I use the YouTube app on my iPhone all the time, but I feel like there might be secret settings, shortcuts, or features that I’m missing out on. I want to get the most out of the app, but I’m not sure where to look or what to try. Has anyone discovered any hidden or lesser-known YouTube features for iOS? Any tips or tricks would be super helpful!
YouTube App: iPhone Tricks You Probably Didn’t Know
Okay y’all, listen up. If you’ve been doomscrolling through YouTube on your iPhone and think you’ve seen everything, trust me, you have not. Here’s that old-school list you never asked for but totally need—hidden tricks, complete with the “how” and some very (unexciting, but official) links for the doubters out there.
1. Tap to Skip Ten Seconds — The Lazy Person’s Dream
Let’s get this out of the way: YouTube on iPhone lets you double-tap the left or right sides of your video to go back or forward by 10 seconds. No more finger gymnastics with the scroll bar.
How To:
- While watching any YouTube video in landscape or portrait, tap twice fast on the video’s left side (rewind) or right (skip ahead).
- Keep tapping, it stacks!
Bonus: It works on One Republic music videos and those five-hour lectures you pretend to watch for class.
For context:
YouTube Help: Keyboard shortcuts (scroll down to Mobile app info)
2. Speed Control: When You Need Things Faster… Or Slower
I didn’t realize how useful this was until I tried to watch a guy explain the IRS tax code at 1x speed (never again).
How To:
- Tap your video. See the ellipsis (three dots) in the top right? Hit it.
- Select Playback speed.
- Pick your speed, from sloth (0.25x) to chipmunk (2x).
Wikipedia: YouTube#Video playback
3. Picture-in-Picture is Real, And It’s Not Just Hype
Ever wanted to keep listening to cat fails while, I dunno, shopping for more cat food? On iOS, you can do just that.
How To:
- While playing a video, swipe up (or press the Home bar/button). The video floats on your screen as you open other apps.
- Resize or move it around.
Note: U.S. users with YouTube Premium get this by default. Otherwise, check if Apple’s version already helps: Apple Support: Picture in Picture on iPhone
4. Quick Search With a Pinch of Witchcraft
Lost in a three-hour tutorial? Try this mad feature: Two-finger double tap to bring up a quick seek bar (basically, you time travel across the video timeline).
How To:
- Use two fingers, double tap. Boom—a zoomy seek bar appears for you to drag.
Not kidding! It’s weirdly satisfying.
5. Voice Search (Like Star Trek, But It Actually Works)
Fumbling with typing “how to fix a leaky faucet” with your thumbs? Use voice search. It’s not hidden, but it is underused.
How To:
- Open YouTube. Look for the old-school microphone icon in the search bar.
- Tap it, speak your search, and let the robots do their job.
6. Dark Mode — Save Your Eyes, Join the Cult
Bright screens and midnight binges? YouTube’s dark mode is about as chill as it gets for your retinas.
How To:
- Tap your profile picture (top right).
- Go to Settings → General → Toggle Appearance to Dark theme.
Apple: Use Dark Mode on your iPhone
Last Words
It’s wild how much these apps bake in, and most of us are tapping all wrong. Try these out, and maybe that next YouTube spiral will feel a bit more pro.
If you guys have other sneaky tricks, fire away below. Or don’t. It’s your time.
20 Likes
Honestly, I see where @mikeappsreviewer is coming from, but let’s be real — double-tap to scrub and PiP are hardly hidden at this point (though that two-finger zoom thing did catch me off guard). Anyway, here are some less-talked-about iPhone YouTube app features and quirks:
-
Stats for nerds: Want to see your current video resolution, buffer health, connection speed, etc.? Tap the three dots (⋮) > “Stats for nerds.” It’s buried, but if you’re curious about why your video looks potato quality, this’ll tell you.
-
Manage watch history on the spot: Long-press any video in your history list and you’ll get additional options (like ‘Remove from watch history’ or ‘Don’t recommend channel’). Not really hidden but super NOT obvious.
-
Swipe to switch: If you’re in fullscreen landscape, you can actually swipe left or right on the video area to jump to next/previous vids — great for those deep dive sessions.
-
Queue up videos (kinda): If you have Premium, you’ll see an ‘Add to queue’ option when you long-press a video thumbnail in the home feed or search. It won’t replace playlists, but it’s neat for short-term binge-watching.
-
Incognito mode: Not strictly a shortcut, but you can go full spy mode by tapping your profile pic and selecting ‘Turn on Incognito’. Everything you watch is then “off the record” (well, for YouTube anyway).
-
Hidden gestures for sound: Slide your finger up or down the left edge of the player for quick volume adjustment IN APP — no need to fumble for your phone buttons.
-
Subs and Quality Toggle, Fast: Don’t bother with ellipses — just tap the CC or HD icon at the top right of the video (if available) for instant subtitle & playback quality menus.
I’ll disagree a bit with voice search being “underused.” Maybe I watch too much YouTube, but I keep accidentally triggering it when I try to search by typing, which is super annoying tbh.
Also, some features only appear to Premium users (PiP, queuing, downloading videos) so don’t bang your head against the wall if you don’t see them.
If you’re big on privacy, don’t forget you can clear not just your search but also your watch history from inside the app’s Settings, and even pause it so YouTube’s algorithm stops suggesting cat videos you watched ironically “just once.”
TL;DR — the app’s less full of easter eggs and more about finding where Google hid the obvious stuff. Anyone figure out a real fix for the “Autoplay” toggle randomly resetting itself? I’d love to hear that!
Okay, interesting takes from @mikeappsreviewer and @sterrenkijker (props for the “stats for nerds” mention—I’d totally forgotten about that one…), but honestly, I think folks are still missing some of the sneaky stuff that’s not really “features” but more… glitches the Matrix forgot to fix? Like, here’s my two cents:
-
Reverse Playlist Order — If you’re marathoning a playlist and YouTube keeps auto-starting you at the latest video, just flip the playlist order: tap the playlist name, then use the “sort” button (if available). Not a secret, but you’d be amazed how many don’t notice this.
-
Chapter Navigation (not just the timeline bars): Some longform videos have creator-written chapters—open the video description and tap on those timestamps. It’s a faster jump than fiddling with the video scrubber.
-
Tap and Hold for Preview: On some thumbnails, if you press and hold (not just tap!), you’ll get a video preview without loading anything. Doesn’t work on ALL stuff, but works on trending/home tabs for a lot.
-
Willing to admit this one is not super useful, but in search results, you can long-press any recommendation and hit “Don’t recommend channel.” If you keep getting spammy junk, it finally sticks after a few times.
-
Weird but: If YouTube’s becoming an endless scroll of the same stuff, try logging out and browsing as a guest/”signed out.” You get totally different recommendations and viral stuff pops sooner. Bit of a hack, tbh.
Also, unpopular opinion: PiP is more hype than help if you have an older iPhone. Drains battery like crazy and sometimes cuts audio if you try using other apps. So if you’re Premium but your XR is melting, just stick to background audio only.
Finally, one “hidden” annoyance: YouTube’s “Remind me to take a break” and “Bedtime Reminders.” Big whoop, but useful if you’re a doomscroll victim. Dig into Settings > General and try them out. Also, nothing ruins a binge like a polite bedtime suggestion pop-up, so, y’know, choose pain or productivity.
So yeah, the app is more about “where did Google shove this now?” than true easter eggs, but hope that gives fresh angles beyond the basic double-tap and dark mode. And seriously, if anyone has cracked the code on that autoplay thing resetting, please spill.
Alright, so there’s been a lot of good tips tossed around by others, but here’s some under-the-radar gems most folks miss—and a couple gripes just for balance.
First, underrated move: you can pause YouTube search history or watch history individually. Head to Settings → History & privacy and toggle either one. Why care? If you’ve been down a deep “cringe fails 2012” hole, pausing it keeps your recs clean while you experiment.
Gesture-fiends, try pinching inward or outward on the video while in full screen—it’s not just for Instagram. It toggles between fit-to-screen and original aspect. Way easier than hunting for onscreen buttons, especially if you’re juggling nachos with the other hand.
Stats For Nerds is neat (thanks for the reminder in previous replies)—enable it by tapping the three dots menu while a video’s playing, then select it at the bottom. Gives real-time resolution, dropped frames, bandwidth, and more. Pro: Cool for network troubleshooting and curiosity. Con: Total overkill for casual viewers—think “diagnostic tool,” not entertainment.
Also, not enough mention of the new-ish “Pinch to zoom” for shorts and some regular videos. Sometimes you want a closer look at something in the video—works best on iPhone screens, arguably better than tapping the settings wheel.
And a hot take: don’t sleep on the “Queue” feature. Hold down on anything, tap “Add to queue,” and YouTube starts building a playlist-for-now. It’s not as robust as proper playlists but for party mode or background play it’s gold. Downside: queue wipes if the app reloads.
One thing I’ll side-eye the YouTube app for: Unlike YouTube on browsers, no ad-blocking extensions, and no true mini player when actually browsing other videos (unless you’re premium). That’s a trade-off versus third-party apps that often get the boot from the App Store for “violating terms,” but some like NewPipe and Vanced (Android only, RIP iOS fans) have more power-user control.
Cons: YouTube on iPhone still eats battery with PiP (not just for old models—my 13 still feels it), and the algorithm sometimes gets sticky about recommendations even after clearing history.
Pros: The official app does get updates fast, is stable, and new gestures like double-tap and pinch work smoother than on competitors.
Overall: Learn where all the toggles live in settings. There’s a whole world beyond double-tap skips and playback speed. Competing reviewers had solid lists, but the little things—pinch, queue, history controls—can change how you rabbit-hole through video land.