Watch time
Definition
The total minutes viewers spend watching your videos — the single metric that most influences whether YouTube promotes you.
Watch time is the total time people spend watching your content. It is the metric the algorithm cares about most: a well-optimized video with poor retention will not rank.
You earn watch time with a strong hook, tight pacing and high audience retention. Everything else — titles, thumbnails, SEO — only gets the click; watch time keeps the promotion.