YouTube

Video Players & Editors

7.4~~/10~~

Our score

★ 3.8 Google Play·10B+ installs

Reviewed by Editorial Team, ScoredApps editorial · updated 2026-09-05

Screenshots

Create menu offering a Short, an upload, a live stream or a post

Shorts feed playing a vertical clip with like and share counts

Music playlist playing with the video and track list below

Home feed filtered by topic chips across the top

About YouTube

YouTube is four products in one app: long video, Shorts, music and live streaming, with creation tools that publish any of them from the phone. It is free with advertising, and the Play listing counts more than ten billion installs and 172 million reviews — the largest sample of any app in this catalogue. Premium removes the ads, and bought inside the iPhone app it costs $20.99 a month.

App information

DeveloperGoogle LLC

VersionAndroid 10.0+ (Android) · 21.35.3 (iOS)

Size144.8 MB (Android) · 388 MB (iOS)

Price / In-appFree

Contains adsYes

In-app purchasesYes

Content rating13+

Requires (Android)21.36.45

Requires (iOS)iOS 17.0+

Offline modeDownloads and background play require a Premium subscription

Interface languagesAF, SQ, AM, AR, HY, AZ + 66 more

Store rating (Google Play)3.8 from 172,090,306 ratings

Installs10B+

Updated by developer2026-08-30

Data checked2026-09-07

Specs come from the official store listings and were last checked on 2026-09-07. Developers change pricing and requirements — check the store page before installing.

YouTube Review: 172 Million Reviews, a 3.8 Average

Premium Costs $20.99 Bought in the App

The subscription that removes advertising, enables background play and adds downloads is listed at $20.99 a month inside the iPhone app, with a family plan at $34.99 — noticeably more than the same subscription bought through a browser, because the app-store commission is passed on. Other purchases sit alongside: Super Chat donations to live streamers at $1.99 and $4.99, and film rentals at $3.99 and $5.99. None of it is required, and the free tier carries no functional limits beyond the adverts. Buying the same subscription through a browser avoids the app-store commission entirely, which is the single easiest saving in this catalogue.

Shorts, Live and Music Share the Same App

The create button offers a Short, a full upload, a live stream, a joint stream with another creator and a text post, which is a publishing suite rather than a camera. On the viewing side, Shorts runs as a vertical feed with its own tab, music plays as playlists with the video attached, and topic chips across the top filter the home feed by subject. That breadth is why the app is so heavy and why its recommendation engine reaches into four different habits at once.

A 3.8 Average From 172 Million Reviews

The Android score is the striking number: 3.8 across 172 million reviews, against 4.7 on the App Store. The complaints concentrate on advertising volume and interface changes rather than on the videos. Google Play lists eleven collected categories with no third-party sharing declared, while Apple's card states that data may be used to track users across other companies' apps and websites for third-party advertising. The install is among the larger ones here. For an app installed on effectively every Android phone, that score is a statement about the advertising load rather than about the product.

Pros

Long video, Shorts, music and live in one app
Publishing tools cover uploads, Shorts and live streams
Topic chips filter the home feed by subject
Free tier has no functional limits beyond advertising
Rated 4.7 on the App Store across 48.8 million ratings

Cons

Premium costs $20.99 a month bought in the app
Android average of 3.8 across 172 million reviews
Eleven collected data categories, including location
Background play and downloads need the subscription

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Verdict

Unavoidable rather than beloved, and the 3.8 average from 172 million Android reviews says exactly that: people use it constantly and resent the advertising. The free tier is complete in what it shows and frustrating in how often it interrupts. If you listen with the screen off, Premium is the only fix — and buying it in a browser rather than inside the app saves several dollars a month.

Core function9.0The largest video library anywhere, with search and recommendations that work across it.

Ease of use7.5Four products in one interface; Shorts and the home feed compete for the same attention.

Monetisation6.0Heavy advertising on the free tier and $20.99 a month to remove it in-app.

Performance7.5Reliable playback and adaptive quality, on one of the heavier installs here.

Privacy & permissions5.0Eleven collected categories and cross-app tracking for third-party advertising.

7.4out of 10 · weighted average of the five scores above

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Frequently asked questions

Is YouTube free?

Yes, with advertising before and during videos — the Play listing carries a Contains ads badge. Everything watchable is available free; what the subscription changes is the adverts, background playback and offline downloads rather than access to content.

What can you create in the app?

A Short, a full video upload, a live stream, a joint live stream with another creator, or a text post to your channel's community tab. All of it works from the phone without a desktop, which is why so many channels are now produced entirely on mobile.

How much is YouTube Premium?

$20.99 a month bought inside the iPhone app, or $34.99 for the family plan. Subscribing through a web browser is cheaper, because app-store commission is not added there. Separately, Super Chats cost $1.99 or $4.99 and film rentals $3.99 or $5.99.

Can you watch offline?

Only with Premium. Downloads and background playback — keeping audio running with the screen off — are the two features the subscription adds that people miss most. Without it, closing the app stops the video, which is the main reason music listeners subscribe.

What are the alternatives?

Twitch covers live streaming with a stronger chat culture. Spotify handles music without video and with a cheaper subscription. Nothing replaces the library itself, which is why the Android rating can sit at 3.8 without the app losing a single user.