YouTube APK
14b49024d9b032ac9d7077874fdc152bf23787b181229431d85cdde5c0176cb1About YouTube
YouTube's official app streams the largest video library there is, and the setting that matters most on a metered connection is buried one tap deep: the quality selector on each video. Dropping to 144p or 240p turns an hour of watching from hundreds of megabytes into a few dozen, which is the difference between a bundle lasting an evening and lasting a week. Everything else is familiar — Shorts, full-length uploads, live streams, comments, playlists and auto-generated captions with on-the-fly translation on most videos. Offline downloads and background audio are Premium features and are limited by region, so on a free account the app has to stay open and on screen for a video to keep playing.
Key features
- Choose 144p to 4K per video — 144p keeps a data bundle alive all day
- Shorts, full-length uploads and live streams in one feed
- Auto-generated captions and on-the-fly translation on most uploads
- Background play and offline downloads come with a Premium subscription
- Picture-in-picture keeps a video running over other apps
How to install
- Tap the green button above to download the YouTube APK we host (190.7 MB). Check its SHA-256, published above, against your download before you install.
- Open the downloaded file from your notifications or Downloads folder and allow the install when Android asks.
- Launch YouTube and sign in or register.
Step-by-step guides: how to install an APK · fix the Play Protect warning.
How to update
The build on this page is YouTube 21.31.524 (190.7 MB). APK installs do not update through the Play Store, so come back when a newer version is listed here and install it over the old one — your data is kept.
FAQ
How do I make YouTube use less data?
Set the quality per video from the three-dot menu — 144p costs well under 100 MB an hour against roughly 500 MB at 480p, and a great deal more above that. In Settings, Data saving, you can also cap all mobile playback to a lower resolution so you do not have to remember each time, and turn off "Playback in feeds" so previews stop loading as you scroll.
Can I play YouTube in the background or with the screen off?
Only with Premium on the official app. Without it, playback pauses when you leave the app or lock the screen. Some regions get YouTube Premium Lite at a lower price. Any APK claiming to unlock background play is a modified build — it breaks the terms of service and, more practically, it cannot be verified as safe.
Why is YouTube not updating on my phone?
On many Android phones YouTube ships as a system app, so it updates through the Play Store rather than as a normal APK, and a sideloaded copy will refuse to install over it unless the signature matches. If the Play Store is missing or blocked, install a newer APK of the same package (com.google.android.youtube) over the existing one — the build on this page is published with its SHA-256 and a VirusTotal scan so you can check it first.
Does the app work without a Google account?
Yes for watching, searching and browsing. You need to be signed in for subscriptions, watch history, playlists, comments, likes and uploads. On a shared phone, incognito mode lets you watch without anything being written to the account history.
Is the YouTube APK safe to install?
Yes. We mirror the official Google build and publish its SHA-256 checksum and a VirusTotal scan on this page, so you can verify the file is untouched before installing.
What is the YouTube package name?
The Android application ID is com.google.android.youtube. Check it after installing (Settings → Apps) to confirm you got the genuine app.
