Thumbnail A/B testing on Shorts: tool or waste?

Thumbnail A/B testing on Shorts: tool or waste?
YouTube added native thumbnail testing, and third-party tools claim to do it. The catch for Shorts specifically.

Reality check: Shorts in the feed don't show your thumbnail at all — it only appears on your channel grid, search, and the Shorts shelf. So testing impact is partial.

Native YouTube test (free):
— Tests 3 thumbnails, picks winner by watch time
— Only meaningful for browse/search traffic

Third-party (TubeBuddy, $):
— Manual swap-and-measure, more work, no real edge

Verdict: use YouTube's free native test only if a Short is pulling real search traffic — otherwise thumbnail testing on Shorts is busywork. Never pay a third-party tool for it. Skip entirely if your views come from the feed.
Not for: feed-driven viral creators. Your thumbnail is barely seen — spend that hour on the hook.