YouTube on iOS

Watch videos on iOS

Touch a thumbnail to begin playing a video. Touch the menu icon in the video player to access additional viewing options.

Viewing options

Full screen: To play the video in full screen, touch the full screen icon or rotate your device horizontally.
Video quality: The app automatically adjusts the quality of your video stream based on the speed of your Internet connection. To manually adjust the video quality, touch > while you’re connected to a Wi-Fi network. Manual quality selection over cellular networks is not supported.
Captions: Enable captions on a video by selecting > CC on a video. Not all videos may have closed captioning available.

Watch while browsing

Minimize the video to navigate the app without missing a single moment of the video you’re currently watching. This way, you can browse suggestions, playlists, and more without pausing or stopping the video.

Minimize and maximize the player: Swipe down to minimize the video player and continue navigating the app. Swipe upwards on the minimized video to maximize it again.
Dismiss the player: Swipe left to right if you no longer want to view the minimized video.

See how to minimize or dismiss videos

Paid content on iOS mobile devices

You can watch YouTube paid content on iPhone, iPad, and iPod through the YouTube app for iOS. Please note that this YouTube app is not available on Apple TV at this time.

Music Key

At this time, YouTube Music Key features are not available on the YouTube app for iPhone and iPad.

Movies and TV shows

Movies and shows purchased through YouTube are available for viewing on the YouTube app on your iOS device. Please ensure that you have the latest version of the YouTube app installed on your device. To access your movies and shows, sign into the YouTube app, swipe to reveal the menu, touch your account name, then select Purchases. To search for and purchase new movies and shows to watch, please sign into youtube.com on your computer or request the desktop version on your iOS device’s browser.

Live events

Live events purchased through YouTube are available for viewing on the YouTube app on your iOS device. Please ensure that you have the latest version of the YouTube app installed on your device. To access your live events, sign into the YouTube app, swipe to reveal the menu, touch your account name, then select Purchases.

Paid channels

You can watch videos from any paid channels that you’ve subscribed to through the YouTube app. Please ensure that you have the latest version of the YouTube app installed on your device. To access your subscriptions, sign into the YouTube app, swipe to reveal the menu, then select the channel of your choice under Channels.

Please sign into youtube.com on your TV’s internet browser or on your computer for other actions, such as purchasing and subscribing to a paid channel or canceling an existing subscription payment.

Troubleshoot playing videos in the iOS app

You may experience poor video quality — slow loading, buffering or choppy playback — due to a number of factors, such as issues with your Internet Service Provider (ISP), number of connected users/devices, your hardware/software, your internet connection, or problems with the video itself.

Adjust video quality

The app automatically adjusts the quality of your video stream based on the speed of your Internet connection. Manually lowering the video quality may help to resolve playback errors or streaming issues.

Manually adjust video quality: Touch > on a video while connected to a Wi-Fi network. Manual quality selection over cellular networks is not supported.

Settings: Adjust your HD playback settings by going to > Settings > Play HD on Wi-Fi only.

Retry playback or restart the video

If you see an error prompting you to “Touch to retry,” touch the player one or more times to force it to refresh. Otherwise, follow the steps below to restart a video:

Swipe down to minimize the video.
Swipe to the right to dismiss the video.
Find and select the video again.

See how to minimize or dismiss videos

Force the app to close or restart your device

Forcing the app to close or restarting your device may help to solve playback issues. See the links below to learn how to perform these steps on your iOS device:

Check for the latest system updates

Make sure your device is updated with the latest version of iOS. To learn how to check for the latest software updates, visit support.apple.com.

Upload videos

You can upload videos to YouTube in a few easy steps. Below you can find the necessary instructions to upload your videos from a computer or from a mobile device.

iOS

You can upload videos from your iOS device directly from the YouTube app. Make sure you have the latest version of the YouTube iOS app installed. Follow the steps below:

Sign in to YouTube.
Open the Guide in the upper left corner of the screen and navigate to My Channel (or directly touch theUpload icon on the guide.)
Touch the Upload icon at the top of the screen
Select the video you want to upload from your Camera roll and touch the confirmation btn.
Adjust the title, description, tags and privacy settings of your video.
Touch the Upload icon .

Tip: Go to Settings > Uploads to modify the type of connection used to upload videos. Use this setting to restrict uploads to Wi-Fi only.

You can also upload videos to YouTube from the YouTube Capture app or directly from the iOS Photos app. For more information about using YouTube Capture, visit the YouTube Capture help topic.

*If you’re having trouble signing in, make sure you’re using the email address associated with your YouTube account.

If you recently connected your channel with a Google+ page, learn how to upload videos to your channel.

Music on YouTube

We’ve created a series of new features to help you enjoy the huge collection of music on YouTube. These features make it easy to find high quality music from your favorite musicians and to discover new music on YouTube.

Your Music homepage

Your Music homepage is designed to be your destination for all things music. On your personalized page, you can easily replay music you’ve already listened to and find recommendations based on the music you like. You can find your Music page on your phone, tablet, or computer.

Music cards in search

Music cards are a collection of tracks by artist, album, or genre. Music cards are a great way to listen to full albums or find the official videos from your favorite artists.

You’ll find music cards in the results for your music related searches across platforms.

YouTube Mix

A YouTube Mix is a nonstop playlist inspired by a song or video you like. You can find YouTube Mixes:

In search results
On Music cards
In the Suggested section on certain watch pages

Enjoying the YouTube Mix you’re listening to? Click the

icon and we’ll save the playlist in your Guide so you can easily listen to it again later.

Control YouTube on TV with your phone, tablet, or computer

Connect over Wi-Fi

If you’re using a supported TV or game console, your phone, tablet, or computer will connect to your TV automatically when both devices are on the same Wi-Fi network. Touch or click the icon to select the display on which your video will play.

If your TV or game console supports connecting over Wi-Fi, your device will be visible on the Connected TVs screen on your phone, tablet, or computer. It isn’t possible to remove devices connected over Wi-Fi from your Connected TVs list.

Manual pairing

If you’re unable to connect over Wi-Fi, you can manually pair your TV with your second device.

Step 1: Find the pairing code

Launch YouTube on your TV or game console.
Navigate to Settings.
Scroll to the Pair device screen.

Step 2: Enter the pairing code

iOS

Launch the YouTube iOS app.
Go to Settings.
Select Connected TVs.
Enter the pairing code shown on your TV or game console.

Remove or edit a connected TV

Remove or edit a Connected TV by returning to the pairing screen on your mobile device or computer.

On your computer, go to youtube.com and click Settings > Connected TVs to remove or edit a TV.
On iOS, touch Settings > Connected TVs and touch Connected TVs again to remove or edit a TV.
On Android, touch Menu > Settings > Connected TVs > Edit TVs to remove or edit a TV.
On the mobile site, touch Settings > Connect to TV > My TVs to remove or edit a TV.

To remove all paired devices from your connected TV, go to Settings > Delete > OK.

Send to TV

After connecting your phone, tablet, or computer to your YouTube TV or game console app, click or touch the icon to select the display on which your video will play. Use the video controls on your paired device to play, pause, stop or seek within the video.

If you’re looking for information about casting from YouTube with Chromecast, visit the Chromecast help center.

Add videos to TV queue

While a video is playing on your TV or game console, you can add additional videos the the TV queue without interrupting playback.

On iOS, touch a video and select +TV Queue.
On Android, touch a video and select +TV Queue.
On the mobile site, touch +Add to TV Queue.
On youtube.com, select a video and then click +TV Queue

View your TV queue

On iOS, maximize the video player and touch TV queue.
On Android, maximize the video player and touch TV queue.
On the mobile site, the TV queue will appear in the guide.
On youtube.com, the TV queue will appear on the right side of your screen while casting.

Remove videos TV queue

On iOS, open the TV queue and touch Remove from TV Queue.
On Android, open the TV queue and touch Remove from TV Queue.
On the mobile site, touch TV queue in the guide. Touch X in the video’s thumbnail.
On youtube.com, hover over the video in the TV queue and click the X in the upper right. To clear your entire TV queue, click and then select Remove all.

Learn how to manage your connected TVs.

YouTube app & YouTube.com

Chromecast requires YouTube app version 4.5.17 or higher on Android or version 1.4 or higher on iOS. To update to the latest version, please visit Google Play or the Apple App Store.

To cast from www.youtube.com, you must have the cast extension installed on your Chrome Browser.

Watching your favorite YouTube videos on your TV has never been easier. To cast from YouTube to your TV:

Find a video you want to watch and press the the Cast btn. On the YouTube app, the Cast btn will be in the top right-hand corner. From youtube.com on your laptop, it is in the bottom right of the player.
Select your Chromecast from the dropdown menu and wait for your video to start playing on your TV.

Note: The Cast btn in the youtube.com player on your laptop functions differently than the Google Cast extension on your Chrome Browser. See Google Cast-enabled vs. Casting a Tab to learn more.

You may continue to use your phone or tablet to perform other tasks while your video is playing. To play, pause, or navigate with the scrollbar, use your device as you normally would to control playback. If you want to ‘cast’ the video back to your phone and tablet, simply press the ‘Cast’ btn once more, and select your phone or tablet from the list of available devices.

Playing multiple videos back-to-back

While watching a video, you can add more videos to your TV queue by selecting Add to TV queue on your mobile device or desktop. To see your TV queue, click YouTube logo which functions as a back btn until you see TV queue. Any device that is connected to your Wi-Fi network can cast videos and add to the TV queue. You can read more about this featurehere.

Please note:

Some videos may not play using Chromecast. Live content and videos not approved for mobile playback will not work with Chromecast.
Because YouTube uses adaptive bitrate streaming, videos may appear lower quality at first, then will switch to the highest possible quality after a few seconds. If the video does not buffer at playback speed, the video will be downgraded to a lower quality setting, allowing for smoother playback.
Casting from YouTube is supported from the YouTube app, YouTube.com, and most embedded YouTube videos.

If you’re having trouble, please try our Chromecast Troubleshooting tips here.