Shortly, YouTube didn’t officially release A/B Testing (Test & Compare) yet.
Your best bet is a third-party software, like Thumbnail Test.
You’re probably here because you are:
- Stoked for YouTube’s A/B Testing feature
- But mad because there’s no update
It’s been 5 years of postponing. It’s time to settle this:
Join us, and we’ll tell you what’s going on.
YouTube Test & Compare: Latest News (May 2024)
| Info | Detailed Breakdown |
|---|---|
| Release Date | No specific release date announced. Rumored for Late 2024. |
| Who | Limited to beta testers, including select YouTube Partner Program participants, high-engagement creators, and those with large subscriber bases. |
| How | Steps include selecting a video, changing its thumbnail, and then being prompted for A/B Testing. |
| Purpose | To compare different versions of a video element to see which performs better. |
| Official Tool | Not available to all creators; currently in beta testing with a limited group. |
| Best Bet | Third-party tools. ThumbnailTest is available for A/B testing, offering additional features beyond what YouTube may provide. |
1. No specific release date
“When will YouTube release A/B Testing?”
- YouTube has not yet announced a specific release date for their A/B thumbnail testing feature.
- They did announce in October 2023 that they were in the early stages of testing the feature with a small group of creators.
See this video for more official info:
- From the video: YouTube will make A/B Testing broadly available to the public later in 2024.
- Words from a YouTube Beta Tester: Everyone should have access to this in 2024.
So buckle up, as this feature is most likely coming this year:
But right now…
2. Only beta testers have access
Currently, A/B testing is only available to a select group of YouTube creators and beta testers.
This group includes:
- Creators who have been invited to participate in the YouTube Partner Program beta testing program.
- Creators who have a high engagement rate on their videos.
- Creators who have a large subscriber base.
- YouTube is gradually expanding the availability of A/B testing to more creators.
- Though, it it is not yet available to all creators.
If interested: Sign up for the YouTube Partner Program beta testing program. Unfortunately, you have be a big YouTuber — and even then, eligibility is not guaranteed.
This brings us to…
3. How to A/B Test in beta
If you’ve got access to YouTube’s A/B Testing feature, click a video try changing its thumbnail. YouTube will invite you to try A/B Testing.
Here is the step-by-step list:
- Go to your YouTube Studio
- Select a video
- Click to change thumbnail → A/B Option is there
- Upload your thumbnails & Save
4. What A/B Testing really is
YouTube A/B testing is a technique used to compare two or more versions of a video or YouTube element to determine which version performs better.
Purpose: Helps creators optimize their content and make informed decisions about how to improve their videos’ engagement and viewership — for this, we suggest following YouTube’s Official Guide.
- Data analysis will be conducted for both thumbnail.
- The one that performs best will be set for the video.
Essentially: If “Thumbnail A” doesn’t work → Try “Thumbnail B”.
Pro Tip: With ThumbnailTest, you can have unlimited thumbnail checks.
Feel free to conduct A/B/C/D/E/[…]/Z tests with our tool.
Can you do A/B Testing on YouTube?
Yes, you can do A/B testing on YouTube, but YouTube alone doesn’t have such a feature. Third-party apps like Thumbnail Test can do it for you.
A/B Testing a great way to improve the performance of your videos and make them more appealing to your audience.
Issue: Right now you can’t use YouTube Studio tool, as there’s no official YT tool for this.
- This feature isn’t public yet, only to a few beta testers.
- Though you can use a third-party A/B testing tool, like ThumbnailTest.
Besides A/B testing, you get a lot of other features that are included in ThumbnailTest.
Why not check it out?
Conclusion
This is all that we’ve got on YouTube A/B Testing so far.
Fear not, whenever new info comes out, we’ll be the first ones to update this guide.
Thank you for reading this,
ThumbnailTest
