Parents' Guide to

YouTube Music

By Chris Morris, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 14+

Comprehensive music service almost has it all.

YouTube Music Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this app.

Community Reviews

age 12+

Based on 5 parent reviews

age 14+

Can't turn off explicit content permanently

At present it appears as a parent you can't switch off the explicit content permanently. This is incredibly frustrating and should be a crucial part of being a family account. The industry should be protecting children, not exploiting them
age 2+

It's just music

It's just music

This title has:

Educational value
Great messages
Great role models
Easy to play/use

Privacy Rating Warning

  • Personal information is not sold or rented to third parties.
  • Personal information is shared for third-party marketing.
  • Personalised advertising is displayed.
  • Data are collected by third-parties for their own purposes.
  • User's information is used to track and target advertisements on other third-party websites or services.
  • Unclear whether this product creates and uses data profiles for personalised advertisements.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (5 ):
Kids say (9 ):

With a deep, diverse catalogue of artists and videos, this music streamer is a definite contender; however, its interface could use a little streamlining. One cool feature is the ability to toggle between audio and video seamlessly with the video picking up exactly where the song is playing, and the inclusion of fan-shot videos of live performances gives the service something its competitors can't offer. Also, videos can be "cast" to your TV using Google Chrome. That said, there's a lot going on here, and the app sometimes stumbles over itself. The user interface could use some refinement to make it more intuitive: An introductory tutorial (beyond the pop-up hints) would help. A parent's biggest concern will be the content of the music and videos, since there are no filters or a safety mode, but if your kids already have Google accounts and are allowed on YouTube, they already have access to iffy content. Parents can access recent searches and videos viewed in settings, and checking out videos by your kids' favorite artists will give you an idea of what's available.

App Details

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

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