Google is rolling out a new "Explore" tab in its official YouTube mobile app after several months of experiments and testing.

youtube explore tab
The new tab replaces the "Trending" tab, and includes the same trending content but also links to destination pages of YouTube's existing video categories, including Gaming, Music, News, and more. As Google explains:

With Explore, you not only have access to Trending videos, but also to destination pages for some popular content categories like Gaming, Music, Fashion & Beauty, Learning and more – all from one place.

Below the category links is a carousel of videos from the latest "Creator on the Rise" or "Artist on the Rise." The carousel is updated daily, providing additional exposure for the platform's content creators.

Below that is the typical scrolling vertical list of trending videos, which can also be accessed from the top of the page using the Trending button, which is foremost in the new links. According to Google, Trending displays the same list of trending videos to all users, wherever they are in the world.

As it stands, there's no way to create custom destination pages or personalized category links, and the list of pre-made categories isn't particularly comprehensive, so hopefully that's something Google plans to add in time.

YouTube is a free download for iPhone and iPad. [Direct Link]

Tags: Google, YouTube

Top Rated Comments

chris4565 Avatar
chris4565
67 months ago
Why is YouTube adding things like this instead of adding fundamental iOS features like automatic dark mode? :rolleyes:
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hockeyamd Avatar
hockeyamd
67 months ago
Or the community features on iPad
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Morgenland Avatar
Morgenland
67 months ago

Yup, it’s ridiculous. The MacRumors website is a prime example how a website should be with the automatic light/dark mode switching. Of course not every company has the capacity to build a proper dark mode theme. But a company such as Google, come on ?
Why should they do? Google does not love Apple.


Or even more fundamental things like supporting 4K video on iOS? It's crazy that it's not supported!!
Why should they do? Google does not love Apple.


Yep, just checked and I have the explore tab now.
Yep, great of you to share that with us! So what was your next step?
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
millerlite Avatar
millerlite
67 months ago
Not sure why a YouTube development is a news item on Mac Rumors
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
chris4565 Avatar
chris4565
67 months ago
Yup, the ads in the app before a video starts to play get increasingly annoying. In the past, there was at most 1 ad that could be skipped soon and now I sometimes see 2 ads which on top aren't skippable. Plus the fact that vertical ads cover most of the screen sometimes. Plus the fact that e. g. at the end of a video when an ad plays and you are deeply scrolled down in the comments section it just jumps up. All in all the YouTube app isn't really enjoyable as it is right now in my opinion.

Unfortunately I don't think there's going to change anything in the future regarding this.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
xmr Avatar
xmr
67 months ago

Why is YouTube adding things like this instead of adding fundamental iOS features like automatic dark mode? :rolleyes:
Or even more fundamental things like supporting 4K video on iOS? It's crazy that it's not supported!!
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments

Popular Stories

AirPods Pro 3 Mock Feature

AirPods Pro 3 Just Months Away – Here's What We Know

Friday April 18, 2025 5:16 am PDT by
Despite being more than two years old, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 still dominate the premium wireless‑earbud space, thanks to a potent mix of top‑tier audio, class‑leading noise cancellation, and Apple's habit of delivering major new features through software updates. With AirPods Pro 3 widely expected to arrive in 2025, prospective buyers now face a familiar dilemma: snap up the proven...
Read Full Article • 102 comments
iphone 17 air dummy unbox therapy

iPhone 17 Air's Extreme Thinness Demoed in New Video

Tuesday April 22, 2025 10:22 am PDT by
Apple plans to release an all-new super thin iPhone this year, debuting it alongside the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max. We've seen pictures of dummy models, cases, and renders with the design, but Lewis Hilsenteger of Unbox Therapy today showed off newer dummy models that give us a better idea of just how thin the "iPhone 17 Air" will be. The iPhone 17 Air is expected to be ...
Read Full Article • 159 comments
iphone 17 dummies sonny dickson

iPhone 17 Air Almost as Thin as Its Buttons, New Images Show

Thursday April 24, 2025 2:14 am PDT by
If you missed the video showing dummy models of Apple's all-new super thin iPhone 17 Air that's expected later this year, Sonny Dickson this morning shared some further images of the device in close alignment with the other dummy models in the iPhone 17 lineup, indicating just how thin it is likely to be in comparison. The iPhone 17 Air is expected to be around 5.5mm thick – with a thicker ...
Read Full Article • 92 comments
ipad air windows 11 arm

M2 iPad Air Runs Windows 11 ARM via Emulation, Thanks to EU Rules

Tuesday April 22, 2025 5:01 am PDT by
A developer has demonstrated Windows 11 ARM running on an M2 iPad Air using emulation, which has become much easier since the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA) regulations came into effect. As spotted by Windows Latest, NTDev shared an instance of the emulation on social media and posted a video on YouTube (embedded below) demonstrating it in action. The achievement relies on new EU regulatory...
Read Full Article • 99 comments
iphone 16 pro models 1

17 Reasons to Wait for the iPhone 17

Thursday April 17, 2025 4:12 am PDT by
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models simultaneously, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 17 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect from Apple's 2025 smartphone lineup. If you skipped the iPhone...
Read Full Article • 105 comments
iOS 18

iOS 18.5 Includes Only a Few Changes So Far

Monday April 21, 2025 11:00 am PDT by
Apple seeded the third beta of iOS 18.5 to developers today, and so far the software update includes only a few minor changes. The changes are in the Mail and Settings apps. In the Mail app, you can now easily turn off contact photos directly within the app, by tapping on the circle with three dots in the top-right corner. In the Settings app, AppleCare+ coverage information is more...
Read Full Article • 91 comments
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 13 New Features

Wednesday April 23, 2025 8:31 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
Read Full Article