(Credit: Thomas Fuller/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Sick of YouTube Shorts? A new setting lets you remove them from the mobile app almost entirely.
YouTube’s time management tools have let you set a Shorts limit since October to discourage constant scrolling, with options of 15, 30, 45 minutes, or an hour or two. Now, it’s rolling out an option for zero minutes.
In January, YouTube introduced its first zero option within its parental control features. In new comments to The Verge, YouTube has confirmed it’s now offering it to all customers and that it's rolling out now.
One PCMag reporter found the new option live in the iOS app, while another found it wasn't yet available on Android. YouTube assures users it's rolling out to the latest versions of both its Android and iOS apps now.
To find the feature, head to Settings > Time Management > Daily Limits, toggle it on, then select the top option for zero minutes. This feature won’t turn off Shorts entirely, but it will make them harder to find.
(Credit: Jibin Joseph/YouTube)Turning it on lets you watch any clips sent by friends or found while searching on YouTube. For example, they’ll continue to appear in your subscription feed from channels you follow, and you’ll be able to watch them one at a time.
You won’t be able to scroll down to refresh to a new video; instead, you'll see a notification that says, “You reached your Shorts feed limit,” encouraging you to head back to the homepage. If you want to keep watching, there’s an ignore limit button.
This setting also stops Shorts from being recommended on your home screen, removing the horizontal scrolling bar of videos near the top of your recommendations page and the Shorts tab from the left-hand sidebar.
Time management tools for YouTube aren't available on desktop or TVs, so they won't work there. If you're keen to remove them from your desktop, there are third-party tools, such as Chrome extensions, that can help, but they won't work as smoothly as YouTube's own option on mobile.
This new time limit is useful for users who've grown frustrated with Shorts. Recent new features have seen YouTube introduce deepfake tools to let users make AI-generated clips that replicate themselves. The brand has also recently increased its price for Premium subscribers, raising the monthly cost to $15.99.