A common issue that many Youtube users face is encountering glitches with their playlists, resulting in videos being unplayable, playlists not loading properly, or strange behavior when trying to edit playlists. This can be frustrating, but there are usually some simple fixes to try that will resolve the problem.
Videos Not Playing in Playlist
One of the most common Youtube playlist issues is when some or all of the videos in a playlist won’t play properly. Often you’ll click on a video and instead of playing it will display an error message. There are a few potential reasons for this:
- The video was removed or deleted – If the original video was removed from Youtube by the creator or due to a copyright claim, it will no longer play in your playlist.
- The video is private or unlisted – If the creator changed a public video to private or unlisted, it will not load in your playlist.
- Region blocking – Sometimes videos are blocked in certain countries or regions, so you may not be able to play it based on your location.
If a video was removed or made private, it will need to be deleted from your playlist. Thankfully Youtube playlists have an easy edit option to remove videos. Simply open your playlist, click the three dot menu next to the missing video, and select “Remove”.
For region blocked videos, you may need to use a VPN service to change your virtual location to a country where the video is viewable. This will allow the video to load in your playlist when your VPN is active.
Entire Playlist Not Loading
In some cases, an entire Youtube playlist may fail to load at all. When you try to open your playlist, you just see a loading graphic but no videos appear. Some troubleshooting steps to try:
- Refresh the page – A simple page refresh can often kickstart a glitched playlist.
- Clear browser cache – Sometimes heavy browser caching can cause issues with Youtube. Clearing it out can help.
- Try incognito/private mode – Open an incognito or private browsing window and test the playlist there.
- Check internet connection – Make sure you don’t have any connectivity issues interfering.
- Try different web browser – Attempt loading the playlist in an alternate browser or Youtube app.
In most cases, one of these basic troubleshooting tips will get the playlist loading again properly. It’s generally just a temporary glitch or connectivity issue stopping it from displaying correctly.
Can’t Add or Remove Videos
If you find that editing your Youtube playlist suddenly isn’t working right, there are a couple things that could be preventing updates:
- Logged out of Youtube account – You need to be logged into the account that created the playlist to edit it.
- Reached playlist limit – Youtube caps playlists at 5000 videos, so you may need to prune it.
- Video set as “Made for kids” – Due to COPPA regulations, “Made for kids” videos can’t be added to playlists.
- Copyright claim on video – Videos subject to copyright claims may be non-editable in playlists.
Double check that you’re logged into Youtube properly and don’t have any restrictions on your account preventing playlist edits. Try logging out and back in again to reset it. If you’re still unable to update your playlist, you may need to reach out to Youtube support for additional help.
Videos Playing Out of Order
With long playlists, sometimes videos may start playing out of the original set order. This can occur if:
- Video was removed – As mentioned above, deleted videos will skip in playlists.
- Auto-play is on – Youtube’s auto-play feature may cause it to skip around.
- Shuffle mode is on – If you accidentally enabled shuffle, it will randomize playback.
Go back into your playlist settings and turn off shuffle mode if it’s enabled. Also turn off auto-play if you prefer to select each video manually. If neither of those fix it, a video was likely removed – find any missing slots and remove the videos so playback order is correct.
Can’t Save New Playlists
Occasionally when trying to create and save a new Youtube playlist, it simply won’t save properly. If you run into this, try these tips:
- Refresh and retry saving – A page refresh may resolve transient glitches.
- Check account permissions – Ensure your account can create new playlists.
- Duplicate name – Playlist names must be unique, rename if needed.
- Clear browser data – Removing cookies and cache can help.
- Try alternate browser – Saving issues may be browser-specific.
Make sure third party browser extensions aren’t interfering with Youtube functionality. The Youtube mobile app can also help determine if the issue is browser-related. Check your overall account status for any restrictions, and contact support if needed.
Other Playlist Troubleshooting
Here are some other common troubleshooting steps to resolve Youtube playlist errors:
- Double check playlist privacy settings
- Test playlists when logged out of your account
- Try playing playlist on different devices
- If issue persists across devices, contact Youtube support
- Update browser and Youtube app to latest versions
- Temporarily disable browser extensions related to Youtube
- Clear Youtube view history and restart playlist
- Create a new, replacement playlist if needed
Youtube playlists are very convenient but can definitely encounter strange glitches or bugs at times. However, in most cases you can get your playlist working again with some simple troubleshooting techniques. Test different browsers, devices, and accounts to isolate the issue, then utilize Youtube’s editing tools to fix videos that have been removed or made private. Check your overall account status and permissions if needed. With a few tweaks and workarounds, your playlist should be smoothly streaming videos again.
