You can delete a Short from your YouTube channel in three taps, but the process differs slightly depending on whether you're on mobile or desktop

YouTube Shorts are stored in your channel just like regular videos. Deleting one removes it from your channel permanently — viewers can no longer watch it, and the view count disappears. The deletion is immediate and cannot be undone, so make sure you want it gone before you confirm.

The fastest way to delete a Short depends on where you are. From the YouTube app on your phone, you can delete directly from your Shorts feed. From a desktop browser, you'll go through YouTube Studio instead. Either way, the video is gone within seconds of confirmation.

Key Takeaways

  • On mobile, open the Short, tap the three-dot menu, and select Delete video to remove it immediately.
  • On desktop, sign into YouTube Studio, find the Short in your videos list, click the three-dot menu next to it, and choose Delete permanently.
  • Deleting a Short is permanent — you cannot recover it after you confirm, so download it first if you want to keep a copy.
  • A deleted Short stops appearing in search results and recommendations within minutes, though cached versions may linger briefly on some devices.

Deleting a Short from the YouTube mobile app

Open the YouTube app and navigate to your profile by tapping your profile picture in the top right corner. Select Your channel from the menu that appears. Scroll down to find the Short you want to delete, or tap Videos to see your full library organized by upload date.

Once you've located the Short, tap the three vertical dots (the menu icon) in the corner of the video thumbnail. A menu will pop up with several options. Select Delete video and confirm when YouTube asks if you're sure. The Short is removed from your channel immediately.

Deleting a Short from YouTube Studio on desktop

Go to studio.youtube.com and sign in with your YouTube account. On the left sidebar, click Content to see all your uploaded videos and Shorts. The list shows your most recent uploads first, so scroll down if you need to find an older Short.

Find the Short you want to delete and click the three vertical dots on the right side of its row. Select Delete permanently from the dropdown menu. YouTube will ask you to confirm — click Delete again to finalize. The Short is removed from your channel and no longer visible to anyone.

What happens after you delete a Short

Once deleted, the Short stops appearing in your channel's video list and in YouTube's search results within a few minutes. Any links that pointed directly to the Short will show a "Video unavailable" message. Comments on the Short are also deleted, and any engagement (likes, shares, views) associated with it is removed from your channel statistics.

If the Short was shared on other platforms or embedded elsewhere, those links will break. YouTube does not notify viewers that a video has been deleted, so people who watched it won't receive a message — they'll only see the unavailable message if they try to watch it again.

Downloading a Short before you delete it

If you want to keep a copy of the Short on your device before deleting it from YouTube, download it first. On mobile, open the Short and tap the share icon (arrow pointing out of a box). Select Save video or Download depending on your phone's operating system — this saves it to your device's photo library or downloads folder.

On desktop, right-click the Short while it's playing and select Save video as to download it to your computer. Once you have a local copy, you can delete the Short from YouTube without losing access to the file.

Deleting multiple Shorts at once

YouTube Studio allows you to delete more than one video in a single action. Go to studio.youtube.com, click Content, and then check the box next to each Short you want to remove. A toolbar will appear at the top with a trash icon — click it to delete all selected Shorts at once.

YouTube will ask you to confirm the deletion. Click Delete and all selected Shorts are removed from your channel immediately. This is faster than deleting them one by one if you're cleaning up multiple videos.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I recover a Short after I delete it?

No. YouTube does not have a recovery option for deleted videos or Shorts. Once you confirm the deletion, the video is permanently removed from YouTube's servers and cannot be restored. If you think you might want it later, download a copy to your device before deleting.

Will deleting a Short affect my channel's watch time or subscriber count?

Deleting a Short removes its views and engagement from your channel statistics, which may lower your total watch time slightly. However, it does not affect your subscriber count or channel may be able to access for monetization — those are based on your overall channel performance, not individual videos.

What if I delete a Short by accident?

There is no undo button in YouTube. If you delete a Short by mistake, your only option is to re-upload it if you have the original file saved on your device. This is why downloading your Shorts before deletion is a good practice if you might want them later.

Does YouTube notify people when I delete a Short?

No. Viewers who watched the Short won't receive a notification that it's been deleted. They'll only see a "Video unavailable" message if they try to watch it again or click a link to it.