How to find your YouTube stream key

What a YouTube stream key is

YouTube treats the stream key as the password and address for that live. An encoder uses it to push RTMP to your channel. It is not your Google password, and it is not a grant of channel access. StreamAdda does not ask you to connect YouTube. The key is how the cloud slot sends the file to the live you set up in Studio.

Anyone who has the key can send a live to that destination until you reset it. Paste it only into your StreamAdda slot. Do not put it in a public post, a screenshot, or a shared doc.

Before you copy the key

• The channel must already be allowed to go live in YouTube Studio. If Go live is missing, finish YouTube's live eligibility first (phone verification and any wait YouTube shows).
• Use the Stream tab (encoder / streaming software), not the webcam path. StreamAdda is the encoder in this job.
• You need a StreamAdda account and a live slot — created on the StreamAdda app.

Copy the key from YouTube Studio

1. Open YouTube Studio while signed in as a channel owner or manager.
2. In the top right, click Create, then Go live. That opens the Live Control Room.
3. Select the Stream tab. Set title, privacy, and destination the way you want the live to appear on the channel.
4. Find the Stream key section. The key is hidden. Copy it. Do not type it from memory.
5. Open your StreamAdda live slot and paste the key there only. Then you can close Studio. You do not leave a desktop encoder running.

Studio also shows a stream URL. StreamAdda asks for the stream key. You do not paste the key into OBS for this 24/7 loop.

If the key leaked, reset it

1. Open YouTube Studio, then Create → Go live.
2. Select the Stream tab.
3. In the Stream key section, click Reset next to the hidden key.
4. Copy the new key and paste it into the same StreamAdda slot. Anything still holding the old key will stop being able to go live to that destination.

Only a channel owner or manager can reset the key. Editors cannot.

After the key is in the slot

The key is one field. It does not start the live by itself. Upload the MP4, start the slot, and confirm the broadcast on the channel. Those steps stay on how to stream pre-recorded video as YouTube live.

Prefer a screen recording of the dashboard? Use the StreamAdda tutorial video.

Stream key FAQ

Where is the YouTube stream key in Studio?

Open YouTube Studio, click Create, then Go live. That is the Live Control Room. Open the Stream tab, find the Stream key section, and copy it. The key is hidden until you reveal or copy it.

Is the stream key the same as my YouTube password?

No. The key is only the RTMP secret for that live. It is not your Google password, and it is not channel login. StreamAdda never asks for YouTube access. Anyone who has the key can push a live to that destination until you reset it.

Where do I paste the key if I use StreamAdda?

Paste it only into the live slot on the StreamAdda dashboard. This page is not an encoder setup for software on your PC. After the key is in the slot, the numbered start (upload, start, computer off) is on the how-to page.

What if the stream key leaked?

In the Live Control Room, open the Stream tab, find the Stream key section, and click Reset. Copy the new key and paste it into the same StreamAdda slot. Old software or an old slot still holding the previous key will stop being able to go live to that destination.

I copied the key. What is next?

The key is only one field. Upload the MP4, start the slot, and confirm the live on the channel. Those steps are on how to stream pre-recorded video as YouTube live, not on this page.