Here's the thing about YouTube voiceovers—they're completely different from podcasts or audiobooks. With a podcast, the audio carries everything. But YouTube? Your voice is a supporting player. It's got to work with your visuals, not overshadow them. That changes basically everything about how you approach the script, voice selection, pacing, and ultimately the final export. Let me walk you through exactly how to do this right.
Getting Your Script Right
Most people make the same mistake here: they write scripts like it's pure narration. But you're not describing what's on screen—your audience can see that. You're explaining, adding context, or revealing something unexpected.
Keep your descriptions short. If you're showing a UI walkthrough, don't narrate "Here we see the dashboard with three buttons on the left." Your viewer already sees that. Instead, tell them why this matters: "This dashboard is where the magic happens—notice how it filters results in real-time?"
Use natural transitions that guide people from one idea to the next. Phrases like "Now let's dive into," "Here's where it gets interesting," or "So what does this mean for you?" feel way less stiff than formal connecting language.
The timing thing is crucial. You're not just writing dialogue—you're choreographing it with video cuts. Mark your script with rough time estimates. If you're showing a 30-second screen recording, your voiceover can't ramble for 45 seconds. Build in breathing room. Here's what that actually looks like:
[0:00-0:12] HOOK - Energetic
You're probably wasting hours every week on repetitive audio work. Watch this.
[0:12-1:45] DEMO SECTION - Steady, explanatory
When you open the app for the first time, you'll see three main features...
[1:45-2:00] TRANSITION - Slightly faster
But here's what separates this from other tools:
Your opening 10-15 seconds determines whether someone stays. Make it count. Establish why this video matters to them, right now. Your AI voice should deliver that hook with genuine energy, not a robotic read.
The rest of your video works best broken into 2-4 minute chunks. Each chunk should do one thing: introduce a concept, solve a problem, show a feature. Don't try to cram everything together. Humans get lost.
Every 30-60 seconds, shift something. A question. A pause. A change in pace. Something. Constant drone, even with a great voice, puts people to sleep.
Picking the Right Voice
This is where most creators stumble. YouTube audiences expect energy. Someone listening to an audiobook on a walk? They want soothing and consistent. Someone clicking a YouTube video? They want to feel engaged.
Look for voices with natural variation. Not robotic. Not monotone. AI voices have gotten much better at this—find one that emphasizes key words naturally and sounds genuinely interested in what it's saying.
To be honest, voice consistency builds brand recognition. If you make multiple videos, stick with the same voice. It becomes like a recognizable personality. Your audience starts to associate that voice with your channel. That's powerful. Or, if you're doing a multi-narrator tutorial, give distinct voices to different speakers—a host voice and a feature voice, maybe.
Different content deserves different voices. A software tutorial? You want clarity and patience—someone who doesn't rush. A hype-y entertainment video? You want higher energy, faster delivery, more personality. A documentary-style deep dive? Authoritative but warm. Not stiff.
Pacing Your Voiceover
YouTube typically sits at 150-180 words per minute. That's faster than an audiobook (130-150 WPM) but still easy to follow. Don't rush it.
Adjust based on what you're actually saying. A technical tutorial? Slow down to 140-160 WPM. People need time to absorb details. Entertainment content or vlogs? Speed it up to 170-190 WPM—keep the energy high. General explainers sit right in the middle at 150-170 WPM.
But don't stay locked at one pace. That's death. Slow down when you're explaining something important—give your viewer time to absorb it. Speed up when you're transitioning between ideas or moving through simpler concepts. Pause before you reveal something big. Match the rhythm to your visuals. When your video cuts to a new scene, sometimes your voiceover should match that beat.
Actually Generating the Audio
Generate in segments. This is the secret. Don't try to generate your entire script as one block.
Your opening hook? That's segment one. Generate it separately. You can deliver maximum energy when it's just those 10-15 seconds. Your main content sections? That's segment two, maybe three, depending on length. Each transition point? Its own segment. Conclusion and call-to-action? Separate.
Here's why this matters: different sections need different energy and pacing. When you generate in chunks, you can dial in each one. Listen each segment back against your video. Does your voice finish right when the visual does? Are you emphasizing at the moment the video cuts? Does it feel right?
If something's off, regenerate just that segment. You're not redoing everything. You're tweaking until it's perfect.
Then stitch them together. Brief silence between major sections—maybe half a second to a full second. Keep it minimal within flowing content. Align cuts to your visual transitions where you can.
Getting Ready for YouTube
YouTube has specs. Not crazy strict, but worth hitting.
Loudness matters. YouTube normalizes everything to -14 LUFS, so hit that target. Sample rate should be 48kHz if possible. Format-wise, AAC or high-quality MP3 (320kbps minimum) works great. Keep your peaks below -1 dB—gives you headroom, prevents clipping.
Before you export, run some light processing. Gentle compression keeps levels even. A high-pass filter removes rumble you don't want. A limiter prevents unexpected peaks. Don't go crazy—you're not mixing for a concert. You're just making sure your voiceover sounds polished and consistent.
Do a final quality check. No clipping. Volume's consistent throughout. Transitions between segments are clean. Loudness is where it should be.
A Real Example: Tutorial Video
Let's say you're doing a "5 Minute Python Setup" tutorial. Here's how this actually plays out:
Hook (0-0:15): High energy voice, energetic delivery. "Python's intimidating the first time. But in five minutes, you'll have everything set up. Here's how."
Intro section (0:15-1:30): Steady, explanatory. You're showing the website, walking through downloads. Slower pace so people can follow along. Voice should be clear and patient.
Installation section (1:30-3:45): Picking up pace slightly. You're showing the actual installation process. Voice matches the movement—faster when showing steps, slightly slower when explaining what's happening.
Verification section (3:45-4:45): Slightly energetic. You're running code, showing it works. Voice sounds satisfied, like "Yeah, look at that."
Close (4:45-5:00): Energy back up. Quick call-to-action. "Now you're ready. Let's code."
Each of those sections gets generated separately, timed to match your video, then stitched together. Your voiceover feels purposeful. It works with your visuals instead of fighting them.
The Complete Workflow
- Write your script with timing marks and emotional cues
- Pick a voice that matches your content energy level
- Set your target WPM for the type of content (150-180 is your baseline)
- Generate in logical segments, not all at once
- Listen each segment against your video and adjust
- Stitch everything together with minimal gaps
- Export at -14 LUFS, 48kHz, AAC or 320kbps MP3
Do this and you'll have YouTube voiceovers that don't feel like AI reading a script. They'll feel like someone genuinely excited about helping your audience understand something. And that's the difference between okay and actually engaging video.