How to Make a Ringtone From a YouTube Song

For a huge number of people, YouTube is where they first hear — and go back to hear again — a song: official music videos, audio uploaded by record labels, covers, remixes, or that live version that isn't on any streaming service. If there's a song on YouTube you want to turn into a ringtone, the process always starts the same way: getting the audio as an MP3.

How to make a ringtone from YouTube step by step

1. Find the video on YouTube and copy its link (Share → Copy link, or the URL from the address bar).
2. Paste it into PullVid's YouTube to MP3 converter.
3. Download the full MP3 of the song.
4. Trim the clip you want to use (15-30 seconds, usually the chorus).
5. Set it as your ringtone from your phone's settings.

Trimming and setting it as a ringtone depend on your system: on iPhone it's done with GarageBand (free), and on Android you can set the MP3 directly from Settings → Sound. You'll find the full step-by-step detail in how to make a ringtone on iPhone and how to make a ringtone on Android.

What kind of YouTube video works

Any public video: an official music video, a song uploaded to a music channel, a cover, a live performance, or even a movie or show's soundtrack if it's published as a video. PullVid extracts the audio from the video exactly as published, so if the video has background noise or applause from a live show, the MP3 will include it too; for the cleanest audio possible, pick the official music video or audio if one exists.

Where to find the cleanest audio for the ringtone

If a song has several versions uploaded to YouTube, the ringtone's result changes quite a bit depending on which one you pick. The official music video or the "official audio" that labels upload usually has the best sound quality, without crowd noise or overlapping voices. Live shows and performances are harder to trim well because the chorus can stretch out, shift pitch from the original, or overlap with the crowd shouting. If you're after the sound closest to what you remember, always favor the artist's or label's official channel over fan uploads or homemade concert recordings.

MP3 or M4A: which to pick for a ringtone

YouTube internally separates audio as M4A, the native format the platform itself uses for its sound tracks. For making a ringtone it doesn't matter which you pick: MP3 is the more universal option and works on Android without any extra step; M4A has the advantage of being exactly the format iOS uses for its ringtones (the .m4r extension GarageBand exports is, technically, a renamed M4A), although GarageBand handles the conversion transparently either way. For more detail on the difference, check MP3 vs M4A.

Copyrighted songs: what you can do

The vast majority of music on YouTube is copyrighted, and that doesn't change just because you turn it into a ringtone: continuing to use it on your own phone, without distributing the file, falls within the personal use tolerated in most countries, the same as recording a song off the radio decades ago. What you can't do is redistribute the MP3, upload it to another platform, or use it commercially.

How much of the video to trim

15 to 30 seconds is the range that works best as a ringtone, and it's worth picking a section that starts with impact: the first bar of the chorus, the opening drum hit, or the song's most recognizable line, not a silence or a slow intro. If the video is an interview or a podcast instead of music, pick the wittiest or most memorable line instead of a random clip; the goal is that you recognize which video the sound comes from as soon as your phone starts ringing.

If you'd rather make the ringtone from another platform

If the sound you want to use is on TikTok instead of YouTube, the process is the same but with the TikTok to MP3 converter; you'll find the specific guide at how to make a ringtone from a TikTok sound. And if you want the full overview of the process without focusing on a specific platform, check the general guide how to make a free ringtone.