YouTube Premium

YouTube Premium is a paid subscription service that removes advertisements from all YouTube videos, enables background playback on mobile devices, and provides offline downloads. It also bundles a full YouTube Music Premium subscription. The service originated in November 2014 as Music Key, a pilot focused on ad-free music videos. In October 2015, it expanded to cover all video content under the name YouTube Red, which also included exclusive original programming. The current branding, YouTube Premium, was adopted in June 2018, at which point YouTube Music became a separate but bundled offering.

As of March 2025, YouTube Music and Premium together have over 125 million subscribers, including trial users. This represents a small fraction of YouTube's 2.5 billion monthly active users. The service generates revenue beyond advertising, and its subscriber base continues to grow. In early 2025, YouTube introduced Premium Lite, a lower-cost tier that removes ads from most videos but excludes music content, offline downloads, and background playback. Pricing in the United States as of 2026 is $15.99 per month for the individual plan, $26.99 for the family plan (up to six members in the same household), $8.99 for students, and $8.99 for Premium Lite.

YouTube Premium works across web browsers, iOS and Android apps, smart TVs, gaming consoles, and streaming devices. Downloads are available on mobile and remain accessible for up to 30 days without an internet connection. Background playback functions only on mobile. The family plan requires all members to live at the same residential address, enforced through periodic IP address checks. The service originally included YouTube Originals, exclusive shows and movies produced with top creators, though much of that content has since been made available on the free tier with ads. [edit]