Google recently sent a cease and desist letter to the developers of popular third-party YouTube mod app Vanced. As a result, the YouTube Vanced team decided to shut down the app’s development and take down all the download links. YouTube Vanced has been a companion for Android users for years, enabling them to watch YouTube videos without ads, play background audio, and other premium features. So, if you are a YouTube Vanced user and looking for a new app, here are the best alternative options to watch YouTube videos on your phone.

YouTube Premium

While this might sound obvious, some users started using YouTube Vanced due to the unavailability of the YouTube Premium subscription in their countries. Ever since its inception, YouTube has expanded YouTube Premium to multiple countries, and you can view the list of all available countries here.

  • YouTube PremiumNewPipeSkyTubeLibreTubeuYouPlus – YouTube Vanced Alternative for iOSFirefox with uBlock OriginKiwi with UBlock Origin and SponsorBlockChange DNS to Block YouTube AdsFrequently Asked Questions

Now, the best option is to pay for and subscribe to YouTube Premium to replace Vanced on your Android phone. It gives you access to ad-free and background playback along with offline downloads and a free YouTube Music Premium subscription. If you want the official YouTube app experience without any hassle and support creators, consider subscribing to YouTube Premium.

Cons:

  • Can’t get Vanced features like SponsorBlock and swipe controls for volume and brightnessMay feel pricey to someTied to your Google account

Subscribe to YouTube Premium

NewPipe is undoubtedly the best YouTube Vanced alternative out there at the moment. For the uninitiated, NewPipe is a free and open-source YouTube client that doesn’t rely on Google’s framework libraries or the YouTube API. You can use NewPipe without Google Mobile Services (GMS), which means it will even work on Huawei devices, and even use the app without a Google account.

Other than an ad-free experience, you can use NewPipe to download videos to your device locally and not just within the app. Furthermore, you have the option to import your subscriptions from YouTube, so you can pick up right where you left off. That said, it’s worth noting that you can’t sign in to your Google account on NewPipe, and that’s a conscious decision from the developers to improve privacy.

Download NewPipe

Another YouTube Vanced alternative worth checking out is SkyTube. Much like NewPipe, SkyTube is a free, open-source YouTube client for Android devices. You can use SkyTube without a Google account and can’t sign in to your account to sync your playback history here. However, you have the option to import subscriptions, so you don’t need to search for each creator individually and start from scratch.

Notably, SkyTube comes in two variants — SkyTube and SkyTube Extra. SkyTube Extra supports the official YouTube player and casting, while the regular SkyTube app takes a conservative approach without additional features. However, the option to sign in to your Google account is still missing on SkyTube Extra. Based on your preferences, you can choose the SkyTube version that suits your needs.

  • Can’t sign in with Google account

Download SkyTube | Download SkyTube Extra

LibreTube is an upcoming YouTube client based on privacy-friendly YouTube frontend Piped. The app’s design feels modern and offers intuitive animations during navigation. You also get fine-tuned controls to pick the video quality and format during playback. These options are also available when downloading videos for offline access.

With that said, do keep in mind that LibreTube is still in beta, and you may run into bugs. We encountered a few glitches during our brief testing, the misaligned description you see above, for instance. However, we could expect LibreTube to improve over time, so you can give it a shot to see if you like it.

  • Can’t log in with Google accountBuggy for now

Download LibreTube

Those looking for a YouTube Vanced alternative for iOS should check out uYouPlus. It is essentially a modified version of uYou with additional features such as SponsorBlock integration, PiP integration, and VP9 codec. Notably, uYouPlus works even without jailbreaking your iPhone. You can download uYouPlus from the link below and check our guide on sideloading apps on iPhone to install uYouPlus through AltStore.

Cons:

Download uYouPlus for iOS

Firefox with uBlock Origin

If you are someone who’s okay with using the YouTube mobile website to stream videos, consider installing uBlock Origin Firefox add-on to block ads on YouTube and other sites. There’s another Firefox add-on called YouTube High Definition that ensures all YouTube videos play in HD by default. You can go through our list of the best Firefox add-ons to install more privacy-centric add-ons to ensure a safe browsing experience.

Download Firefox

Pros:

Download Kiwi Browser

Also worth exploring is the idea of using a Private DNS like AdGuard to block YouTube ads. If you have an Android phone running Android 9 Pie or above, head over to the Private DNS option under Network & Internet settings to use AdGuard as your DNS. Doing so will stop ads when you are watching YouTube videos from a mobile browser. In case you are using a phone with an older version of Android, take a look at our guide on changing Android DNS settings for detailed instructions.

  • Watch YouTube videos from browser without adsSign in to your Google accountBlocks ads everywhere

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What happened to YouTube Vanced?

Q: Which is the best YouTube Vanced alternative for Android?