Search tip: find 'You ' and 'You-' to locate split or hyphenated occurrences quickly.
• Usage: Macro example: auto-replace 'You Tube' → 'YouTube' in your editor.

Similar mistakes to watch for

If you split YouTube, you might also split other single-token brands or mishandle internal capitalization. Preserve each brand's official form.

• LinkedIn - not Linked In
• Facebook - not Face Book
• iPhone - not I Phone
• Instagram - not Insta gram
• email vs e-mail - follow your style guide

• Wrong: Linked In
• Right: LinkedIn
• Wrong: Face Book
• Right: Facebook

FAQ

Is it YouTube or You Tube?

It's YouTube - one word with a capital Y and a capital T. Don't insert a space between You and Tube.

Can I hyphenate YouTube in a headline to save space?

No. Keep the official spelling. Shorten other words or rephrase the headline instead.

How do I write the possessive form of YouTube?

Attach the 's' directly: YouTube's terms, YouTube's policy. Example: "YouTube's copyright rules apply to uploads."

Is lowercase 'youtube' ever acceptable?

In very informal chats some people use lowercase, but for professional, academic, or public posts use YouTube to preserve clarity and searchability.

How should I cite a YouTube video in a paper?

Follow your citation style (APA, MLA, Chicago). Always spell the platform as YouTube and include channel name, upload date, and URL per the chosen format.

Quick proofing tip

Before sending, run a document search for 'You ' and 'You-' and correct matches to 'YouTube'. For a fast second check, paste a sentence into a grammar tool or use a find-and-replace macro to enforce the brand spelling.