How do I change the thumbnail on my YouTube Shorts?

If you're looking for a more streamlined way to manage your thumbnails, consider using tools like VidIQ or TubeBuddy. These tools allow you to change thumbnails anytime, even after your video is live. You can upload any custom thumbnail directly without needing to attach it to the video itself first.

It's important to note that YouTube only recently allowed changing thumbnails for Shorts, and this feature is currently only available on mobile devices. If you're trying to do this from a PC, you won't find the option available, which can be frustrating. Hopefully, they'll expand this feature to the desktop version soon.

One of the easiest ways to create a custom thumbnail is to add an image at the end of your Short for just one second. After saving, you can select that frame as your thumbnail. If you want to remove that image later, you can use the YouTube video editor to trim the last second off your video. This way, you get the thumbnail you want without altering the content of your Short.

I totally understand the frustration with the YouTube Studio app. Many useful features seem split between the YouTube app and YouTube Studio, making it cumbersome to manage your videos. For example, you can add sounds in the YouTube app but not in the Studio app. This can make the editing process feel disjointed, as you have to jump between both apps to get everything done.