For business owners looking to develop an online video presence, the search might ultimately come down to two solutions: Vimeo vs. YouTube. While both offer high-quality options with monetization opportunities, YouTube is the better solution for most businesses.
There are various reasons most businesses should choose YouTube over Vimeo, starting with its unbelievably large user base. When it comes to video, there’s nothing more significant than YouTube. It’s also part of the most used search engine on the planet, Google, making it that much easier for would-be customers to find online content. There are other reasons to choose YouTube over Vimeo, and areas where picking the latter might be the better choice for some. Here’s a brief look at Vimeo vs. YouTube for business.
Where YouTube Shines
Let’s focus on the six areas where YouTube bests Vimeo: User count, search optimization, cost, mobile opportunities, storage, and monetization.
User Count
According to Oberlo, there are now 2.3 billion monthly active YouTube users, making it the second-largest social network worldwide behind only Facebook. By comparison, Vimeo has a global community of 200 million users. YouTube’s count undeniably provides a massive and engaging market that individuals and companies alike can tap into with relative ease.
Search Optimization
Search is another area where there’s not even a contest between the two video solutions. Backed by Google, YouTube is the second largest search provider, standing only behind its parent company. This one-two punch makes it more likely that YouTube content finds an audience, depending on the search query.
Cost
YouTube remains a complimentary product for individuals and businesses alike. However, though Vimeo offers a free basic plan, most bells and whistles require a paid package aimed at businesses.
Mobile Opportunities
Not surprisingly, the majority of YouTube users are now consuming videos through mobile devices. By one count, 70% of YouTube videos get viewed through smartphones, tablets, and similar devices. These impressive numbers give businesses more opportunities for discovery and reach.
Storage
When it comes to technology products, free often means dealing with restrictions. That’s not the case with YouTube, which offers unlimited, free storage for all account holders. At Vimeo, freebie customers get 500MB of storage per week, which wasn’t enough a decade ago for most creatives, let alone in 2021. As a result, Vimeo customers must open up their wallets for more storage, a proposition that’s costly to smaller organizations.
Monetization and Analytics
YouTube offers a robust ad platform that’s easy to manage thanks to its user-friendly interface. Over at Vimeo, content creators do not have the option to earn money via ads. YouTube also rates well when it comes to site analytics. Vimeo does offer similar tools; however, feature-by-feature, those cost extra.
Where Vimeo Scores
There are a few areas where Vimeo surpasses YouTube, including video and audio quality and access to support.
Higher Quality Video and Audio
A late 2020 report by Audio Network confirmed what most already knew about YouTube — it compresses video much more than the competition. Therefore, Vimeo’s pictures generally appear more clear and vivid. Sound quality is also better on Vimeo, although (once again) the best experience is reserved for paying customers.
Support
Vimeo also tends to do a better job of providing technical support, both in terms of online documentation and levels of one-on-one support. There’s also a robust support community that can assist as well. At YouTube, help is generally limited to documentation, which, for many, is all that’s needed.
