How to Embed a Video on a Website (Any Platform)

The three ways to put video on a website

Method 1: embed a YouTube or Vimeo video

Open the video, click Share → Embed, copy the iframe and paste it into an HTML or embed block on your site. To make it responsive, wrap it in a container with aspect-ratio: 16 / 9. Our free YouTube embed code generator and Vimeo embed generator do this for you and add options like autoplay and loop.

Method 2: host the file and use the video tag

For short clips — a hero loop, a product spin — upload an MP4 (H.264 video, AAC audio) to your hosting or CDN and use the HTML5 video element. Add controls, a poster image and preload="metadata" so the page stays fast. Our HTML video tag guide covers every attribute.

Method 3: add a video gallery

When you have more than one video — a channel, a playlist, testimonials, Shorts and Reels — embedding them one by one gets messy. A video gallery widget pulls them from their source, keeps them up to date and shows them in a grid, carousel or player with playlist.

The no-code way

Connect YouTube, Vimeo, TikTok, Instagram Reels, Twitch or hosted videos, pick a layout and paste one code.

Try Elfsight Video Gallery

Step-by-step for your platform

Make embedded video fast

• Lazy-load videos below the fold.

• Use a poster image instead of loading the player immediately.

• Keep autoplaying clips short, muted and compressed.

• Don’t host long videos on your own server — use YouTube, Vimeo or a video CDN.

More in How to optimize video for your website.