YouTube Embeds: Error 153. Video player configuration error

If you’re seeing “Error 153. Video player configuration error” when trying to embed YouTube videos, you’re encountering YouTube’s relatively new requirement for embedded players to include a referrer policy.

The fix

Add referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" to your YouTube embed iframe:

<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xxxxx" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin"></iframe>

That’s it. The video should now load without errors.

Why this is required

YouTube updated their embedded player requirements to ensure proper client identification. The referrerpolicy attribute allows YouTube to receive the necessary referrer information while maintaining privacy by only sending the origin when navigating to less secure destinations.

Without this attribute, YouTube’s player can’t verify the embedding context and returns Error 153.

Full example

Here’s a complete iframe embed with the required attribute:

<iframe
  width="560"
  height="315"
  src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xxxxx"
  referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin"
  allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture"
  allowfullscreen>
</iframe>

This requirement applies to all YouTube embeds, so make sure to include the referrerpolicy attribute going forward.