What Is YouTube Ambient Mode?

YouTube recently announced a series of changes to its video-watching interface. One of these changes is a new feature known as Ambient Mode. In this guide, we'll go over exactly what Ambient Mode on YouTube is and show you how to turn it on or off. Let's take a look at what YouTube's Ambient Mode is!

What Is YouTube Ambient Mode?

Ambient Mode is essentially a lighting effect that surrounds a given YouTube video with a soft, glowing light, usually reflecting the colors present in the video itself. The effect resembles the glow of a TV screen in a room with the lights off (YouTube said this was in fact the inspiration for the effect). YouTube has also said Ambient Mode is meant to make watching videos in dark mode feel "more immersive." Ambient Mode was officially announced in late October 2022 and is available on web, Android, and iOS.

When it comes to Ambient Mode, it's best understood by seeing it in action. You can find YouTube's official announcement of the feature, showing what a video looks like before and after Ambient Mode is turned on, at this link!

On the left, before Ambient Mode is turned on, you'll see the video player's background is a flat, black screen. But on the right, after Ambient Mode is turned on, the background behind the video player at the top of the screen glows with a soft pink/red tone reflecting the video's colors. That's Ambient Mode: a color-shifting glow effect while a video plays.

How to Turn On YouTube Ambient Mode

Ambient Mode is only available when YouTube's Dark Theme is turned on. That means you first need to enable Dark Theme. Once Dark Theme is on, Ambient Mode will be enabled automatically. Here's how to turn on Dark Theme:

On the Web:

If you haven't already, go to YouTube.com and sign in to your account. Then select: your profile icon > Appearance > Dark theme or Use device theme (if your device is currently set to dark mode).

On Android and iOS:

Open the app. Then select: your profile icon > Settings > General > Appearance > Dark theme or Use device theme (if your device is currently set to use dark mode).

How to Turn Off YouTube Ambient Mode

Ambient Mode is meant to be gentle and subtle, but if you find it distracting, you can still turn it off. The process for disabling Ambient Mode is nearly identical on web, Android, and iOS:

On the video you're currently watching, select the Settings gear icon. Then, from the menu that opens, select Ambient mode to toggle it on or off. (On the web, there's an actual toggle switch next to Ambient mode.)

Turning the feature off for one video appears to disable it for every video you watch going forward. So if you want Ambient Mode to appear again, you'll need to turn it back on the same way you turned it off.