How to Host Private Videos

The Problem

YouTube's "unlisted" videos are not private — anyone with the link can watch, share, and embed them, and there is no access control beyond URL obscurity. Private videos on YouTube are limited to 50 Google accounts and cannot be embedded at all. Vimeo offers password protection, but its bandwidth caps mean high-traffic private content triggers surprise upsells. Enterprise platforms like Panopto ($7,500/yr minimum) and Kaltura (opaque pricing, complex setup) solve the privacy problem but are overkill for teams that just need secure, shareable video without a six-month procurement process.

What You Need

• Password protection that gates playback before the video loads, not just hides the URL
• Signed URLs with expiration for programmatic access control
• Domain locking so embeds only play on authorized sites
• Non-guessable URLs by default, not opt-in security
• No data mining of viewer behavior by the hosting provider

How to Do It with host.video

Step 1: Upload your video

Upload any format via drag-and-drop or TUS resumable upload. Every video gets a non-guessable ULID-based URL by default.

Step 2: Set access rules

Enable password protection, signed URLs, domain locking, IP allowlists, or country restrictions — individually or in combination.

Step 3: Share or embed

Share the direct link (password-gated) or embed the iframe on authorized domains. Viewers see a clean password prompt, not a third-party login screen.

Step 4: Monitor access

Track who views your content, when, and from where. Server-side analytics capture every play without client-side scripts.

Why This Matters

Private video is not a niche use case — it covers training, investor updates, client deliverables, internal announcements, and anything you would not put on a public page. The gap between YouTube (not actually private) and enterprise platforms (expensive and complex) is where most teams get stuck. A platform that is private by default, simple to configure, and priced for normal businesses fills that gap.

Alternatives

YouTube unlisted is free but not actually secure — no access control, no analytics, ads on embeds. Vimeo offers password protection but enforces bandwidth caps. Panopto starts at $7,500/yr with no self-serve option. Cloudflare Stream offers signed URLs but no dashboard or password protection UI.