# t= on YouTube — the video start-timestamp

- Canonical: https://linkclean.app/trackers/t-youtube/
- Updated: 2026-07-22
- Author: Ken Tominaga (https://ken0nek.com)
- Get the app: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/linkclean/id6758604043

Parameter: `t` · Category: Region & language (preserved) · Vendor: YouTube · functional — preserved

> `t=` on a YouTube URL means **start playing at that many seconds in** — `?t=42` jumps to the 42-second mark, `?t=1m20s` jumps to one minute twenty. **Functional, not tracking.** LinkClean preserves it host-scoped to youtube.com / youtu.be.

## What t= does on YouTube

YouTube's player reads `t=` from the URL and seeks the video to that point on load. Values can be raw seconds (`t=42`), human-readable durations (`t=1m20s`, `t=01h30m`), or even hour-minute-second combinations. The player normalises all three into the same seek position.

It's set by YouTube's “Share at current time” checkbox in the share dialog, and you can add it manually too. The conventional shareable form is `https://youtu.be/<id>?t=<seconds>`.

## Why this matters for URL-cleaning tools

Naïvely stripping all single-letter query parameters would break YouTube share links — `t=` would vanish along with x.com's `t=` (which IS a tracker). LinkClean's catalog host-scopes the t/s rules: on x.com / twitter.com, t= and s= are stripped as tracking tokens; on youtube.com / youtu.be, t= is preserved as functional and `si=` is stripped instead.

Same logic applies to Vimeo (`#t=2m`), Twitch (`?t=01h00m`), and other video sites that use t= for the same purpose.

## How LinkClean handles it

Preserved on youtube.com, youtu.be, and other video hosts. The cleaned URL keeps the timestamp; the share-identifier `si=` is stripped.

## Example

Example URL: `https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ&t=42s&si=AbCdEf12345`

LinkClean preserves this parameter — no change.

## Frequently asked

**Why is t= a tracker on X but not on YouTube?**

Same parameter name, completely different meaning. On x.com, t= is a per-session share token X uses for share-source attribution. On youtube.com, t= is the video timestamp. LinkClean's catalog host-scopes both: stripped on x.com, preserved on youtube.com.

**What formats does YouTube's t= accept?**

Raw seconds (`t=42`), human-readable durations (`t=1m20s`, `t=01h30m`), and combinations. YouTube's player normalises all three.

**Does YouTube's share dialog add t= automatically?**

Only when you tick “Start at <time>”. Otherwise the share link starts at 0:00.


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LinkClean removes tracking parameters from links on-device — free to clean, one-time Pro. https://linkclean.app/ · Cite freely with attribution.