While YouTube is obviously the largest video hosting platform on the spider web, information technology might not be the best option for every business.

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There are other factors to consider when choosing a home for your video marketing — such as cost, tech back up, and video and sound quality — to name a few.

To help y'all find the best fit for your company's unique needs, we compared YouTube direct against the smaller, more niche platform Vimeo across a number of factors. Read on to see the results, and make up one's mind for yourself.

YouTube vs. Vimeo

YouTube will be the better choice for most businesses. It's free, generally performs better than Vimeo in search, offers solid analytics for businesses looking to track ROI, and commands a massive number of users. If you have specific branding requirements or need advanced support, Vimeo could be a improve choice.

Number of Users

Winner: YouTube

There'south no real competition hither. YouTube commands an audition of over two billion monthly users — most one-half of the unabridged internet-using population. Vimeo's 230 million monthly viewers and i.9 million paid subscribers seem insignificant in contrast. For maximum reach, choose YouTube.

Search Optimization

Winner: YouTube

YouTube leaves Vimeo in the dust here. YouTube is the second largest search engine on the internet, correct later on parent company Google. If you lot're planning to create a video tailored to a specific search query, (e.g., how to pick a font for your website), your video belongs on YouTube. Non only will it announced in search results directly on YouTube, simply Google also seems to favor videos from YouTube over those posted on other platforms.

Mobile

Winner: YouTube

70% of all YouTube views come up from mobile, and the YouTube mobile app is absolutely dominating the mobile streaming space — outranking fifty-fifty formidable competitors like Netflix, Hulu, and Twitch.

Videos uploaded to Vimeo and YouTube are both optimized automatically for mobile, but YouTube offers more opportunities for mobile discovery and reach.

Toll

Winner: YouTube

YouTube is free — fifty-fifty for businesses. But yous might be wondering if Vimeo is as well.

Is Vimeo free to use?

Vimeo operates on a tiered pricing model, ranging from a free basic plan to a $75/month parcel that includes unlimited alive streaming.

Vimeo Pro vs YouTube

While Vimeo does have a gratis bones plan, it limits you to 500MB maximum storage per week.

If yous're okay with paying some money, you can get a Vimeo Pro program. With Vimeo Pro, you'll have admission to back up, avant-garde analytics, and professional privacy.

On the other hand, you lot can have unlimited storage for free on YouTube.

Back up

Winner: Vimeo

With their paid packages, Vimeo offers several levels of technical back up that could be a game-changer for businesses with footling video expertise. YouTube offers plenty of complimentary aid documentation and access to a (rather crowded) back up customs. Withal, if you're seeking higher-touch, personalized support on-demand, a paid Vimeo business relationship is the better choice.

Storage

Winner: YouTube

YouTube offers unlimited, free storage for all accounts, while Vimeo charges for storage on a tiered basis. The basic, gratis Vimeo account option gives y'all 500MB of storage per calendar week. With their highest level, $75/calendar month package, you tin can store 7TB total with no weekly limits.

No Pre-Whorl Ads

Winner: Vimeo

If you lot upload your videos to YouTube, there'southward a good take chances a pre-roll ad will play before it, which has the potential to deter some viewers from sticking effectually. Vimeo currently doesn't allow ads, and it doesn't look like they'll be changing this policy anytime soon.

Running Ad Campaigns

Winner: YouTube

If yous're thinking of running your own ads on a video platform, you tin't beat YouTube (You as well tin can't purchase ad space on Vimeo, even if you wanted to, because they don't let information technology.)

YouTube offers an advanced, user-friendly ads platform, as well every bit personalized back up from a "YouTube Advertizing Skillful" when you lot spend $10 a day on ads.

Community

Winner: Vimeo

User numbers don't tell the unabridged story. With such a massive audition on YouTube, the environment is naturally more competitive. It'southward easier for your video to get drowned out by thousands of others if you aren't planning to feature it somewhere off YouTube. Vimeo'due south smaller, more community-driven platform might exist a improve choice if you lot're hoping to tap into an existing creative niche, or go featured on their hand-curated staff picks folio.

Avant-garde Privacy Options

Winner: Vimeo

Both YouTube and Vimeo give you the option to set videos to private or public (the default setting on YouTube is public), simply Vimeo offers a handful of more nuanced, specific privacy options if that serves your interests. You tin can add a password protection option to videos, share a video only with people who follow your account, or even hide it from the Vimeo community — which could exist useful if y'all programme on embedding the video on your website and want it to be viewable in only one identify.

Customizable Player

Winner: Vimeo

Vimeo's sleek embedded player offers a number of useful customization options that YouTube tin can't match, including hex color customization and the power to include a custom player logo (on Business and PRO accounts). Plus, when y'all alter the default customization options on your business relationship, all previously embedded videos will update to reflect the changes automatically, with no need to go back and tinker with any code.

Analytics

Winner: YouTube

YouTube takes the win here because all their analytics — ranging from basic statistics like views to more advanced options — are completely free. Vimeo too offers powerful analytics tools to evaluate performance, simply you'll have to pay to admission everything but basic stats.

Video Quality

Winner: Vimeo

When it comes to video quality, Vimeo beats out YouTube. In a test done by Medium, Vimeo's video quality was crisp, clean, and easier to read. On the other hand, the same video on YouTube was blurry, making it much harder to follow.

Audio Quality

Winner: Vimeo

Once more, when it comes to quality, Vimeo comes out on elevation. Sound quality is college on Vimeo considering the platform supports 320Kbps. However, to bask higher-quality videos and audio, you'll need to exist subscribed to i of the paid plans.

Live Streaming

Winner: YouTube

Both Vimeo and YouTube have live streaming options, nonetheless, YouTube is the clear winner here because it'due south complimentary. Vimeo offers live streaming with a paid program. However, with Vimeo, you lot tin upload new versions of the video and keep on using the same URL and upload higher quality recorded versions of a live stream, which you can edit earlier posting.

YouTube vs. Vimeo infographic Image Source

And so which ane should you choose?

Information technology depends on what exactly you want to achieve with your videos. If yous're looking for a creative customs where y'all tin connect with other video creators and gain some exposure in a specific niche, Vimeo is a ameliorate place to starting time sharing your content. If you take business goals that revolve heavily around search optimization and ads, YouTube is your best bet.

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Originally published Mar 8, 2022 seven:00:00 AM, updated March 08 2022