How we're updating the YouTube Shorts experience
New updates are bringing a cleaner, more intuitive experience to YouTube Shorts.
Jun 25, 2026 [[read-time]] minute read
The way viewers watch and interact with short-form video has evolved since YouTube Shorts launched over five years ago. You've told us what works and what could be better, and we're using that feedback to create a more intuitive Shorts experience. Starting today, you'll see a few updates rolling out over time to the Shorts player.
Less distraction, more focus
Sometimes you just want to watch a video without overlays getting in the way. We're introducing a new Clear Screen mode that temporarily hides all icons and text from your playback view. This strips away the clutter, giving you an immersive, distraction-free view of the content.
Watch your way
We know you value your time, and speed settings have been one of the most requested features from the Shorts community. You can now double the playback speed on a Short to absorb information more quickly or find your favorite part faster. Plus, for moments when you can't have the volume on, you can now easily mute by tapping the screen to pause, then tapping the mute icon to silence the audio. For more control over your Shorts experience, you also have the option to set the Shorts timer, including to zero.
More precise ways to curate your feed
You'll also notice some changes to how you interact with videos. First, we're introducing the ❤️ icon to replace the thumbs-up, providing a more meaningful way to express when a video truly connects with you.
To shape a better feed for you, we're also retiring the dislike button. Instead, we’ll rely on our more precise controls, “Not Interested” and “Don’t recommend this channel,” to more accurately tune your feed and serve up content you’ll love. These options give you more control over what you see and allow us to better understand your genuine preferences, especially since you've shown us that “disliking” a video could mean anything from “poor audio quality” to simply “not my cup of tea.” You can of course always still report a video if you believe it may violate our Community Guidelines.
We’re excited to bring you a more intuitive Shorts experience — try it out and let us know what you think!