youtube.com vs youtu.be: Difference and Comparison

Youtube is the most popular video-streaming and sharing website in the world. We all use the Youtube domain or app to watch songs, trailers, and all kinds of videos.

There is another URL that you might get confused with which is youtu.be. Apparently, there is not much difference between the two URLs.

Key Takeaways

  1. Youtube.com allows users to upload, view, and share videos while Youtu.be is a shortened URL for Youtube videos.
  2. Youtu.be links are shorter and easier to share than Youtube.com links.
  3. Both platforms offer similar video content and features.

Youtube.com vs youtu.be

The difference between Youtube.com vs Youtu.be is that Youtube.com is a top-level domain while Youtu.be is a shortened URL for youtube. Youtu.be is not a top-level domain(TLD). It is specifically specified as a country domain. It’s ccTLD, i.e. country code top-level domain. The country youtu.be specified for Belgium.

Youtube.com vs youtu.be

Youtube has a popular top-level domain that can be used worldwide. Indeed, It is the most visited website in the world. This online video-sharing platform was launched in February 2005 by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. In 2006, Google got hold of Youtube.

In 2009, Google launched the shortened URL, youtu.be. Youtu.be will provide the same video streaming service to you. In fact, it will take you to the same homepage as youtube. And you will see the same website in the address bar.

Youtu.be is not another domain. It’s just like an abbreviation for youtube.

Comparison Table

Parameters of ComparisonYoutube.comYoutu.be
Type of DomainIt is a Top-level domain, uses .com domain.It is a Country-code top-level domain. Uses .be ccTLD domain.
 Platform Video sharing popular platform A shortened URL for Youtube, which will take you to the same page.
 SpecificationIt is Globally registered. Specified to the country, Belgium.
 Year of Launch Youtube was launched in 2005 The shortened URL youtu.be was launched in 2009.
 PurposeYoutube was launched to be a video sharing platform Youtu.be URL was launched to protect the domain and not let anyone else misuse it.

What is Youtube.com?

Youtube is an American social media Platform. It is a video streaming as well as a sharing platform.

Also Read:  Operating System vs Kernel: Difference and Comparison

You can see all kinds of videos like music, comedy, movie and TV series trailers, kids’ videos, educational, academic videos, short films, documentaries, etc.

And you can watch live streams as well. All the leading companies, like T series, Disney, etc., share and launch their new videos on Youtube. People can earn money through youtube by sharing videos.

The more subscribers on the channel and views on a video, the more money you can get.

Youtube is a big, socially formed platform with a billion monthly users. It has billions of hours of content on thousands of different topics.

You can watch many free videos and can rent movies as well, like or dislike videos, comment on your thoughts, add videos to watch later, make playlists, etc. Indeed, you can change the resolution according to your comfort.

However, Youtube doesn’t show illegitimate content. It has censorship and cuts.

After Google purchased Youtube, youtube is not limited to its app and website, and you can also link it to other services like Twitter, Discord, and Nintendo. Companies use youtube as a platform to market their products and services.

Multimillionaire celebrities too use youtube to share their videos and interests.

youtube

What is Youtu.be?

Youtu.be is a shortened URL for youtube.com. The domain Youtu.be is owned by youtube as well.

This URL is not so much different from youtube.com. This will also take you to youtube’s website.

The only difference is that this domain is a country code top-level domain which is specified to Belgium. However, it is not specified that other countries cant use this domain.

Google has registered this domain for a global purpose. ccTLDs can be registered for any purpose by anyone around the world.

The URL may be shortened for two reasons. One reason can be that other people can’t take the URL and confuse people with it.

Also Read:  MS Office Student vs Professional: Difference and Comparison

People can use the URL to make people think that it’s youtube and hack other computers or inject malware into them. It can be so misleading, so youtube owned the URL to protect the domain, and other reasons can follow the trend of using domain hacks.

Each video is given a different URL that has many characters. Shortening the URL will help in shortening the URLs of the videos as well.

As of now, by launching Youtu.be, youtube has cut short the URL by 15 characters. Twitter also uses this strategy.

youtu be

Main Differences Between Youtube.com and Youtu.be

  1. Youtube.com is the main popular video streaming platform, while Youtu.be is the shortened URL for youtube itself.
  2. Youtube.com is a top-level domain, while youtu.be is a county code high-level domain.
  3. Youtube.com has .com domain which is a commercial entity worldwide, while youtu.be has .be domain which is specified to the country of Belgium.
  4. Youtu.be domain name was launched by Google in 2009 to protect the domain from being misused.
  5. Youtu.be is used to shorten the URL and make it easy for people to remember. Shortening URLs will help youtube shorten the URL of specific videos as well. Youtu.be will also take you to youtube’s main page.
References
  1. https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007%2F978-1-4842-6672-4
  2. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/46719/

Last Updated : 26 July, 2023

dot 1
One request?

I’ve put so much effort writing this blog post to provide value to you. It’ll be very helpful for me, if you consider sharing it on social media or with your friends/family. SHARING IS ♥️

10 thoughts on “youtube.com vs youtu.be: Difference and Comparison”

  1. I appreciate the detailed comparison between Youtube.com and Youtu.be presented in the article. It’s interesting to learn that youtube was launched in 2005, and the shortened URL youtu.be was launched in 2009. The article effectively conveys that Youtube is a video-sharing platform, while Youtu.be is a shortened URL for youtube videos.

    Reply
  2. This article provides a comprehensive comparison of Youtube.com and Youtu.be. I appreciate the emphasis on the differences and similarities between the two platforms. It’s interesting to know that Youtu.be is a shortened URL for Youtube videos and offers the same video streaming service as Youtube.

    Reply
  3. This article provides valuable insights into the differences between Youtube.com and Youtu.be. It’s interesting to know that Google launched the shortened URL youtu.be in 2009, and it serves the same video streaming service as youtube. The comparison table is a helpful summary of the distinctions between the two platforms.

    Reply
  4. The comparison between Youtube.com and Youtu.be is well-detailed and informative. I found it fascinating to learn about the history and purpose of both platforms. The article effectively conveys that Youtube.com is a video-sharing platform, while Youtu.be is a shortened URL for youtube videos. The protective purpose behind the launch of Youtu.be is quite interesting.

    Reply
  5. The author provides an informative comparison of Youtube.com and Youtu.be. I found it interesting to learn that youtu.be is a ccTLD specified for Belgium and that it was launched in 2009 to protect the domain from misuse. Youtube.com, on the other hand, is a top-level domain and was launched in 2005.

    Reply
  6. Youtube.com has been around since 2005 and became a global video-sharing sensation. On the other hand, Youtu.be was launched in 2009 as a shortened URL for Youtube. It’s interesting to learn that Youtu.be is a ccTLD domain specified for Belgium. It appears that the URL was launched to protect the domain and follow domain hack trends.

    Reply
  7. The author provides a comprehensive comparison between Youtube.com and Youtu.be. Youtube.com is a top-level domain, while Youtu.be is a ccTLD specified for Belgium. It’s fascinating to learn that Youtube was launched in 2005, and Google launched the shortened URL youtu.be in 2009.

    Reply
  8. The article provides an interesting and detailed comparison between Youtube.com and Youtu.be. Both platforms offer similar video content and features, but Youtu.be is a shortened URL for Youtube videos. They have different domain types, and it’s interesting to know how the Youtu.be URL was launched to protect the domain from misuse.

    Reply
  9. The article does a great job of comparing Youtube.com and Youtu.be. Both platforms offer similar video content and features, but youtu.be links are shorter and easier to share than youtube.com links. It’s intriguing to learn that youtu.be is a ccTLD specified for Belgium.

    Reply
  10. The article effectively highlights the differences between Youtube.com and Youtu.be, providing valuable insights into both platforms. It’s interesting to learn that Youtu.be is a ccTLD specified for Belgium and was launched in 2009, while Youtube.com is a top-level domain. Both Youtube.com and Youtu.be offer unique features for users.

    Reply

Leave a Comment

Want to save this article for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own articles box!