Getting a YouTube Premium membership means you get a host of premium features and benefits that you can use to get the best out of your watching experience. But as a new member, you might be overwhelmed with all the new features thrown at you. Here are some of the top Premium features you do not want to miss.
1 Play Videos Whenever, However
The best benefit you get from your YouTube Premium subscription is the ability to watch ad-free videos however you want. You can download all your videos to your library and watch them offline. You can also go one step further and get acquainted with Smart Downloads, which lets YouTube add its recommended videos to your library and download them for you.
To turn on Smart Downloads, tap on your profile picture in the YouTube app. Go to Settings > Downloads > Smart Downloads and toggle on “Turn on Smart Downloads.” You can also adjust your download quality from here.
Watching videos whenever is not only restricted to when you are not connected to the internet. With your YouTube Premium subscription, you can also take advantage of the picture-in-picture (PiP) feature, which lets you play your videos and exit the YouTube app. You can finish an entire video essay and scroll through your Instagram feed simultaneously, which is a multitasking dream.
2 Device Integration
You can also watch YouTube videos wherever you want with smart device integration. Beyond the YouTube app, you can stream videos on any device that has access to YouTube. This includes any smart TV, game console, and streaming device that lets you sign onto the YouTube app.
As long as your web browser supports YouTube, you can also use all your Premium benefits through a web browser. Supported browsers include:
- Google Chrome
- Safari
- Microsoft Edge
- Opera
- Mozilla Firefox
For audio, you can use Chromecast or Google Cast-connected audio devices to play music from the YouTube Music app. To play videos through Chromecast, sign in to YouTube Premium from a mobile device and click on the Chromecast icon. You can now browse and select videos from your phone and watch them on a bigger screen.
3 Control How You Watch Videos
Apart from ad-free playback and downloads, your YouTube Premium membership gives you the power to do something super convenient when you pause a video you are watching. You can continue your viewing where you left off easily, not only on your original device but also on any device that you have signed in to with your Premium account. This seamless integration ties in with the smart device integration that you get with your membership.
One more thing you can do with your Premium membership is jump ahead to important parts of a video when you fast-forward (by double-tapping) a video. This jump-ahead button lets you skip to the next point in a video that most users usually jump to.
Premium Jump is not available for all YouTube videos. It is also not available for YouTube Shorts, premieres, live streams, and licensed content such as music, movies, and shows.
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Another Premium benefit you get to use when you watch videos is the ability to queue videos. Although this is a feature you can only use on your mobile and tablet devices, it is a good addition to your uninterrupted watching experience.
You can set up a queue and add videos without pausing or closing the video you are watching.
To further customize the way you watch YouTube videos, you can access a range of Premium settings such as video quality preferences, background play, and downloads by going to Settings > Additional Settings > Premium Controls on the mobile app.
5 Chat With your Favorite Artists
A hidden benefit of your YouTube Premium membership that you might not be aware of is access to exclusive content. These Premium-only afterparties are essentially live streams with your favorite artists, where you can also watch a video feed and live chat.
Beyond viewing these afterparties and live chats while they are being streamed, as a Premium member, you can also get access to the archive of these afterparties. You can watch replays of past streams that you might have missed, and if you want to view and delete your live chat messages, you can do so even if you stop subscribing to YouTube Premium.
6 Stream Your Favorite Movies and Music
This one caught me by surprise. When I first got my YouTube Premium subscription, I was only expecting the usual: ad-free videos and downloads. But you get the added benefit of free, ad-free movies with your monthly subscription. Although the options are restricted, you still get a good collection to browse through.
The easiest way to access your free movies is to go to your profile > Your Premium Benefits and scroll to “Discover your next favorite movie.” From here, you can discover a range of free movies. You can also go to Explore > Movies & TV and browse through the extensive catalog to pick out free movies and shows.
With your Premium subscription, you can also get the YouTube Music app and enjoy ad-free songs that you can download, sort into playlists, and create radio stations from. Your music preferences on YouTube are neatly categorized into a library that you can use just like any other music streaming app. You can also use samples in the YouTube Music app to discover new music beyond the videos you watch, among other interesting things.
7 Treat Yourself to a Badge
Another perk you get as a Premium member is building your collection of Premium badges. You get to earn badges for a range of milestones you reach as a Premium member, such as listener badges for the number of hours you streamed music. You can also get badges for how many afterparties you watch, your PiP usage, and the number of downloaded videos.
To view your Premium badges, click on your profile picture in the app > Your Premium Benefits > Premium Badges.
You will stop earning badges related to Premium benefits if you pause your watch history and also lose access to previously earned badges if you reset your history.
If you are on the individual YouTube Premium plan, you will be paying a $13.99/month subscription. But there are some more plans you can check out if you want to save costs:
- Annual Plan: $139.99/year
- Family Plan: $22.99/month (add up to five family members aged above 13 years)
- Student Plan: $7.99/month
