YouTube

What YouTube is for

YouTube is a video viewing and publishing app for people who want one place to watch, search for, and share online video. It covers music, news, education, entertainment, tutorials, gaming, live broadcasts, and creator-led channels. The app suits casual viewers as well as users who follow specific creators or publish their own videos.

Finding and watching videos

The home screen recommends videos based on viewing activity, while search helps you locate channels, topics, and individual uploads. You can subscribe to channels to keep up with new content, save videos for later, and review your watch history. Playback supports selectable video quality and captions where they are available. The Library area brings personal viewing activity and saved content together.

• Browse recommendations or search by topic, channel, or title.
• Follow channels through subscriptions.
• Use comments and live chat to take part in conversations around content.
• Continue watching content across supported devices through a connected Google account.

Tools for creators

YouTube is also designed for people making video. Depending on account access and eligibility, users can record, edit, upload, and publish content from a phone. The app supports live broadcasting and gives creators a direct way to interact with viewers through comments and other community features. It is useful for both occasional uploads and ongoing channel management.

At a glance

YouTube is developed by Google LLC and listed in Video Players & Editors. It has a 3.887391 rating from more than 168 million reviews and records 10,000,000,000+ installs. Those figures point to an app built for a very broad audience, though its large mix of recommendations, short-form clips, live content, and creator tools may feel busy if you only want a simple video player.