
15 Powerful YouTube Tools You Need to Grow Your YouTube Audience
It goes without saying that video is an increasingly highly valuable area of content marketing. That this is true isn’t surprising: people love to be shown how to do cool things, they can watch videos while enjoying a hobby, and there’s lots of room for creativity. Plus, a lot of people find that information is easier to absorb when presented as a video.
Many of us talk about the popularity of TikTok these days. And while this is a cool place to present short-form videos, not all video types are suitable for TikTok. However, you can present literally anything on YouTube. YouTube is still an extremely popular platform and has plenty of potential for branded content. Statistics bear this out: every minute, some 500 hours of video are uploaded to the platform. In addition, watch time for these videos grows by around 60% each year.
With that said, competition for viewers and followers is stiff. To be successful, you need to create professional-looking videos and produce high-quality, authentic content. People tend not to waste their time on things that are thrown together or have low-value information. Fortunately, help for your video content is available. In particular, using YouTube tools can help you become more successful at growing your audience.
What tools do you need to make a YouTube video or have a YouTube channel?
Strictly speaking, you don’t need a lot of YouTube tools to make a YouTube video. In fact, all you really need is only a smartphone, which makes it relatively easy to make and post a simple video.
However, primitive videos don’t work for everyone, and this is even more true with brands. Fortunately, you can increase your chances of success through investing in a higher quality video picture, better audio, optimized thumbnails, etc. Attracting increased attention from viewers and winning the YouTube algorithm game are important to growing your following.
With that in mind, let’s look at the kinds of tools that exist for YouTube and how they can help you in a variety of ways. Along the way, you’ll get a better sense of where to start and what you might need.
YouTube Tools from YouTube
These are free YouTube tools that come with your account. They focus primarily on letting you create basic videos with ease and providing you education on how to make great videos. Along the way, you’ll learn what potential viewers like through provided analytics and also what suits your style as a creator.
1. YouTube Studio

YouTube Studio is where you manage your uploaded and published videos as well as livestreams. However, the studio is more than a place to simply upload files. There are options for enhancing your video such as adding YouTube cards with additional information, providing closed captions, and creating an end screen. In addition, you can choose a thumbnail rather than letting YouTube choose one randomly. Best of all, this YouTube tool is easy to use.
2. YouTube Creator Academy

Although YouTube will allow you to upload videos without taking the “courses” offered here, much of the information in this academy is essential. For instance, there are courses that cover community guidelines and copyright issues, both of which you’ll be held responsible for. In addition, you can take courses on how to make money, video strategy, production tips, leveraging analytics, and more. It also provides video tutorials for creating instructional videos, recording video calls, and online events.
General YouTube Tools
These tools are the powerhouse tools that most YouTubers, influencers, and content creators use. They can help you with your YouTube SEO, channel audit, thumbnail A/B testing, and a host of other convenient functionality. In other words, these tools help you get discovered and grow your channel subscribers by helping you offer the best content possible.
3. Tubebuddy

With Tubebuddy, you have an easy-to-use Chrome extension that’s rich in features. Unlike some competing YouTube tools, this one’s YouTube certified. There are video SEO features that help your videos get discovered more easily, and quality analytics to see what works. In addition, they have advanced productivity tools that make video customization a snap. However, their unique feature is bulk processing: this is used to perform tasks, such as demonetization appeals and adding cards in bulk to save time. It also assists in letting you know what are the best times to upload videos to maximize engagement and growth.
4. VidIQ

This is one of those YouTube tools that provides a little bit of everything. With VidIQ, you can get excellent analytics and SEO tools, channel audits, and more. One thing I like is that they’ll give you some video ideas, which are drawn from trending vids in your niche. In addition, they provide competitor analysis that makes it easier to keep track of trends. Keyword research, including analyzing search volume, is another trick up their sleeve. You can purchase varying levels of service, depending on your needs and budget.
5. Vidooly

Vidooly is a tool that works on multiple video platforms, not just YouTube. In addition, it is geared towards advertisers, not just content creators. For this reason, Vidooly has “brand safety” functions that safeguard advertisers. However, for everyday creatives, there’s also the creator dashboard. This has YouTube analytics, research, content creation functionalities, and competitor information. They’ll also help you reach out to influencers and build your influencer database. By utilizing the data obtained through A/B testing, creators can optimize future videos by using the winning thumbnail and title combination, thus boosting engagement, views, and overall performance.
6. Tubics

If you need really good SEO and A/B card testing, check out Tubics. It’s one of the more comprehensive YouTube tools, but maximizing exposure is their strength. In addition, Tubics gives you great video ideas, including what questions to cover and competitor insights for the topic. So, while many other tools are intended to help you get noticed, Tubics is more focused on SEO and a direct approach to beating your competition. With just a few clicks, you can optimize your videos and stay ahead of your competitors.
YouTube Livestreaming Tools
Livestreaming is an increasingly compelling way to reach your audience and make sure that your name and message are getting out there. In large part, the appeal of livestreaming is the unpredictability and interactivity of it; while a blog post or even a standard video can provide a window into the way a person or company works, livestreaming allows you to directly interact with your audience in a variety of ways. Unboxing videos, demonstration and how-to videos, and even live Q and As all allow you to create live video content in a format that appeals to a variety of audiences and keeps viewers engaged in realtime. In addition, livestreams on YouTube are archived and indexed in search, allowing you to “double dip” on views both during the livestream and well into the future.
7. OBS Studio

OBS Studio can be used across several platforms, including YouTube and Twitch. This particular tool helps cut down on the difficulty of live video projects because it allows you to stream content directly to the platforms on which you are planning to stream, while sharing your screen, allowing you to engage with your audience of numerous different video topics seamlessly. OBS Studio also ensures that users provide clear and crisp sound by being able to mix the audio in real time and suppress background noise.
8. Streamyard

Streamyard, as its name suggests, is a platform from which to stream and live broadcast. The platform may be used as a way to livestream a single person, or as a means to livestream an interview or podcast. Streamyard can be used on multiple platforms to increase your audience views, and can be used right in your browser, which can be ideal for anyone who is not interested in downloading software or having another program to manage. Streamyard is a great option for those looking to livestream alongside others, for interviews, collaborations, and more.
Graphical Tools for YouTube
The main graphical need that you will have for YouTube is thumbnail creation. Thumbnails are the cover visuals that you see next to a YouTube video title, and they’re an important chance to make a great first impression. YouTube will automatically generate a thumbnail from the still frame of your video, but if you are serious about YouTube, you’ll definitely want to use one of these tools to design something custom and aligned with your branding.
9. Adobe Express

Adobe is a tried-and-true series of software programs, and Adobe Express is no different. Using Adobe Express, YouTube users can create thumbnails and banners that take advantage of their existing brand colors, specific fonts, and themes, in order to create a more cohesive appearance. Express offers a free option, and can be a great option for those already familiar with other Adobe products.
10. Canva

Canva is an all-around graphics design suite. You can make nearly everything, from greeting cards and infographics to thumbnail images and YouTube cards. There are a lot of templates available, and the design work is mostly done by dragging and dropping elements into the template. Best of all, this is a freemium tool you can leverage across your video and marketing needs.
Further Reading: 13 Cool AI Thumbnail Makers for YouTube
YouTube Keyword Research Tools
While many of the above comprehensive YouTube SEO tools include this functionality, if you want to try a standalone tool for YouTube keyword research, check out these tools. In some situations, you’ll find new keywords for your YouTube videos that the other YouTube tools don’t provide you. Plus, they’ll let you think outside the box or follow a hunch in ways that other tools might not respond to.
11. YouTube Search Autosuggest

There’s no link to this because it’s built into the search bar on YouTube pages. When you search for a term, suggestions pop up under your typing, and you can select one. These recommendations are related to whatever you’re typing. In addition, the related terms show common choices. You can also use autosuggest to find unflattering keywords about your brand that you might not have known about before.
Further Reading: 15 Useful Tips on How to Get More Views on YouTube Videos
12. Keyword Tool

Unlike most of the YouTube tools I’ve mentioned, this one is actually a category. Besides the built-in keyword tools included with larger suites, there are a few independent options. For instance, Google Search Console can help you find new keywords. Since YouTube is part of Google, many of the YouTube options are mentioned upfront. In addition, you’ll find that many of the “general” keywords used for web searching also work on YouTube.
Finally, there are several keyword tools that are independent of Google. For instance, SEMrush has YouTube keywords included. Since this is a generalist marketing tool, if you’re in the marketing industry you might already have access to it.
Further Reading: 10 Expert YouTube SEO Tips For 2025
Video Editing Tools for YouTube
Since YouTube is all about video, it’s essential that you have video editing tools. Content Studio has some basic tools, and these are free to use. However, the functions included in Content Studio aren’t elaborate, and you can’t do much more than branding, the cutting room floor, and putting in captions. In addition, live streaming is crude through the native studio. If you don’t have YouTube tools like this in your arsenal, check out these recommended options:
13. Camtasia

Camtasia by Techsmith is a program that lets you turn screen sharing/screen recording into videos. Then, you can add special effects and other “markups” and even music to make the video complete. If you do a lot of tutorials, such as in IT or marketing, this is a great option. It makes showing people by doing much easier since it captures everything you do on the screen during a session. Another time this is a great choice is for virtual seminars, lectures, or classes.
This isn’t to say the average YouTuber can’t use it though. Especially if you want to make gaming videos, Camtasia is an awesome option. Finally, Camtasia lets you add special effects and other markups to make the video more engaging. In the right niche, this is a major competitive advantage.
14. Movavi Video Suite

Movavi Video Editor is the perfect video editing software for those who want to take their videos up a notch. It’s simple enough for beginners to figure out how to edit videos, but it also has some advanced features that can make them look more professional.
A plethora of video editing features include the ability to add titles, transitions, and special effects, as well as adjust the hue and saturation of each clip. A large library of built-in sound effects, background music, intros, stickers, and other extras helps to add even more life to your videos. The most recent additions to Movavi’s suite of video editing tools are AI-powered features like upscaling, background removal, and denoiser.
Further Reading: 15 YouTube Video Summarizer AI Tools to Check Out
15. Wondershare Filmora

Wondershare is easy-to-use video editing software that’s built for creativity. Unlike Camtasia, it won’t record the video for you. Rather, you take existing footage and upload it. Then, you can mix the audio tracks so that music or other sound effects don’t interfere with your voice explanations. You can also add split screens, correct colors, use special effects, and more. It’s a comprehensive tool.
Further Reading: Which is the Best Video Editing App? Choose from These 15
No matter what kind of YouTube channel you want to build, it’s important to have the right YouTube tools. Many of these are free and included in YouTube or Google itself. Others are third-party tools that let you do cool stuff for that added oomph. Try a few out, and see what works for you.
4 Comments
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Ytzone.Me has some unique features to manage youtube projects, from planning to publishing.
Thanks for sharing Ben – always on the lookout for new tools! And appreciate that you didn’t embed the URL as a link because all comments with links are automatically blocked!
Hey Neal! Thank you for sharing these tools! I have used VidIQ earlier but then shifted to Tuberank Jeet. This one also worked great for me.
Thanks for chiming in Andik!