A YouTube notes Chrome extension, and which kind you need

If you want notes tied to moments in a video, such as lecture points you can jump back to, pick a Chrome extension built for timestamped video notes. If you want one note that waits on the video itself, such as the steps to try from a tutorial or why you saved it, TackNote Lite fits: it is a Chrome extension whose notes stick to the web page they are about, so each YouTube video keeps its own note and shows it again when you come back to that video.

We make TackNote Lite, so we have tried to be plain about what it does not do. It has no timestamps, and for a lot of video study that is the feature that matters. The questions below point you to the right kind of tool, and every answer they give is also written out in Which one to choose.

Three ways to keep notes on YouTube videos

Most people searching for a YouTube notes extension want one of three things, and they need different tools.

• Notes tied to moments. You are watching a lecture or a course and want to mark the point where something was explained, then click back to it later. That is the job of an extension built for video notes.
• A note that belongs to the video. You want a short reminder that sits on the video's page: the settings to copy from a tutorial, the part you still have to try, a recipe change, why it is in your Watch later list. That is a sticky note on the page, which is what TackNote Lite does.
• Long notes you keep and share. Pages of study notes, a summary for a class, something you will edit for weeks. That belongs in a notes app or a document, with a link to the video at the top.

When you need timestamps

If you study from long videos, timestamps save real time. The Chrome Web Store has several extensions made for this. Tater Jots, for example, describes itself as a way to take notes in real time while watching, set your own video timestamps with quick notes, and come back to the important parts instantly, with no sign-in. We have not tested these extensions, so read the reviews and the permissions each one asks for before you install it.

TackNote Lite does not do this. A Lite note knows which page it belongs to, not which second of the video you were at. If timestamps are what you are after, an extension like that is the better pick, and you can still use Lite next to it for notes on other sites.

A sticky note on each YouTube video, with TackNote Lite

TackNote Lite is a free Chrome extension that puts a sticky note on the web page you are looking at. Leave the page and the note steps aside. Open the page again and the note is waiting where you left it. On YouTube, a note keeps the part of the address that names the video, so every video gets a note of its own, and the note follows you when you move from one video to the next without reloading the page.

How to put a note on a YouTube video

1. Add TackNote Lite to Chrome from the Chrome Web Store.
2. Open the video. Press the shortcut Chrome assigned to Lite (on a Mac, Option + Shift + N; on Windows, Alt + Shift + K), or right-click the page outside the video player and choose Tack a note to this page. You can also open the board from the toolbar and click + Note on this page.
3. The first time, Chrome asks to let TackNote Lite work on youtube.com. Choose Allow, and that site's notes come back on their own every time you return.
4. Type your note. Drag it out of the way of the video, and drag its bottom-right corner to make it wider.

A note can be a checklist instead of text, which suits the steps of a tutorial: tick each one off as you go. You can give a note a color, and in Settings choose small, medium or large text for every note. A note normally stays on screen where you put it; choose Scroll with page and it sticks to its spot in the page instead, so it moves out of view as you scroll down to the comments.

Find a video's note later

Click the TackNote Lite icon in the toolbar to open the board. It lists every note with the title of the page it is on, so a YouTube note shows the video's title. Search looks through the note text and the page titles, and clicking a note takes you back to its video, in a tab that is already open or a new one. The board also shows notes waiting in your other open tabs, each tagged with how many, and the toolbar icon shows how many notes the page you are on has.

For more on how Lite works on any website, see how to put a sticky note on a web page in Chrome.

Where TackNote Lite falls short on YouTube

• No timestamps. As above, a note belongs to the video, not a moment in it.
• The address has to match. A note is filed under the video's address, and parts such as a start time (&t=) or a position in a playlist (&index=) count as part of it. Open the same video from a link that starts partway in, or from inside a playlist, and its note may not show on the page. It is still on the board, where search finds it by its text or the video's title.
• Do not use All versions of this page on YouTube. Lite offers it for pages whose address has options, so a note can stay on a shop page when you pick another size. Every YouTube video shares the address youtube.com/watch, so on YouTube that setting would put the note on every video. Keep YouTube notes on This page.
• Not over full screen video. A note sits on the page. When the video goes full screen, the player fills the screen and the note is out of view until you leave full screen.
• One computer, one Chrome. Notes are kept in Chrome on your computer, with no account and no sync. To move them, save a backup in Settings and restore it on the other computer. Lite does not run in Incognito windows, and there is no phone version.

Which one to choose

• You want to jump back to moments in a lecture or course: an extension built for timestamped video notes. See When you need timestamps.
• You write long notes to keep, edit or share: a notes app or a document, with the video's link at the top.
• You need the notes on your phone or in another browser too: a notes app that syncs. Lite keeps notes in Chrome on one computer.
• You want a short note waiting on each video, on a few videos: TackNote Lite, inside its 25 free notes.
• You want a note on each video, and on lots of them: TackNote Lite with the $4.99 unlock, once, for unlimited notes.

Lite also works on other sites, so the same habit carries over to product pages, recipes and documentation. If you are comparing note extensions in general, our guide to picking a sticky notes Chrome extension covers what to check before you install one, and what you get free explains how the 25 free notes are counted. On a Chromebook, see sticky notes on a Chromebook.

Questions

Can you take notes on a YouTube video in Chrome?

Yes, with an extension. Extensions built for video notes let you save timestamps and jump back to them. TackNote Lite puts a sticky note on the video's page instead, so each video keeps its own note and shows it when you open that video again.

Does TackNote Lite add timestamps to YouTube notes?

No. A TackNote Lite note belongs to the video's page, not to a moment in it. If you need notes that jump to a time in the video, use an extension built for timestamped video notes.

Will a note show when you open the same video from a playlist?

Not always. TackNote Lite files a note under the video's address, which includes parts such as a start time or a position in a playlist. If the address differs, the note stays on the board in your toolbar, where search finds it by its text or the video's title.

Is TackNote Lite free?

Your first 25 notes are free, for life. After that, a one-time $4.99 unlock gives unlimited notes. A TackNote for Mac or Windows license does not unlock Lite.