YouTube Shorts End Screens and Clickable Links - What Actually Works (2025)
Download printable cheat-sheet (CC-BY 4.0)13 Dec 2025, 00:00 Z
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TL;DR
Shorts are great top-of-funnel, but YouTube explicitly says URLs in Shorts descriptions/comments aren’t clickable. Build a link funnel that uses native clickable surfaces: end screens, info cards (if eligible), related-video links, and channel profile links.
Using AI to generate your Shorts? See YouTube Shorts for AI-Generated Content - Rules, Monetization, and What Gets Flagged for disclosure and Content ID rules.
1 Know what’s clickable (official)
YouTube Help explicitly notes:
- URLs placed in Shorts comments and Shorts descriptions are non-clickable (anti-spam measure).
- In the “clickable links overview”, YouTube marks end screens as clickable, and related videos in Shorts as a clickable link surface.
- YouTube also notes: to add clickable external links, you must enable your channel’s access to advanced features.
2 End screens: your default “bottom CTA”
Per YouTube Help:
- End screens are added to the last 5–20 seconds of a video.
- The video must be at least 25 seconds long.
- You can add up to four elements for standard 16:9 (other aspect ratios may have a lower limit).
Instavar tactic: Write your CTA into the script so the end screen isn’t a surprise. Viewers should already know what to click.
3 Info cards: your “mid-video CTA” (and external links)
Per YouTube Help:
- Info cards can feature a video, playlist, channel, or link.
- YouTube notes you can add up to 5 cards to one video.
- For external website links, YouTube states the “Link” card requires being in the YouTube Partner Program, and your linked site must comply with policies (Community Guidelines and Terms).
Instavar tactic: Use one card early (set expectation), and one card late (capture intent).
4 A simple Shorts → Long-form → Lead funnel
Step 1: Shorts as the “hook”
- Publish Shorts that earn attention and qualify intent.
- Don’t rely on raw URLs in the Short’s description/comments (non-clickable).
Step 2: Use a clickable bridge
Pick one (based on your channel setup):
