How do I embed YouTube videos in my blog posts?
Paste a YouTube URL on its own line and VeloCMS embeds a click-to-load player. No iframe code, and nothing loads from YouTube until a reader clicks.
To embed a YouTube video in VeloCMS, paste the video's URL on its own line in the editor and press Enter — VeloCMS automatically converts it into a responsive, privacy-enhanced player. No slash command required, no HTML to write. The embed uses youtube-nocookie.com so Google won't set tracking cookies on your readers until they actually click to play.
Which YouTube URL formats does the auto-embed support?
The auto-embed recognizes the standard YouTube link formats you'll encounter in the wild: the full watch URL (youtube.com/watch?v=...), the shortened share URL (youtu.be/...), and both the standard and shorts embed URL forms. Channel URLs (youtube.com/c/... or youtube.com/@...) don't auto-embed — link those instead, since embedding a full channel doesn't make much sense in a reading context. The block currently embeds the single video the ID resolves to; it doesn't parse timestamp or playlist parameters, so if you need a reader to land on a specific moment, mention the timestamp in your caption or link text instead.
How does the privacy-enhanced mode work?
VeloCMS swaps the standard youtube.com embed domain for youtube-nocookie.com automatically. Under this mode, YouTube doesn't place cookies on your reader's browser until they click the play button. Before they interact, the video is just a static thumbnail with a play icon — no JavaScript from Google's advertising system runs at all. It also avoids the performance hit of loading YouTube's player scripts on every page view. Whether a visitor notice is needed for embedded video depends on your jurisdiction. When a reader does click play, the normal YouTube player experience continues unchanged.
Can I use the slash command instead of pasting a URL?
Yes. Type / and filter to Embed (there's no separate /youtube command — Embed handles every supported provider, YouTube included). It inserts an empty embed block with an inline URL field beneath it — not a modal — so you can paste the link, add an optional caption, and set the aspect ratio without leaving your place in the document. Either method, pasting the bare URL or using Embed, produces the same block in the published post.
Why does the embed show a generic thumbnail in the editor preview?
The editor preview loads a lightweight placeholder to keep the editing experience fast — it doesn't fetch the actual YouTube thumbnail in the editor pane. The published post fetches the real thumbnail from YouTube's CDN and displays it as the player's loading poster. If you want to verify the exact video before publishing, click the Preview button in the top toolbar to open the full post preview in a new tab, where the actual YouTube player loads with the correct thumbnail and title.
Video embeds are responsive by default — they scale to fit any column width and maintain aspect ratio on mobile. You don't need to set a width or height anywhere. The embed is wrapped in a aspect-ratio: 16/9 container using modern CSS, so it looks correct on every screen size without JavaScript.