How to Turn Off YouTube Shorts on Android and iPhone

How to Turn Off YouTube Shorts on Android and iPhone: Complete Step-by-Step Guide

YouTube Shorts are made to keep you watching. When one video ends, the next one starts right away, and the feed never really stops. Unlike longer videos that finish on their own, Shorts can keep going for as long as you let them. It’s easy to spend 30 to 45 minutes scrolling before you even realize it.

YouTube now lets you limit Shorts with a new setting called Shorts Feed Limit, found in Time Management. If you set this limit to zero minutes, the endless Shorts feed won’t load anymore. You can still watch individual Shorts through links or on channel pages if you want.

This guide shows you how to turn off YouTube Shorts on both Android and iPhone using YouTube’s official settings. It also explains what this setting changes, what it doesn’t, offers other ways to reduce Shorts, and helps if you can’t find the setting. Choose the method that gives you the control you want.

Quick steps to turn off YouTube Shorts: Open the YouTube app, tap your profile picture (top right), go to Settings, then Time Management, then Daily Limits, then Shorts Feed Limit. Turn on the toggle, then set it to 0 minutes. This works on both Android and iPhone. You can still watch individual Shorts through links, and you can change this setting back anytime.

How to Turn Off YouTube Shorts: Step-by-Step for Android and iPhone

You’ll find the Shorts Feed Limit setting in YouTube’s Time Management section. The steps are the same on both Android and iPhone:

Step 1: Open the YouTube app on your Android or iPhone. Make sure you have the latest version. If you don’t see Time Management later, update YouTube in the Play Store or App Store before moving on.

Step 2: Tap your profile picture. It’s usually in the top-right corner of the YouTube home screen, but sometimes it’s at the bottom-right corner. This opens your account menu.

Step 3: Go to Settings. In your account menu, tap Settings to open the main settings panel.

Step 4: Tap Time Management in Settings. Here you’ll find YouTube’s screen time and usage tools, like Remind me to take a break, Remind me when it is bedtime, and the Shorts Feed Limit.

Step 5: In Time Management, scroll to Daily Limits and tap Shorts Feed Limit. You’ll see a toggle and a place to set the time.

Step 6: Turn on the Shorts Feed Limit toggle, then set it to 0 minutes. This means the Shorts feed won’t load at all when you open the app.

Step 7: The setting saves automatically. Just exit Settings and go back to the YouTube home screen. The Shorts section won’t keep loading new videos in an endless scroll anymore.

If you don’t see Time Management in your YouTube Settings, the Shorts Feed Limit feature might not be available for your account yet. Try updating YouTube in the Play Store or App Store. If it still doesn’t show up, check again after the next app update.

How to Turn Off YouTube Shorts

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What Happens After You Turn Off YouTube Shorts

It’s helpful to know what the Shorts Feed Limit changes and what it doesn’t, so you know what to expect:

What Stops After Disabling	What Still Works
Endless Shorts feed scrolling stops	Individual Shorts opened from direct links still work
Auto-play Shorts on the homepage disappear	Shorts can still appear in search results
Shorts tab may stop auto-loading the feed	Shorts on creator channels remain accessible
Homepage becomes less cluttered	Subscription feed may still show some Shorts
Screen time from endless Shorts loops reduces	You can manually override the limit temporarily if needed

The Shorts Feed Limit only stops the endless scroll feature. It’s meant to help you control how much you watch, not to remove Shorts completely. The Shorts tab will still be in the app, but if you tap it, you’ll see a message saying you’ve reached your limit instead of the usual feed. You can still watch individual Shorts from search, channel pages, or shared links.

Manual override: When you hit the Shorts Feed Limit (right away if set to zero), YouTube will show a message that you’ve reached your daily limit and give you the option to keep watching anyway. If you find yourself using this override a lot, the zero-minute setting might be more annoying than helpful. In that case, you might want to try Digital Wellbeing app timers for better results.
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Why Turn Off YouTube Shorts: The Practical Case

Knowing why Shorts are hard to stop watching helps explain why the Feed Limit works:

Shorts use a variable reward system, like slot machines, where you never know when you’ll see something interesting. Most Shorts aren’t that special, but you keep scrolling because the next one could be. This pattern makes it easy to keep watching without stopping. Turning off the auto-scroll breaks this cycle and helps you watch less.

You can cut down on screen time without losing access to YouTube. Disabling the Shorts feed doesn’t affect long videos, music, podcasts, or anything else on YouTube. With the Shorts Feed Limit, you’re more likely to use YouTube on purpose, instead of getting pulled into a long Shorts session by accident.

For students and professionals, Shorts can be distracting when you’re trying to use YouTube for learning or research. Even if you search for a tutorial, the homepage and Shorts tab can tempt you with unrelated videos. Turning off the Shorts feed means fewer interruptions and helps you stay focused.

Parents who want to limit short-form video for kids and teens can use the Shorts Feed Limit on a family device or shared account. Setting it to zero minutes means kids have to actively override the limit to keep watching, which makes it harder to watch Shorts without thinking. This helps reduce passive viewing but still allows access to YouTube for learning and fun.

Alternative Methods to Turn Off or Reduce YouTube Shorts

The Shorts Feed Limit is the best way to stop watching Shorts, but there are other options if you want more control:

Method	How It Works and When to Use It
Shorts Feed Limit (YouTube)	Best method for most users. Go to YouTube Settings → Time Management → Shorts Feed Limit and set it to 0 minutes. Stops endless Shorts scrolling and can be reversed anytime.
Not Interested Tap	Tap the three-dot menu on a Short and choose “Not Interested.” Helps train the recommendation algorithm over time, but does not instantly remove Shorts.
Disable Notifications	Open YouTube Settings → Notifications and disable Shorts recommendations. Reduces notification-based distractions, though the Shorts feed still exists in the app.
Android Digital Wellbeing	Go to Android Settings → Digital Wellbeing → App Timers and set a limit for YouTube. Useful for strict screen control, but it locks the full YouTube app, not just Shorts.
iPhone Screen Time	Open iPhone Settings → Screen Time → App Limits → YouTube. Helps reduce total usage by locking the full app after the daily limit is reached.
YouTube Kids (for children)	Use the YouTube Kids app instead of the main YouTube app. The Shorts feed is not included in the children-focused version.

Start with the Shorts Feed Limit since it only affects the Shorts feed and leaves the rest of YouTube alone. Digital Wellbeing and Screen Time timers are stricter and will lock the whole YouTube app after the daily limit, which might get in the way if you use YouTube for work, study, or fun. Try those if you find yourself overriding the Shorts Feed Limit too often.

Training the YouTube Algorithm to Show Fewer Shorts

Even if you use the Shorts Feed Limit, YouTube might still show you individual Shorts in recommendations, search, or subscriptions. Here’s how you can see fewer Shorts over time by training the algorithm:

Use Not Interested on Shorts: If you see a Short in search or on the homepage, tap the three dots on the thumbnail and choose Not Interested. This tells YouTube you don’t want Shorts. If you do this regularly for a week or two, you’ll start seeing fewer Shorts recommended.

Try not to watch Shorts at all: YouTube’s algorithm pays attention to what you watch. If you open and watch Shorts, even for a few seconds, YouTube thinks you like them and will show you more. If you avoid watching Shorts and keep using Not Interested, the algorithm will learn faster.

Look for and watch longer videos: The more you watch long-form content, the more YouTube will recommend it. This helps shift your recommendations away from Shorts over time.

Turn off Shorts-related notifications: In YouTube Settings, go to Notifications and turn off notifications for video recommendations and trending content. These often include Shorts. Fewer notifications mean fewer chances to get pulled into watching Shorts.

Final Verdict

Setting the Shorts Feed Limit to zero minutes is the easiest and most effective way to turn off YouTube Shorts on Android and iPhone. It only takes a couple of minutes and changes your experience right away, letting you watch YouTube on your own terms.

To turn off YouTube Shorts, open the YouTube app, tap your profile picture, go to Settings, open Time Management, find Shorts Feed Limit under Daily Limits, turn it on, and set it to zero minutes. The change happens right away. You can still watch individual Shorts through links, so you’re not losing access, just stopping the endless loop.

Summary: To turn off YouTube Shorts on Android and iPhone, open the YouTube app, tap your profile icon, go to Settings, then Time Management, then Daily Limits, then Shorts Feed Limit, and set it to zero minutes. This stops the endless scroll feed, but you can still watch individual Shorts through links or search. For more control, use Not Interested on Shorts, turn off recommendation notifications, or use Digital Wellbeing or Screen Time for full app limits.

FAQs

1. How do I turn off YouTube Shorts on my phone?

Open the YouTube app, tap your profile picture in the top right, go to Settings, tap Time Management, scroll to Daily Limits, tap Shorts Feed Limit, enable the toggle, and set it to zero minutes. This works on both Android and iPhone and stops the endless Shorts feed from loading automatically.

2. Does turning off YouTube Shorts delete Shorts completely?

No. The Shorts Feed Limit stops the endless scroll feed but does not remove Shorts from YouTube entirely. Individual Shorts can still be opened through shared links, search results and creator channel pages. Shorts may still appear in subscription feeds. The setting targets the auto-loading endless scroll experience specifically.

3. Where is Time Management in YouTube Settings?

Open the YouTube app, tap your profile picture, go to Settings, and scroll down to find Time Management. Inside Time Management, tap Daily Limits to find the Shorts Feed Limit option. If Time Management does not appear, update the YouTube app to the latest version.

4. Does the Shorts Feed Limit work on both Android and iPhone?

Yes. The Shorts Feed Limit setting in YouTube's Time Management section works on the YouTube mobile app on both Android smartphones and iPhones. The path to the setting is the same on both platforms. It does not work on desktop browsers or Smart TVs.

5. Can I still watch a specific Short after turning off YouTube Shorts?

Yes. If someone sends a Shorts link, clicking it will open and play that individual Short. Shorts that appear in search results and on creator channel pages can also be opened individually. The limit applies to the auto-loading endless scroll feed, not to intentional individual Short access.

6. What if I want to re-enable YouTube Shorts later?

Follow the same path: Settings > Time Management > Short Feed Limit. Either disable the toggle entirely or increase the time limit to any value greater than 0 minutes. The setting is fully reversible at any time.

7. Is there a way to completely remove the Shorts tab from YouTube?

Not through any current official YouTube setting. The Shorts Feed Limit stops the feed from loading automatically but the Shorts tab remains in the navigation bar. Tapping it shows a limit message rather than the feed. Complete tab removal is not available in YouTube's official settings as of May 2026.

8. How can parents use the Short Feed Limit for children?

Set the Shorts Feed Limit to zero minutes on the family device or the child's YouTube account. This creates friction before any additional Shorts viewing, as the child would need to manually override the limit. For stronger control, use Screen Time (iPhone) or Digital Wellbeing (Android) to set a daily time limit on the entire YouTube app in addition to the Shorts Feed Limit.

9. Why does YouTube still show Shorts in search after I turned off the feed?

The Shorts Feed Limit applies to the dedicated Shorts scroll feed, not to individual Shorts appearing in search results. Search results on YouTube show all content types, including Shorts. To reduce Shorts in search results, use the Not Interested option on Shorts thumbnails consistently over time to train the algorithm to deprioritize Shorts in recommendations.

10. What is the difference between the Short Feed Limit and the Digital Wellbeing app timers?

The Shorts Feed Limit (in YouTube Settings) targets only the Shorts endless scroll feed, leaving all other YouTube content fully accessible. Digital Wellbeing app timers (on Android) or Screen Time app limits (on iPhone) restrict the entire YouTube app after the daily limit is reached, which affects regular YouTube use as well. Use the Short Feed Limit first; add Digital Wellbeing or Screen Time as an additional layer only if the override option is being used too frequently.

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