Guide: How to Manage YouTube Data Usage on PC and Mobile
YouTube is the world’s leading video sharing and streaming platform. There is a wide variety of different content and resources on the platform, but statistics have shown that YouTube’s data usage can be quite extravagant, especially when streaming HD videos. While this shouldn’t be a problem if you have access to unlimited internet, you should want to keep the amount of data used by YouTube to a minimum if you have a limited cellular data plan. Fortunately, YouTube – like other video streaming services – lets you manage data usage across all the devices you use the platform on. In this post, we will discuss four ways to reduce YouTube’s data usage, both on you mobile device and PC.
Tip 1: Reduce video quality
The quality of the videos you stream on YouTube is the biggest determinant of how much data the platform consumes. YouTube offers a variety of video quality (up up to 1080p), and it is expected that the higher the quality you stream to, the more data the app will consume from your internet bandwidth. The default streaming quality on YouTube is predetermined by factors such as the quality of your internet connection, the screen size, the quality of the uploaded video, etc. Whatever the default video quality, it is recommended to lower it to the lowest level, where the video content is still clearly visible to you. Here is how to put that on mobile and PC.
1. On Mobile
Step 1: While watching a video, tap the three-dot menu icon in the top right corner of the player.
Step 2: Tap Quality in the panel that appears up At the bottom.
Step 3: Select a lower quality from the list of options.
To store the most data with little compromise on the visual quality on your phone, you need to select the 360p resolution – consumes about 315MB of data per hour of streaming. To reduce data usage, select the 240p resolution option. That level of quality consumes about 225MB per hour of video streaming. If you are more interested in the audiovisual aspect of a video than the images, you should change the quality to 144p. That is the lowest video quality level and it reduces data usage to a minimum.
2. On PC
The process of reducing YouTube video quality on PC is no different from how it is done mobile Step 1: While playing a video, tap the gear icon.
Step 2: Tap Quality.
Step 3: Select a lower resolution that provides decent visual quality.
Remember, the higher the quality, the more bandwidth YouTube consumes. You need to make sure to choose a low resolution that does not unreasonably dampen video quality. I am streaming videos at 360p (sometimes 480p) when playing videos on mobile data. If I’m only interested in the audio, I’ll stream at 144p resolution.
Tip 2: Limit Mobile Data usage
On YouTube, you can choose to stream videos in high-definition quality only when using Wi-Fi. That helps you limit the amount of data YouTube uses while you’re at it mobile data. Here is how to limit data usage on YouTube mobile app. Step 1: From the YouTube app home page, tap the account picture in the top right corner.
Step 2: Select settings.
Step 3: Tap on General.
Step 4: Switch the ‘Limit mobile data usage ‘option.
Tip 3: Turn off muted playback
The YouTube mobile app does something where it automatically plays videos as you go through the home page and subscription feed. Although these playbacks are muted, they eat up your data plan. If you’re trying to reduce YouTube’s data usage, turn it off. Here is how to do it. Step 1: Tap the account picture in the top right corner of the YouTube app.
Step 2: Select settings.
Step 3: Tap on General.
Step 4: Select the option ‘Play muted in feeds’.
Step 5: Select Off to turn off muted playback.
You can also select the ‘Wi-Fi only’ option and muted videos will only play when connected to Wi-Fi.
Tip 4: Disable Autoplay
By default, YouTube will automatically play another video when you finish watching the video on the player. As a precautionary measure for data storage, you may want to turn this off. You should. With Autoplay turned off, you have full control over the videos you watch and when you want to watch them.
On Mobile
Step 1: Tap the account picture in the right corner of the app.
Step 2: Tap on Settings.
Step 3: Select Autoplay.
Step 4: Uncheck the ‘Automatically play next video’ option.
Alternatively, while watching a video, you can turn off the AutoPlay option below the video description.
On PC
Disabling Autoplay on PC is also easy. Step 1: Tap the gear icon in the bottom left corner of the YouTube video player.
Step 2: Make sure the Autoplay option is unchecked. If not, tap it to turn off the Autoplay feature.
Alternatively, you can click on the Up In the next section of the YouTube video page, tap the AutoPlay option to turn it off and off.
Reduce excessive data usage
Streaming videos is cool. YouTube is even cooler. However, make sure your streaming activities don’t take a heavy toll on your limited data plan. The tips Mentioned above will help you minimize data usage when you watch YouTube videos on your mobile phone or PC. The next up See how to use Restricted Mode to manage and filter out unwanted content on YouTube in the linked post below.
How to Manage YouTube Data Usage on PC and Mobile: benefits
Faq
Final note
I hope you like the guide How to Manage YouTube Data Usage on PC and Mobile. In case if you have any query regards this article you may ask us. Also, please share your love by sharing this article with your friends. For our visitors: If you have any queries regards the How to Manage YouTube Data Usage on PC and Mobile, then please ask us through the comment section below or directly contact us. Education: This guide or tutorial is just for educational purposes. Misinformation: If you want to correct any misinformation about the guide “How to Manage YouTube Data Usage on PC and Mobile”, then kindly contact us. Want to add an alternate method: If anyone wants to add more methods to the guide How to Manage YouTube Data Usage on PC and Mobile, then kindly contact us. Our Contact: Kindly use our contact page regards any help. You may also use our social and accounts by following us on Whatsapp, Facebook, and Twitter for your questions. We always love to help you. We answer your questions within 24-48 hours (Weekend off). Channel: If you want the latest software updates and discussion about any software in your pocket, then here is our Telegram channel.
