How to Fix a YouTube Video Not Playing in PowerPoint

Adding videos to your PowerPoint presentations can make them more engaging and memorable for your audience. However, it can be frustrating when embedded YouTube videos don’t play properly during your presentation. In this article, we’ll walk through the top troubleshooting tips to fix a YouTube video not playing in PowerPoint.

Check Your Internet Connection

The most obvious reason a YouTube video won’t play in PowerPoint is because of a poor internet connection. PowerPoint streams the video directly from YouTube, so you need a stable internet connection for smooth playback.

Before your presentation, test playing embedded YouTube videos while connected to the Wi-Fi or wired internet connection you’ll be using when presenting. If the video buffers or won’t play properly, try troubleshooting the connection or finding a stronger signal.

Verify the Correct Embed Code

PowerPoint requires the proper YouTube embed code to play videos directly within slides. Simply pasting a video URL or link will not work.

To add the correct embed code:

  1. Go to the YouTube video page you want to embed
  2. Click Share > Embed below the video
  3. Copy the full embed code
  4. In PowerPoint, paste the embed code into the Insert Video box

Double check that the embed code starts with <iframe not a URL before inserting.

Update to the Latest Version of Office

Outdated versions of PowerPoint may have compatibility issues playing YouTube videos. Update to the latest version of Microsoft 365 or Office 2021/2019 to ensure you have all the newest features and fixes.

In Office 365, make sure automatic updates are enabled so you always have the most up-to-date version.

Check Video Playback Settings

Adjusting the video playback settings in PowerPoint may help resolve issues with YouTube playback failures.

To check playback settings:

  1. Click on the embedded YouTube video to open Video Tools
  2. Go to Playback > Video Options
  3. For “Start,” choose “Automatically”
  4. Adjust other settings like volume and video quality

Testing video playback after adjusting these settings may resolve your issue.

Reveal Hidden Video

If you don’t see the YouTube video appear on your slides at all, it could be hidden behind other objects without you realizing it.

To reveal a potentially hidden video:

  1. Select the video timeline on the slide
  2. Right click > Bring Forward
  3. Repeat bringing the video forward until it appears

Now test playing the video to see if the issue is resolved.

Convert to an Animated GIF

As a last resort, you can convert your YouTube video into an animated GIF to embed it. This avoids platform compatibility issues because it inserts the video as an image file rather than streaming video content.

Follow these steps:

  1. Go to a GIF converter site like EzGif.com
  2. Paste the YouTube video URL
  3. Download the converted GIF file
  4. Insert the GIF into your PowerPoint slide

The GIF won’t have audio, but will play properly without any platform dependencies.

Troubleshoot Other Issues

A few other things to check if your YouTube video still won’t play properly in PowerPoint:

  • Disable PowerPoint hardware graphic acceleration
  • Ensure video codec used is compatible with PowerPoint
  • Check size of embedded video file for excessively large files
  • Try inserting the video on a new slide in case the original slide is corrupted

Following these tips should help you resolve any issues with YouTube videos not playing in PowerPoint. Test thoroughly before your actual presentation to ensure smooth video playback for your audience.

Let us know in the comments if you have any other fixes for getting YouTube videos to play properly in PowerPoint!