How to Turn Off YouTube Shorts

Can You Actually Disable YouTube Shorts?

The short answer is no — not completely. YouTube does not provide an account-level toggle to turn off Shorts. There is no setting in YouTube Studio, no preference in your Google account, and no URL parameter that removes Shorts from the platform.

What you can do is reduce or hide Shorts on a per-device basis using a combination of built-in settings, browser extensions, and third-party apps. The effectiveness depends on the device:

• Desktop (browser): Browser extensions can remove Shorts almost entirely from the YouTube interface.
• Mobile app (iOS and Android): YouTube's Shorts feed limit setting can pause the dedicated Shorts feed, and algorithm training reduces how often individual Shorts appear.
• Smart TV: The most limited options — Restricted Mode or a third-party YouTube client are the main paths.

None of these methods syncs across devices. Hiding Shorts in Chrome on your laptop does not affect what you see on your phone or TV. Each device requires its own setup.

Hide the Shorts Shelf on Desktop

Desktop is where you have the most control, because browser extensions can modify what YouTube's interface shows you. Two popular options cover different needs:

Option 1: Remove YouTube Shorts Extension

This is a single-purpose Chrome extension that does exactly what its name says — removes all Shorts and Playables from appearing on youtube.com. It hides the Shorts shelf on the home page, the Shorts tab on channel pages, and Shorts results in search.

1. Open the Chrome Web Store and search for "Remove YouTube Shorts."
2. Click Add to Chrome and confirm the installation.
3. Reload any open YouTube tabs. The Shorts shelf and related UI elements disappear immediately.

The extension is lightweight and does not require any configuration. It works on Chrome and any Chromium-based browser (Edge, Brave, Opera).

Option 2: Unhook Extension (More Control)

Unhook is a broader YouTube customization extension that lets you toggle off individual UI elements: Shorts, the trending tab, end-screen cards, comments, and more. If you want to hide Shorts and clean up other distractions, Unhook gives you granular switches.

1. Install Unhook from the Chrome Web Store.
2. Click the Unhook icon in your browser toolbar to open its settings panel.
3. Toggle off "Shorts" (and any other sections you want to hide).
4. Reload YouTube. The changes take effect immediately.

Firefox and Brave Users

Firefox has its own versions of these extensions — search for "YouTube Shorts blocker" on addons.mozilla.org. Brave browser users have a built-in option: open Brave Shields settings → Content Filtering and enable the YouTube Anti-Shorts filter, which hides Shorts without installing anything extra.

Limit Shorts in the Mobile App

The YouTube mobile app does not let you install extensions, so the tools are more limited. But YouTube added a Shorts-specific setting in 2026 that makes a real difference.

Set the Shorts Feed Limit to Zero

This is the closest thing to a native off-switch on mobile. YouTube's Shorts feed limit setting lets you cap how long the dedicated Shorts feed plays before pausing. Setting it to 0 minutes means the Shorts feed is paused the moment you open it.

1. Open the YouTube app and tap your profile picture in the top right.
2. Tap Settings (the gear icon).
3. Tap Time management.
4. Under Daily limits, turn on Shorts feed limit and set the duration to 0 minutes.

What this does and does not cover: The 0-minute limit stops the dedicated Shorts feed from autoplaying. However, individual Shorts may still appear in search results, on channel pages, and in the home feed recommendations. This setting handles the feed itself — not every Shorts surface.

Train the Algorithm with "Not Interested"

For the Shorts that still appear outside the dedicated feed, manual algorithm training is the most effective mobile method:

1. When a Short appears in your feed, tap the three-dot menu (on the right side of the Short or next to the title).
2. Select "Not interested."
3. Repeat this on 5 to 10 Shorts in a row. YouTube's recommendation engine adjusts relatively quickly when it receives a batch of negative signals.

You can also use "Show fewer Shorts" when you see the option above the Shorts shelf on the home page. This temporarily suppresses the shelf, though YouTube tends to bring it back after roughly 30 days.

The Watch-History Trick

YouTube's recommendations are heavily influenced by what you have watched recently. If you want fewer Shorts recommendations, avoid engaging with Shorts content — even briefly. Every Short you watch to completion tells the algorithm you want more. If you accidentally land on the Shorts feed, swipe away immediately rather than watching through.

For a more aggressive reset, go to Settings → History & privacy → Clear watch history. This removes all your viewing data and forces YouTube to rebuild its recommendations from scratch. The downside is that it also resets your long-form video recommendations, so your home feed will be generic for a few days until YouTube relearns your preferences.

Stop Shorts from Specific Channels

Sometimes the problem is not Shorts in general — it is Shorts from a handful of prolific creators who dominate your recommendations. YouTube gives you two channel-level controls:

• "Don't recommend channel" — Tap the three-dot menu on any Short from the channel and select Don't recommend channel. This tells YouTube to stop surfacing all content from that creator — Shorts, long-form videos, and live streams — in your feeds. You can still visit their channel directly.
• "Not interested" — This applies to the individual video, not the channel. Use it when you want to reduce a specific topic without blocking the entire creator.

The "Don't recommend channel" option is the stronger signal. If you find yourself marking the same channel as "Not interested" repeatedly, switch to the channel-level block instead.

Shorts on TV

The YouTube app on smart TVs, Roku, Apple TV, and game consoles has the fewest options for hiding Shorts. The interface is locked down compared to desktop and mobile, and most settings from the mobile app (like the Shorts feed limit) do not carry over.

Restricted Mode

Enabling Restricted Mode in the YouTube TV app settings can reduce Shorts visibility. YouTube's algorithm often categorizes rapid-fire vertical content as unrated, and Restricted Mode filters some of it out. This is not a Shorts-specific tool — it is designed for content filtering generally — but it has a side effect of reducing Shorts in the feed.

To enable it: open the YouTube app on your TV, go to Settings → Restricted Mode → On.

SmartTube (Android TV, Fire TV, Chromecast)

If your TV runs Android TV, Fire TV, or Chromecast with Google TV, SmartTube is an open-source alternative YouTube client that gives you direct control over Shorts. Inside SmartTube, navigate to Content settings → Blacklist and disable Shorts. This removes them from the interface entirely.

SmartTube is not available on the Google Play Store — it is sideloaded. If you are comfortable installing apps outside the official store, it is the most effective TV solution. If not, Restricted Mode plus "Not interested" on individual Shorts is the best native option.

Apple TV and Roku

Apple TV and Roku run YouTube's official app with no extension or sideloading support. Your only options are Restricted Mode and training the algorithm with "Not interested" on individual Shorts. There is no way to fully remove Shorts from these platforms in 2026.

Why YouTube Pushes Shorts

Understanding why Shorts are everywhere helps explain why YouTube does not offer an off-switch. Shorts are not a side feature — they are central to YouTube's strategy for competing with TikTok and Instagram Reels.

• Engagement metrics. Short-form video generates high session counts. Each Short is a new "view," and the swipe format keeps users cycling through content rapidly. This inflates total watch sessions, which YouTube reports to advertisers.
• Creator adoption. YouTube has invested heavily in Shorts monetization — the Shorts ad-revenue share model launched in 2023 and has expanded since. Creators who post Shorts get algorithmic boosts, especially for building early view counts on a new channel. Removing the viewer-side Shorts experience would undermine the creator incentive.
• Mobile-first audiences. YouTube's fastest-growing demographic watches primarily on mobile, and Shorts fit the mobile consumption pattern — quick, vertical, swipeable. Giving users a one-tap way to turn off Shorts would cut directly into this growth segment.
• Ad inventory. Shorts now carry in-feed ads between clips. More Shorts consumption means more ad slots. YouTube is unlikely to build a feature that reduces ad inventory, which is why the available controls are partial and device-specific rather than account-wide.

None of this means you are stuck watching Shorts against your will. The methods above are effective enough that a determined viewer can make Shorts nearly invisible on the devices they use most. But expecting YouTube to build a global off-switch means expecting them to actively shrink a format they are investing billions in — which is not realistic.

For creators, the dynamic is different. If you are starting a YouTube channel, Shorts are one of the fastest ways to build initial reach — and with the current 3-minute Shorts limit, there is more room than ever for tutorials, commentary, and narrative content in short form. Growing your subscriber base alongside a Shorts strategy lets the algorithm show your content to a wider audience, even if your long-form catalog is still small. The viewer's desire to avoid Shorts and the creator's opportunity in Shorts exist simultaneously — and YouTube is clearly building for the creator side.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you disable YouTube Shorts permanently?

No. YouTube does not offer a permanent toggle to turn off Shorts across all devices. You can hide the Shorts shelf on desktop with a browser extension, set the Shorts feed limit to 0 minutes on mobile, or use a third-party client on TV — but none of these is a single account-wide setting.

Is there a way to disable YouTube Shorts on the mobile app?

Yes, partially. Open the YouTube app, tap your profile picture, go to Settings → Time management, and set the Shorts feed limit to 0 minutes. This pauses the dedicated Shorts feed, but individual Shorts may still appear in search results, on channel pages, and in recommendations.

How do I remove Shorts from YouTube on desktop?

Install a browser extension like Unhook or Remove YouTube Shorts in Chrome, Firefox, or Edge. These extensions hide the Shorts shelf, Shorts tab, and Shorts links from the YouTube interface entirely. There is no built-in YouTube setting to do this on desktop.

How do you block YouTube Shorts on a smart TV?

The YouTube TV app has very limited settings for hiding Shorts. Enabling Restricted Mode may reduce Shorts visibility. On Android TV, Fire TV, or Chromecast with Google TV, you can install SmartTube — an open-source YouTube client that lets you disable Shorts in its content settings.

How do I stop seeing Shorts from a specific channel?

Tap the three-dot menu on any Short from that channel and select Don't recommend channel. This tells YouTube's algorithm to stop surfacing content — including Shorts — from that creator in your feed. You can also tap Not interested on individual Shorts to reduce similar recommendations.

Does hiding Shorts on one device affect other devices?

No. Browser extensions only work on the browser where they are installed. The mobile Shorts feed limit setting applies only to the app on that device. SmartTube settings on your TV do not sync to your phone or laptop. Each device needs its own setup.