Yes, creating and using YouTube playlists is completely free for all users. YouTube playlists allow you to organize and save videos to watch later, share with others, or embed on websites. There are no fees or charges associated with creating, managing, or viewing YouTube playlists.
What is a YouTube Playlist?
A YouTube playlist is a collection of videos that can be played back to back. Playlists allow you to curate and group together videos around a certain theme, topic, artist, etc. When one video ends, the next video in the playlist will automatically start playing.
Playlists make it easy to watch multiple related videos without having to search for each one individually. They also let you save videos to watch later, rather than having to remember or bookmark each video URL separately.
Who Can Create Playlists?
All YouTube users can create playlists, regardless of whether they have a free YouTube/Google account or a paid YouTube Premium subscription.
Playlists are available across all platforms where YouTube can be accessed, including the YouTube website, mobile apps, smart TVs, and gaming consoles.
Creating a Playlist
To create a new playlist on YouTube:
- Sign into your YouTube or Google account
- Find a video you want to add to a new playlist
- Click the “Save” button below the video → “New playlist”
- Name your playlist and click “Create”
- Repeat to add additional videos to the same playlist
Playlists can also be created directly from the “Playlists” tab on your YouTube account. Simply click the “New playlist” button and you can begin adding videos.
Managing Your Playlists
Once you’ve created playlists, you have full control over managing them:
Add/remove videos – Add more videos or remove existing ones from any playlist.
Reorder videos – Drag and drop to rearrange the order of videos in a playlist.
Edit playlist details – Change the name, description, privacy settings, and more.
Add collaborators – Invite others to contribute to a playlist.
Download playlist – Download a copy of the playlist to your device.
Delete playlist – Permanently delete a playlist from your account.
Privacy Settings for Playlists
When creating a new playlist, you can choose a privacy setting:
Public – Anyone can view the playlist and videos.
Unlisted – Only accessible via direct link, not searchable or suggested.
Private – Only you can view the playlist.
Making a playlist public is great for sharing widely and getting more views. A private or unlisted playlist is good for personal organizing or sharing with a limited group.
Sharing Playlists
You can easily share YouTube playlists with friends, family, co-workers, and followers:
- Get the playlist URL from the browser address bar or YouTube playlist options.
- Post the link directly anywhere – email, messaging, social media, etc.
- Use the YouTube “Share” button below the playlist to copy a link or embed code.
- Share playlists directly to connected social media accounts.
- Make a playlist collaborative to invite other accounts to add videos.
Watching Playlists
YouTube makes it simple to watch playlists:
- Click a saved playlist from your account “Playlists” tab to start watching.
- Open a shared playlist URL in your browser or YouTube app.
- Playlists will auto-play through all videos in order.
- Click any video to play it individually, then resume the full playlist.
- Use playlist drop-down controls to shuffle or loop videos.
Benefits of Using Playlists
YouTube playlists offer many benefits for both viewers and channel creators:
Organized watching – Play related videos back-to-back without searching.
Discoverability – Viewers can find new videos in a playlist.
Binge watching – Settle in with a long playlist of hours of content.
Separate viewing interests – Have playlists for fitness, cooking, music, etc.
Watch later convenience – Easily save videos without losing track of them.
Fewer ads – When you play videos in a playlist, fewer ads are shown.
Background listening – Works for audio-only listening on mobile.
For YouTube creators, playlists offer additional benefits:
Organize channel uploads – Group your videos into themed playlists.
Drive more watch time – Playlists keep viewers watching more of your content.
Highlight key content – Feature top videos or playlists on your channel.
Curate by topic/series – Create playlists around key themes or for series.
Engage fans – Let viewers contribute to collaborative playlists.
Other Playlist Features
Beyond the basics, YouTube offers some fun additional features and options for playlists:
Enqueue next – When watching a single video, add to a playlist queue.
Play all on homepage – Auto-play latest video uploads as a playlist.
Playlist import – Import playlists from other YouTube accounts.
Playlist radio – Let YouTube auto-generate a playlist with related songs.
Auto-generate chapter playlists – Break long videos into chapters.
YouTube Playlist Limitations
YouTube playlists do come with a few limitations:
- Up to 200 videos can be added to a single playlist.
- Total playlists per account is capped at 5,000.
- No way to reorder playlists themselves (only videos within playlists).
- Can’t download playlists offline with the free YouTube app.
- No Admiralty support – have to manually avoid duplicating videos.
For most users, these limits are well beyond what you would ever need. But good to be aware of for extreme playlist creators.
YouTube Music Playlists
Within YouTube Music specifically, there are additional powerful features:
- Add any YouTube video, even if not officially a song.
- Official songs include time-synced lyrics.
- Play high-quality audio only versions.
- Listen offline and ad-free with YouTube Music Premium.
- Get customized playlists from YouTube Music based on your tastes.
So for music playlists, YouTube Music offers a much more robust experience than standard YouTube.
Playlist Alternatives
While YouTube’s built-in playlists are convenient, here are some alternative options:
Bookmark services – Tools like Diigo let you bookmark video URLs.
Link lists – Simple text lists of video links on a website or document.
Dedicated apps – 3rd party apps just for YouTube playlist creation.
Other platforms – Facebook Watch, Reddit, Pinterest boards, etc. for video curation.
However, none offer quite the same seamless integrated experience as YouTube’s own playlists that connect directly to your account and channel.
Tips for Creating Great Playlists
Follow these tips for making the most effective YouTube playlists:
- Give playlists descriptive but concise names.
- Organize playlists around themes, artists, series, etc.
- Start playlists with your best or most popular video.
- Arrange videos in a logical order in each playlist.
- Keep playlists focused – don’t mix unrelated content.
- Update playlists regularly with new uploads.
- Review analytics to see which playlists drive most traffic.
- Promote your key playlists on your YouTube channel.
- Link between related playlists for better discovery.
Leveraging playlists helps keep viewers engaged on YouTube while enabling creators to feature their best content. For both YouTube fans and channel owners alike, playlists are an incredibly valuable tool!
