YouTube App For Android Gets Incognito Mode Feature

Google is now rolling out an “Incognito mode” for its YouTube and YouTube Music apps for Android devices. The new feature will allow users to temporarily disable their watch and search history, much like how Incognito works on the Google Chrome web browser.

To activate Incognito mode in YouTube, users must tap on their avatar on the YouTube app, which is located at the upper right corner. The “Turn on Incognito” option should appear just below the “Switch account” option. This new option replaces the Sign Out button. Tapping on “Turn on Incognito” will allow users to continue browsing and watching videos without having to worry about their search history.

“When you turn off incognito or become inactive, your activity from this session will be cleared and you’ll return to the account last used,” YouTube’s pop-up message says when users turn on Incognito mode. “Your activity might still be visible to your employer, school, or internet service provider.”

Once the Incognito mode is activated, there will be clear visual indicators that it’s currently turned on. The bottom of the YouTube app will say “You’re incognito,” while the user’s avatar will be replaced by the incognito icon with the hat and glasses, as pointed out by Engadget. Although this new feature is great for those who may want to hide their search and viewing history, it does limit some of the YouTube app’s other features.

The only accessible parts of the app while Incognito mode is turned on are the Home and Trending menus. If users go to their Subscriptions, Inbox or their Library, they will be greeted with a blank screen telling them that it’s inaccessible while they’re in Incognito mode. A button to turn off Incognito will also be present on the page. If users try to to add a video to a playlist while they are in Incognito mode, a button will simply appear telling them to turn the feature off. Another way to manually turn off Incognito mode is by tapping on the avatar icon and pressing “Turn off Incognito.”

Another thing to take note of about YouTube’s Incognito mode is that it doesn’t keep users logged on to their accounts, as pointed out by Android Authority. This means that users won’t actually be able to watch age-restricted videos on YouTube while they’re in Incognito mode. When users try to watch an age-restricted video, the YouTube app will ask users to disable the mode.

Incognito mode for the YouTube app is now being rolled out to Android devices. 9To5Google says that the new feature should be available in version 13.25.56 of the YouTube app found on the Google Play Store. There's no word yet if the feature will be made available to the YouTube iOS app.