How to Disable Autoplay Videos on YouTube's Android App Home Feed

YouTube recently introduced autoplay videos on its Android app home feed, which can be frustrating for many users. As you scroll through your subscriptions and recommendations, videos start playing automatically—muted, with subtitles enabled.

This mimics the preview hover effect on desktop, but on mobile, it plays silently with captions, letting you sample content without sound.

While some appreciate quick previews to decide on full videos, common complaints include:

• Data usage if not restricted to Wi-Fi.
• Need to scroll back to the start for audio when watching fully.
• Battery drain from constant playback.
• Crucially, lingering over 10 seconds adds it to your watch history, skewing recommendations.

These unintended history entries can disrupt your personalized feed based on brief scrolls.

Steps to Disable Autoplay in the YouTube App

Fortunately, disabling it or limiting to Wi-Fi is straightforward:

1. Tap your profile picture in the top-right corner.
2. Select Settings > Autoplay > Autoplay on home screen.
3. Choose Off to disable completely, or Wi-Fi only to protect mobile data.

Though this feature isn't for everyone, the YouTube Android app offers many powerful tools. For more, check out The Best YouTube Tips and Tricks for Android.