What is B-roll?

In short: Extra footage you cut to over your main shot, such as close-ups, screen recordings or stock clips.

Your main footage (A-roll) is usually you talking or the core action. B-roll is everything you cut away to: a close-up of the product, a screen recording, a map, a reaction. It shows what you're describing and hides jump cuts.

For faceless channels, B-roll often is the whole video. If it's mostly stock footage with little of your own work, keep YouTube's reused content rule in mind.

Example

Say your narration says "Open Settings, then tap Audio." Your A-roll is you on camera saying it. Your B-roll is a three-second screen recording of that tap, cut in over the same line. The narration keeps running, the viewer sees exactly what you mean, and any jump cut between your sentences is hidden. A simple planning rule: give each script line that names something visible, such as a product, place, number or step, its own B-roll shot.

Tips for creators

• Record your own B-roll when you can: screen recordings, close-ups of your hands or product, or a walk around the location. Your own footage also helps show a meaningful difference.
• Check the license on every stock clip. Make sure it covers monetized use and every platform you post to.
• Swap any stock shot you used in your last video. Repeating the same clips across uploads is one of the patterns behind YouTube's inauthentic content rule.

Common questions

Can I use clips from movies or other YouTubers as B-roll?

Not safely on a monetized channel. Content ID may claim the footage, and YouTube's reused content rule needs a meaningful difference even when you have permission. Use licensed stock, footage you record, screen recordings or AI-generated scenes instead.

Do I need to label AI-generated B-roll?

Only when it looks real. YouTube asks you to set Altered content to Yes for realistic scenes of people, places or events that did not happen. Clearly unrealistic or animated visuals don't need the label, and YouTube says the label alone won't limit reach or earnings.

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All 29 glossary terms · Reviewed on 2026-11-05.