Turning one long YouTube video into a set of short vertical clips takes about as long as the video itself when you do it by hand: you watch it all, mark the good parts, cut each one, reframe it to 9:16, add captions and export. Here is how to do it with CleanCut in a few clicks, and what to check before you post.
1. Pick a video where people talk
Clips come out best from podcasts, interviews, streams, talks and commentary: anything where the point is in what is said. The AI picks moments by reading the transcript, so music videos and silent gameplay don’t give it much to work with.
2. Copy the link
On a computer, copy the address from the browser bar. On a phone, tap Share under the video, then Copy link. Links that start with youtube.com/watch, youtu.be, youtube.com/shorts and youtube.com/live all work.
3. Paste it into the clip maker
Paste the link into the box at the top of this page or on the home page. We read the link first and show the title and length, so you know whether it fits the free plan (up to 30 minutes) before anything starts. A longer video can still be clipped for free: we use the first 30 minutes. With a plan or a top-up, the whole video is clipped.
4. Wait for the clips
Your clips get their own page. It shows four steps: getting the video, writing the transcript, finding the best moments, and cutting 9:16 clips with captions. Clips appear one by one as they finish, best first. You can close the tab and come back to the same link.
5. Download and post
Each clip is a 1080×1920 MP4 with captions burned in and no watermark. Open a clip to copy a title and caption written for TikTok, Reels or Shorts. The clips stay at their link for 7 days on the free plan, so download the ones you want to keep.
If the link doesn’t work
Private, members-only and age-restricted videos can’t be fetched, and now and then YouTube refuses a download. When that happens it doesn’t use up your free video. Upload the file instead: on your own channel, open YouTube Studio, go to Content, click the three dots next to the video and choose Download.
Before you post someone else’s video
Only clip videos you own or have permission to use. Clipping programs that pay for views usually give you the source videos and tell you how to credit them; follow their rules.