Changing Ownership of a YouTube Channel

This guide covers converting a personal YouTube channel into a Brand Account and then transferring ownership of that Brand Account to a new email address. Subscribers, uploaded videos, and other channel settings are preserved through this process - they are not removed.

Warning: If followed incorrectly, this process can result in the permanent, irrecoverable deletion of a channel and all of its content. The most common mistake is selecting the wrong destination account during the move step, which deletes whatever channel is already attached to that account. Follow these steps exactly, in order. If you are unsure which account you’re working in at any point, stop and contact SAU IT before proceeding.

Optional but recommended: Before starting, consider backing up channel content with Google Takeout. This isn’t a Google-required step, but it’s a reasonable safeguard given the deletion risk above.

Part 1: Move Your Channel to a Brand Account

Step 1: Check whether you already have a Brand Account

You may already have one. Go to your channel list and review the accounts listed before creating a new one.

Step 2: Create a Brand Account (if needed)

1. Sign in to YouTube.
2. Go to your channel list.
3. Click Create a channel.
4. Enter a name for the Brand Account (e.g., “Your Business Name”) and complete any verification prompts.
5. Click Create.

Step 3: Confirm prerequisites before moving

Before moving the channel, verify all of the following:

• You are signed in to the Google Account associated with the channel you want to move, not the destination account.
• Your Google Account is the primary owner of that channel.
• The channel has been opted out of Channel Permissions in YouTube Studio (Settings → Permissions → “Opt out of permissions”). If the channel is still using Channel Permissions, the move option may not work as expected.
• No other users currently have Channel Permissions access to the channel. If they do, remove their access in Studio first.

Important: If the Brand Account you’re moving into already has a channel attached to it, that existing channel will be deleted - including its videos, comments, messages, playlists, and history - when you complete the move. Double-check you’ve selected the correct destination account before continuing.

Step 4: Move the channel

1. Sign in to YouTube and click your profile picture.
2. If needed, switch to the Google Account associated with the channel you want to move.
3. Click Settings → Advanced settings.
4. Next to “Move channel,” select Move channel to your Google Account or to a different Brand Account.
5. Choose the Brand Account you created in Step 2.
6. If that account already has a channel attached, click Replace, then confirm Delete channel - this permanently deletes the existing channel on that account.
7. Review how the channel name will appear after the move, then click Move channel.
8. You may be asked to re-enter your password to re-authenticate.

Step 5: Verify the move

Go to myaccount.google.com/brandaccounts. Your channel’s Brand Account should now appear in the list, with ownership/permission controls available.

Part 2: Transfer Ownership to a New Email

Step 1: Access permissions

1. Go to myaccount.google.com/brandaccounts.
2. Select the Brand Account → Manage permissions.

Step 2: Invite the new user as an Owner

1. Click Invite new users.
2. Enter the new email address.
3. Assign the role as Owner - not Manager. Managers cannot be promoted to Primary Owner, so this role is required for the next step to work.
4. Click Invite.

Step 3: Accept the invitation

The new email address must accept the invite from their own inbox before continuing.

Step 4: Wait, then promote to Primary Owner

The new user must remain an Owner for at least 7 days before they’re eligible to become Primary Owner - this is a required minimum, not a processing delay. Attempting to promote them early will return an error.

After 7 days:

1. Go back to Manage permissions on the Brand Account.
2. Find the new user’s name, click the dropdown next to it, and select Primary owner.
3. Confirm by clicking Transfer.

If the option to change Primary Owner isn’t available, confirm the channel is opted out of Channel Permissions - Managers and users on the Channel Permissions system won’t have this option.

Step 5 (Optional): Remove the old owner

Once the new email is confirmed as Primary Owner, you can remove the old owner’s access from Manage permissions if desired.

Quick Reference