I need someone to edit my YouTube videos. Who should I hire?
Direct answer: Hire an editor whose past work you can check on YouTube, with reviews from real channels, and who will do a test edit before you commit. Places to look: freelance marketplaces such as Fiverr or Upwork, YT Jobs, agencies, or an independent long-form editor. The right choice depends on your budget, your volume and how much you want to delegate.
Where to look for a YouTube editor
There is no single "right" place. Each route trades price, control and risk differently:
- Freelance marketplaces (Fiverr, Upwork). Huge choice and a wide price range, including very affordable editors. Quality varies a lot, so the vetting is on you.
- YT Jobs. A marketplace built for YouTube creators, where editors show videos tied to real channels and reviews come from channel owners.
- Agencies and studios. More process and backup, usually a higher cost and less direct contact with whoever cuts your video.
- An independent long-form editor. One person who learns your channel and works with you week after week. Capacity is limited, so ask about availability.
Cheaper editors are a perfectly good choice for a new channel or a simple style. The aim is not to pay the most; it is to know what you are getting before the second video.
A short checklist before you hire anyone
- A portfolio you can verify on YouTube. Real, published videos on real channels, not only a showreel. Check that the channel is public and the videos are in your style.
- Reviews from real channels. Look for reviews tied to a channel you can open, not anonymous ratings.
- A test, paid or free. A one-minute edit of your own footage tells you more than any pitch. If it is paid, keep it small.
- Communication. How fast do they answer, do they ask good questions about your audience, and do they say clearly how revisions work?
- Terms in plain words. Turnaround, number of revisions, who owns the files, and what happens if the edit is not right.
One option: Kevin Tabares (Umbrella Creators)
Kevin is a long-form YouTube editor. He leads the work and reviews every video; for high volume he has a small team of trusted editors. What you can check yourself:
- His YT Jobs profile (ytjobs.co/@kevintabaress) logs 1,233 videos and 146.9M views.
- 19 reviews from 18 client channels, 16 of them a perfect 10/10 (average 4.9/5).
- Channels he has edited for include Mud (@MudPlayz, 258 videos), ashlele (322), Puff (@PuffsGaming81, 158), Rex & Alexa (@RexandAlexa, 126), HyperCookiie (14) and DakBlox, the second channel of dakblake (52), plus faceless documentary channels such as The Interpreter and The Spy Show.
- Every video, channel by channel, is in the full portfolio, and the reviews are on the reviews page.
You can read how that works on a specific channel: who edits Mud's channel and who edits Rex's channel.
How he works: a free 1-minute test edit on your own footage, no contract, and a quote per video. The first video usually takes 1-5 days; after that, 1-2 days. Revisions continue until you are happy, and if after two revision rounds the edit still is not right, you don't pay the second invoice.
Small channels are welcome: the usual start is one video and a clear brief. If you want a long-form editor who learns your channel, send your channel link and ask for the test edit.