YouTube will let you sort video suggestions by personalized topics on the web, iOS

Abner Li | Apr 30 2020 - 12:29 pm PT

Last year, YouTube for Android’s Home tab added a carousel of topics that loaded a carousel of personalized videos. That feature is now coming to iOS and YouTube.com, with availability in more languages.

These topic suggestions appear when you’re signed in and aim to “help you more easily find the next great video to watch.”

This carousel appears underneath any banner ads, or below the search field for YouTube Premium members. The default view is “All recommendations” with 15 or so alternates suggested to the right. Making a selection will update the feed below to show only videos related to that topic:

The topics you see are based on your existing, personalized suggestions on Home and are meant to help you find what you’re looking for faster.

Personalized topics also appear on the “Up next” list of autoplay videos. These suggestions are based on the video and channel you’re currently viewing, or “other topics [YouTube] think you’re interested in based on your previous watch history.”

Rolling out in the coming weeks: Topics give you more control over the videos that show on Home & Up Next, by matching your suggested videos to whichever topic you tap.

You’ll soon see topics on Home & Up Next on Android, iOS, & Desktop in English, French, Spanish, & Portuguese. pic.twitter.com/8uJNFzDqs8

— TeamYouTube (@TeamYouTube) April 30, 2020

The feature is also coming to YouTube for iOS, while language availability is expanding to French, Portuguese, and Spanish. A full launch is expected in the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, to surface even more content, Google later this year will offer new personalized sections, including YouTube Mixes, Creators, Music, Gaming, and Learning topics.

This new way to find videos comes as YouTube last month rolled out a new Explore tab on mobile. For comparison, what’s being announced today is more focused on your existing YouTube interests, rather than what’s trending.