10 Cool YouTube and Shorts Tricks You Should Know

YouTube is packed with features that make watching videos more fun, like searching within videos and sharing them with friends. But here are some awesome tricks to make your YouTube experience even better. These ten URL tricks will change how you use YouTube, and the best part is, you don’t need to download anything or add extensions to your browser.

Trick 1: Opening YouTube Shorts Like Regular Videos

YouTube Shorts have their own player that lacks certain features. You can change that with this trick:

1. Open a short video on your computer.
2. Edit the web address by replacing “/shorts/” with “/watch?v=”.

Example: Change “https://www.youtube.com/shorts/abcd1234” to “https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abcd1234”.

This will open the video in the regular YouTube player with all its controls.

Trick 2: Using Mobile YouTube on Desktop

If you’re using a laptop with a touchscreen, you can use the mobile version of YouTube for better navigation:

1. Go to “https://m.youtube.com/?persist_app=1&app=m” on your desktop.
2. You can resize the window to make it feel like a mobile screen.
3. Clear cookies or switch browsers to go back to the desktop version.

Trick 3: Watching Age-Restricted Videos Without Signing In

Normally, age-restricted videos require a Google account. Use this trick to watch them without signing in:

1. Open the video’s web address.
2. Replace “youtube.com” with “yewtu.be” and hit Enter.

Example: Change “https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abcd1234” to “https://yewtu.be/watch?v=abcd1234”.

You can now watch the video without logging in.

Trick 4: Starting a Video at a Specific Time

Want to skip the boring parts of a video? Try this trick:

1. Open a video on YouTube.
2. Edit the web address.
3. Add “&t=timeInSeconds” and hit Enter.

Example: Change “https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abcd1234” to “https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abcd1234&t=90”.

The video will start playing from that specific time.

Trick 5: Skipping the Intro of a Video

You can skip the beginning of a video easily:

1. Copy a video’s web address.
2. Add “&start=seconds” to the end and press Enter.

Example: Change “https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abcd1234” to “https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abcd1234&start=30”.

The video will start after the specified seconds.

Trick 6: Looping a YouTube Video

Love a song and want to hear it on repeat? Follow this trick:

1. Play the video and edit the web address.
2. Replace “youtube.com” with “youtubeloop.net” and hit Enter.

Example: Change “https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abcd1234” to “https://www.youtubeloop.net/watch?v=abcd1234”.

Or, right-click on the video and choose “Loop” from the menu.

Trick 7: Downloading Video Thumbnails

Get video thumbnails using this trick:

1. Copy the video ID from the web address.
2. Open “https://img.youtube.com/vi/video_id/maxresdefault.jpg” in your browser.

Example: Change “video_id” in the URL to the actual ID.

Trick 8: Creating a Playlist Without Logging In

Make playlists without signing in:

1. Edit this URL: “http://www.youtube.com/watch_videos?video_ids=1st_ID,2nd_ID,3rd_ID”.
2. Replace the IDs with the ones you want, separated by commas.

Example: Change the IDs to actual video IDs.

Trick 9: Switching to a Subscription-Only Feed

See only videos from your subscriptions:

1. Add “/feed/subscriptions” to the end of “https://www.youtube.com/”.

Example: Go to “https://www.youtube.com/feed/subscriptions”.

Trick 10: Creating GIFs from YouTube Videos

Make GIFs for sharing:

1. Copy the video’s ID.
2. Open “gifs.com/gif/video_id” in your browser.

Example: Change “video_id” in the URL.

These tricks can change your YouTube game without any extra downloads. Enjoy your enhanced YouTube experience!