YouTube End Screens and Cards: A Complete Setup Guide

End screens and cards are free, built-in tools for guiding viewers to more of your content — but most creators set them up carelessly. Here's how to use them properly.

Understand What Each Tool Does

Cards and end screens serve different moments in the viewing experience.

• Cards appear during the video and can promote another video, playlist, or external link
• End screens appear in the final 5-20 seconds and can include up to four elements
• Both should point toward genuinely related content, not just your most recent upload by default

Place Cards at Natural Pause Points

Timing affects whether cards feel helpful or disruptive.

• Add cards right after you reference a related video or resource verbally
• Avoid placing cards during a video's most critical explanation moments
• Limit cards to a reasonable number per video so they don't feel like constant interruptions

Design an Effective End Screen

The final seconds of a video are prime real estate for guiding session continuation.

• Reserve the last 15-20 seconds of your script specifically for the end screen, both verbally and visually
• Choose a 'best for viewer' related video rather than only ever your latest upload
• Include a subscribe prompt as one element, but not the only one, on the end screen

Track Whether They're Actually Working

End screens and cards should be measured, not just set once and forgotten.

• Check the 'Cards' and 'End screens' reports in YouTube Studio for click-through data
• Test different end-screen video choices to see which combination retains more session time
• Update end screens on older evergreen videos periodically to point to your best current content

Key Takeaways

• Cards and end screens serve different moments — use both intentionally
• Place cards at natural pause points, not during critical explanations
• Reserve your final 15-20 seconds specifically to set up the end screen
• Track end screen performance data and update older videos periodically