10 YouTube Settings That Instantly Improve Your Viewing Experience

You don’t need a subscription or secret tricks to make YouTube better. A few settings can reduce distractions, sharpen video quality, and give you more control. Here are ten that will instantly upgrade your experience.

1) Turn off autoplay in your feed

Stop YouTube from auto-playing previews you didn’t ask for.

How to do it

1. Open the YouTube app → tap your profile → Settings.
2. Go to General → Playback in feeds.
3. Set to Off.

2) Set default video quality

Keep videos looking sharp, especially on Wi-Fi.

How to do it

1. In Settings → Video quality preferences.
2. Adjust On Wi-Fi and On mobile network.
3. Choose Higher picture quality or Advanced if available.

3) Adjust double-tap skip length

Make forward/back skips match your pace.

How to do it

1. Go to Settings → Playback.
2. Tap Double-tap to seek.
3. Pick between 5s and 60s.

4) Zoom videos to fill the screen

Get rid of black bars and fill your display.

How to do it

1. While watching, tap the three-dot menu (⋮).
2. Choose Zoom to fill.
3. Note: some video edges may crop.

5) Enable Picture-in-Picture (PiP)

Keep watching while using other apps (Premium or supported devices).

How to do it

1. Go to Settings → General → Picture-in-picture.
2. Turn it on.
3. Exit the app—the video stays in a small window.

6) Control notifications

Cut spam and get only alerts you care about.

How to do it

1. Go to Settings → Notifications.
2. Toggle off alerts like Uploads, Recommended videos, or Live broadcasts.
3. For specific channels: tap the bell → choose All, Personalized, or None.

7) Pause or clear history

Reset or pause YouTube’s algorithm.

How to do it

1. In Settings → History & privacy.
2. Tap Pause watch history or Clear watch history.
3. Optional: Pause search history too.

8) Use Restricted Mode

Filter out mature or unwanted content.

How to do it

1. Go to Settings → General → Restricted Mode.
2. Toggle it on.
3. On some devices, enforce under Account → Restrictions.

9) Customize captions & subtitles

Make subtitles easier to read your way.

How to do it

1. Open Settings → Captions (on mobile or desktop).
2. Adjust font size, style, and background color.
3. Save and subtitles will follow your preferences.

10) Download videos for offline viewing

Perfect for travel or when you don’t have stable internet (Premium only).

How to do it

1. Tap the Download button under a video.
2. Choose resolution.
3. Find saved videos under Library → Downloads.

✅ Quick Starter Picks

If you only tweak three today, make it these:

• Turn off autoplay in feed
• Set video quality to higher
• Control notifications