No one would post unedited raw footage to YouTube.
Whether you want to share a video tutorial on YouTube or become a YouTube content creator in your niche, editing YouTube video footage to make it engaging is the very first step on the road to YouTube success.
So, if you are new to editing YouTube videos, in this tutorial, we will offer you a highly productive workflow for editing a YouTube video and walk you through how to edit a YouTube video online by YouTube’s built-in video editor and a feature-packed online video editor.
Here is what you will learn:
YouTube Video Editing Workflow Recommended
Having an organized YouTube video editing workflow is essential to boosting YouTube video editing efficiency and will save you tons of valuable time.

Widely-accepted workflow for editing YouTube videos
Through talks with many YouTube content creators around us, we’ve summed up a highly productive YouTube video editing workflow for you to follow. No matter what video editor you use, the editing process applies to all.
Step 1: Collect and Sort Out all the Video Assets Needed
Create multiple folders on your PC for A roll, B roll, images, audio recordings, BGM, sound effects, GIFs, etc., and put them in different folders respectively. Check top 4 sites for royalty-free YouTube background music.
Step 2: Import Video Assets into Video Editor for the Rough Cut
What you are expected to do is:
Step 3: Preview the YouTube Video
Done with the initial cut, it’s advisable to watch the whole YouTube video as a viewer and ask yourself the following questions:
Then, work on fixing the problems found and watch it over till you are satisfied with it.
Step 4: Place a Hook at the Beginning of the Video
A great YouTube video is engaging, helpful, entertaining, informative, and relatable. A proven strategy to grasp viewers’ attention is to edit a hook and place it in the first 20 secs of your youtube video.
Step 5: Add in B-roll
B-rolls are secondary footage that adds interest and explanations for the storytelling of your main video.

Add B-roll over the A-roll on the timeline
Step 6: Add Video Effects Needed
Apart from the great video content and unique storytelling, adding video effects can effectively a professional touch to your YouTube video.
Some of the frequently-used video effects involve:
Step 7: Watch Your Video Again and Check If Everything Is Alright
Check the spelling, transition, audio, etc. Make sure everything is exactly what you want in the video.
Step 8: Export Your YouTube Video
For the best viewing experience on YouTube, export the video with a 16:9 aspect ratio and at least 1080P (FHD) resolution, and 24-60 FPS.
How to Edit a YouTube Video by YouTube Video Editor
If you have a simple video project or you want to edit YouTube videos that have been posted on YouTube, then using YouTube’s native video editor could be the best choice because you don’t need to download it for editing and it’s 100% free.

Edit YouTube video by YouTube video editor
Within the YouTube video editor, you can make 4 main video edits:
1. Trim and Split YouTube Video
Go to your YouTube channel > find a video you want to edit > click Edit Video > click the Editor on the left menu. This will open the YouTube video editor.

Trim or split a YouTube video by YouTube video editor
2. Blur YouTube Video
Click the “+” button on the Blur tab, you have two options to blur a YouTube video:

Face blur feature in YouTube video editor

YouTube video editor’s custom blur
Likewise, once you’ve applied a blur mode, you can trim its blurry overlay to decide its duration. If you don’t like the blur position, you can delete it as well.
3. Add Audio to YouTube Video
Hit the “+” button on the Audio tab > then you can search for royalty-free music and sound effects in youtube’s Audio Library.

Add royalty-free audio from YouTube Audio Library
Or you can click the “Audio Library” tab to open the full version of it for searching for more free music and SFX. Once you find a piece of ideal music, you can hit the “Star” icon, and this music will be added to your favorite collection in the video editor.
Click the “Add” button. The music or SFX will be added to the timeline.

Add and adjust the audio’s volume and duration in the YouTube video editor
4. Add End Screen to YouTube Video
Adding an end screen to your Youtube video is a great way to extend the watch time. Only videos with at least 25 seconds or longer are qualified to add an end screen. YouTube offers you 6 ways to add an end screen to your YouTube videos:

Add an end screen to YouTube video by YouTube video editor
Once you select this option, some preset templates layouts will be available for you to choose from; you can trim the length of the end screen by dragging it or import a YouTube video you choose.
5. Save the Edits
Hit the “Save” button to save your edits or click three dots on the top right corner to save it as a new video. Then YouTube will automatically process your saving and display the latest version of your video to the viewers.
How to Edit a YouTube Video by Online Video Editor FlexClip
If you find the features of YouTube’s built-in video editor too limited, a flawless alternative to editing YouTube videos would be FlexClip. It is a feature-packed online YouTube video maker that requires no software download and video editing experience.

Edit YouTube video by FlexClip
Some of the best features of FLexClip:


Step 1: Select a YouTube Video Template to Begin With
Select a YouTube template you like, preview, and click the customize button.

Select a YouTube video template
Step 2: Upload Your Video Assets from PC or Mobile Phone
You can upload footage from your PC or directly scan the QR code to upload from your mobile phone.

Upload video assets to FlexClip
Step 3: Drag and Drop Footage, Images to Replace the Preset Ones
Just drag and drop your video assets to quickly replace the original video assets in the video templates. You may crop or make videos and images as well.

Drag and drop your footage to replace preset’s elements
Step 4: Trim, Split, and Merge Video Footage
Hit the scissor or split tool to cut or merge different footage. Once a clip is cut into two, you can easily select a transition to connect the two.

Trim, split YouTube video, and add video transition
Step 5: Make More Edits
Then, you can add trending text animations, subscribe buttons, elements, or your logo to take your YouTube videos to the next level. Or easily place a B-roll video to create the picture-in-picture effect for the explanation; add a YouTube intro or outro template and logo for branding; add royalty-free music and SFX, etc.

Add royalty-free music and do masking and more edits with FlexClip
Don’t forget to check out the vast video, image, and GIFs assets in the Video and Photo tab.
Step 6: Preview and Export the Video
Hit the Export button. You can export the video in MP4 to your hard drive. Or directly share it on YouTube. FlexClip will also generate a clickable link, and embed code for your needs. Or you can save it to Google Drive, or Dropbox.
Now, It's Your Move
So, hopefully, our tutorial helps you a lot in editing YouTube videos. If you have more questions about YouTube video editing, don’t hesitate to reach us on Facebook. Now, start editing your YouTube videos online with either YouTube video editor or FlexClip.