How to Embed YouTube Into WordPress Sidebar

YouTube Plugins
1. Select a YouTube widget that meets your needs. 'Smart YouTube' not only allows you to display videos on your sidebar but also helps to properly insert YouTube videos into your blog posts and pages. The plugin 'YouTube' displays the current videos you've watched and uploaded in a list on a sidebar widget. 'YouTube Embed' allows you to embed videos in the sidebar using the video ID and type (either video or playlist).
2. Log in to your WordPress dashboard, and go to 'Plugins' > 'Add New.' Search for the plugin you want to install. If you want to browse alternative YouTube plugins, you can enter 'YouTube' in the search bar to find all plugins that use the phrase 'YouTube.'

3. Click 'Details' below the plugin title if you want to know more about the features. Click 'Install Now' to install the plugin. Your site will prompt you to make sure you want to install the plugin. Click 'OK' to start the installation.
4. Follow plugins instructions for adding YouTube videos to your sidebar. How this is done depends on the plugin that you use.
Embedding a Video
5. Log in to your WordPress dashboard and select 'Appearance' from the left sidebar. From the appearance options, click the 'Widgets' link. This will open the widgets options, including a widget representation of your sidebar on the farthest right side of the screen.
6. Select the 'Text' widget from under 'Available Widgets' and drag it to where you want the video to appear on your sidebar.
7. Go to the YouTube video that you wish to share, and click the 'Embed' button underneath the video. Set a custom video size that will fit on your sidebar. The exact numbers will depend on the width of your sidebar, but the minimum width is 200 pixels. YouTube will select a height based on your width so that the video will remain in scale.
8. Copy the embed code and paste it into blank text area for your 'Text' widget. You can add a header for this widget if you want, such as the name of the video.
9. Click 'Save' in the lower-right corner of your widget, and check your website to make sure the video is properly embedded and fits with your website's layout.