YouTube keeps a record of videos you watch while signed in, so you can find something again without remembering its exact title. On iPhone, Android, and Samsung phones, the watch history is available directly in the YouTube app.
You can view recently watched videos from the You tab, then open the full history to browse older activity. The same area also lets you search your history, filter the type of content shown, or clear the entire list.
Video Tutorial
Open your YouTube watch history
Start in the YouTube app and make sure you are using the account whose viewing activity you want to check. Your history is tied to the account currently active in the app.
- Open the YouTube app on your iPhone, Android phone, or Samsung phone.
- Select You at the bottom of the app.
- Look at the top of the screen to see a list of videos you watched recently.
- Select History to open your complete YouTube watch history.
The History page displays videos you have watched, along with when you watched them. Scroll down through the list to move back through your viewing activity and locate older videos.
Use the You tab for recently watched videos
If you only need to revisit something you watched a short time ago, you may not need to open the full history page. Select You in the bottom navigation, then check the recently watched videos shown at the top.
This is useful when you accidentally leave a video, want to continue watching something, or remember watching a clip but do not remember enough of the title to search for it. Select a video from this recent list to open it again.
For anything older, select History. The full list gives you more room to browse and includes the time-related details shown next to your watched videos.
Search your YouTube watch history
Scrolling works well when you know roughly when you watched a video. If you are trying to find a specific video, use the search option at the top of the History page instead.
- Open You in the YouTube app.
- Select History.
- Use the search option at the top of your history.
- Enter words related to the video you want to find.
Try a topic, a creator name, or a word you remember from the title. Searching your watch history narrows the list instead of making you manually scroll through every video you watched.
Filter history by videos, Shorts, or music
The History page can also filter the items you see. At the top of your history, choose the filter that matches the type of content you are trying to locate:
- Videos for regular YouTube videos.
- Shorts for short-form videos.
- Music for music you watched.
Filters are helpful when your watch history is busy. For example, if you remember seeing a short clip but regular videos are filling the list, choose Shorts before you continue browsing or searching.
Clear all YouTube watch history
If you want to delete the watch history shown in the app, you can clear it from the History page. This removes the list of watched videos, so check for anything you may want to revisit before clearing it.
- Open the YouTube app and select You.
- Select History.
- Select the three dots in the top-right corner.
- Choose Clear all watch history.
Use this option when you want to remove your viewing activity from the history list all at once. If your goal is only to find an earlier video, leave the history in place and use the search bar or one of the content filters first.
Quick checklist
To view YouTube watch history, open YouTube, select You, and choose History. Browse the full list, search at the top for a specific video, or filter the page by Videos, Shorts, and Music. When you need to remove the list, open the top-right three-dot menu and select Clear all watch history.
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