EMBEDDING VIDEOS FROM YOUTUBE OR VIMEO
Embedding a video from YouTube or Vimeo is super easy, as these are by far the most popular video hosting sites. For details on how to embed videos from other sites, scroll down the page.
For YouTube and Vimeo videos, all you have to do is copy the “shareable” URL and paste it on its own line in your blog post, without making it a hyperlink. Not sure what a “shareable” URL is? See the Finding Shareable URLs sections further down.
Wrong Way
Hyperlinked URLs will not embed:
URLs other than the “Shareable” versions will also not embed:
Right Way
A plain URL on its own line WILL embed. Here’s the back end:
And here’s the front end:
FINDING SHAREABLE URLS ON YOUTUBE PAGES
Often when you come across YouTube videos, the URL for the page you’re viewing will contain strings of search related material that will interfere with WordPress’s ability to embed the video.
So don’t copy the URL from your browser’s location bar. Instead, copy the “Share” URL YouTube provides specifically for this purpose, which ends with the video ID.
YouTube Share URL
Video IDs
If you look closely, you can see that both versions have the same video ID:
Embedded Video
If you want to embed a YouTube video you found embedded on another page, click the little YouTube icon to open the video up on its original YouTube page, so you can find the Share URL shown above.
Do not follow the link to the video title, as that will take you to a URL with some search string symbols that will prevent embedding.
FINDING SHAREABLE URLS ON VIMEO
Videos on Vimeo are less likely to have search strings in them. When you’re viewing a video on its Vimeo page, you’ll most likely see the direct URL, ending in the video ID, in your browser’s location bar.
Vimeo Page URL
Embedded Video
If the Vimeo video is embedded on another web site, here are a few easy ways to find the direct URL:
Option 1: Click the Share button and copy the URL
Option 2: Secondary click on the title and choose Copy Link Location from the contextual menu:
VIDEOS ON OTHER SITES
Our class blog uses a plugin that allows you to use many of the shortcodes that are typically only available to users of the limited version of WordPress available for free on WordPress.com For a list of the available shortcodes, including those for videos on popular video hosting sites, see the WordPress.com Shortcodes page.
NOTE: The Jetpack plugin I’m using may not support some of the more recent video hosts listed on that page, so if you run into a problem, check the Jetpack Shortcodes page, which lists options available to users of the Jetpack plugin.