There’s a Better Way to Watch YouTube on iPhone (Without the Algorithm or Shorts)

YouTube is a bit of a mess right now. It is far from being as bad as Instagram or Tiktok on this forehead, but it is always easy to lose hours to scroll the videos and YouTube shorts on your recommendation flow. The algorithm will bring you at some point, no matter how much you are trying. But there is an alternative. A healthier way to watch youtube videos that you really want to watch, without having sucked up in the black YouTube hole in the recommended content.

The answer you have sought is a third party to a subsequent application like Play. Reading is not a fully functional YouTube client (Google has made sure to finish all these), but it is actually a good thing. You use the application to find and sort the videos you really want to watch, without bothering yourself with the algorithm. No comments, no flow, and yes, there is also an option to deactivate shorts.

Gather all your YouTube videos using the Play app

The Play application can help you create your own Playlist later distinct from YouTube itself. There is no YouTube connection here. You are free to record videos with several tags or files. The goal is to build an interesting YouTube videos queue that you can watch as you wish, and with intention.

The Play app is supported on Mac, iPhone and iPad. And there is also an Apple TV application to consult all your recorded videos. The Play app is delivered with an integrated extension so that you can easily add any YouTube video to the application. You can also simply stick in the video link to add the video to the reading application.

Credit: Khamosh Pathak

When adding a video to read, you can also tag it so that all your Tyrant The frenzy sessions remain organized (as they should).

Recorded videos will appear in the New case. Press a video to open the detailed view, where you can see the description, transcription and all other details. There is also an option to start video playback, so you don’t need to count on the YouTube application to watch your recorded content.

And yes, you can also make full screen videos. If you have Premium YouTube, you can also connect your account to play to get rid of ads and activate the image in the situation, under Parameters > Video player > Connect the YouTube account.

And that’s it. A simpler and calmer YouTube experience, devoid of shorts and algorithmic flow.

Playing Premium allows you to subscribe in the application

The Play base application costs only $ 3 and can be a great way to find youtube videos online, then save them to watch later (maybe on the Apple TV). But the Play Premium subscription ($ 20 / year) goes further, allowing you to subscribe to your favorite channels in the application.

Credit: Khamosh Pathak

There is a dedicated channel reception box where you can go through all the new videos of your subscribed channels. You can subscribe to the channels by looking for them or by important your full subscription flow using Google Takeout. There is also an option to automatically add all videos of a channel to your later list, although it can be a little extreme for most channels – I would not recommend it. Playing Premium users can also activate an option to deactivate shorts in the channel reception box.

Alternatively, you can also check Undused for YouTubewhich is a free and open source YouTube watch application. The application is much simpler, but the interface is quite chaotic. It is not as polite or transparent as the reading application. However, Unduched also allows you to subscribe to YouTube flows and allows you to create your own queue of videos to be consumed outside the YouTube application, all free of charge. And if you are on Android, see the NewPipe application instead.

Update 08/08/2025 at 11:02 am: A previous version of this article said that the game could deactivate advertisements without premium YouTube subscription. It was corrected.