How to change default video streaming quality on YouTube
Apr 27, 2023
By: Priye RaiDefault video streaming quality setting
By default, YouTube streams videos on the ‘Auto’ setting which automatically determines the suitable streaming quality based on your internet connection. However, you can change this default behaviour from the app settings.
Use case
The ability to change the default video streaming quality may come in handy for those who want to always view videos on a particular quality setting.
Changing the default streaming quality: Getting started
Launch the YouTube app and tap on the profile icon at the top right.
Profile section
Next, tap on ‘Settings’.
Settings section
Tap on ‘Video quality preferences’.
Video quality preferences section
Tap and select the desired streaming quality for when you are using mobile data and for when you are using the Wi-Fi.
Works for two kinds of viewers
This setting is useful for two distinct kinds of viewers. Those who want to save internet data can select the ‘Data saver’ option as default setting, whereas those who always prefer to stream videos in the highest quality can choose the ‘Higher picture quality’ option.
Higher picture quality doesn’t work on all videos
For certain videos, selecting the ‘Higher picture quality’ default setting may not work as expected if the original video itself was uploaded in poor quality.
Change doesn’t reflect on the web
Changing the default streaming quality on the mobile app doesn’t apply the same setting on the website. This also means that the custom default quality won’t come into effect when using YouTube on desktop either.
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