How do I connect my YouTube channel?

Connecting your channel tells TubeAI which channel is yours. Every tool can then pre-fill "my channel", the Dashboard fills with your videos, and automations can run for you. There are two levels of connection: a quick Basic connection by handle, and an optional YouTube Analytics connection that adds your private YouTube data.

Connect your channel by handle

1. Click the Connect YouTube card at the bottom of the sidebar. The Manage YouTube Channels window opens.
2. In the Save Your Channel box, enter your @handle or channel URL, or search for your channel by name.
3. Click Add. You will see "Channel saved successfully!" and the channel becomes your active channel.

No Google login is needed for this step. Paste a channel link or @handle: video links, Shorts links and playlists are not accepted here.

Add YouTube Analytics (optional)

A Basic connection only sees public data. To unlock retention curves, traffic sources, audience demographics and the private metrics on your Dashboard, upgrade the channel to an Analytics connection:

1. Open Manage YouTube Channels from the sidebar card.
2. Click your channel's row to expand its settings.
3. Under YouTube Analytics, click Connect Analytics and approve access on Google's screen with the Google account that owns the channel.

The access is strictly read-only: TubeAI can never post, upload, edit or see revenue. Once connected, the channel shows an Analytics badge instead of Basic.

The Connect Analytics button only appears on a channel you have already saved by handle, so always save the channel first.

If your Analytics connection stops working

If Google's permission is revoked or expires, the channel quietly drops back to a Basic connection. Nothing else is lost. If your audience data or retention curves disappear, check the badge in Manage YouTube Channels and click Connect Analytics again.

What happens after you connect

• Your videos are imported. If your channel is new to TubeAI, the Dashboard shows "Importing your channel" for a few minutes.
• A competitors folder is built for you. TubeAI creates an "Auto Competitors" folder with up to 100 similar channels (for channels with 100+ subscribers). You can edit it in Folders or pick another folder in the channel's settings.
• Automations switch on for your first channel, such as the weekly video ideas email. You can change them in the channel's settings.

Switching between channels

If your plan includes multiple channels, you can connect more than one. To change your active channel, open Manage YouTube Channels and click Switch next to the channel you want. The sidebar card only opens the window; it does not switch channels itself.

Disconnecting a channel

Click the trash icon on a channel in Manage YouTube Channels, then choose:

• Disconnect, keep my data: removes the channel but keeps your folders, boards, ideas and audit reports. Reconnecting the same channel brings everything back.
• Remove everything: removes the channel and permanently deletes its folders, ideas (including public share links), audits and A/B tests. This cannot be undone.

Your generation history (scripts, titles, thumbnails, reports) is kept either way.