YouTube Playables

0:02 To play games on YouTube, open the Playables shelf on the Home page, go to youtube.com/playables, or on a computer open the Explore menu and choose Playables, then pick a game and it starts in the player with nothing to install (YouTube Help). Playables are small casual games (puzzles, word games, arcade games) that YouTube hosts itself, free to every signed-in viewer in the countries where they are offered, on phones, tablets and computers. They began as a test for some users in 2023 and opened to everyone on May 29, 2024 with more than 75 games, among them Angry Birds Showdown, Cut the Rope, Words of Wonders and Trivia Crack.

Quick facts

Source: Play games on YouTube with Playables, YouTube Help.

How do I play games on YouTube?

1. Update the YouTube app, or open youtube.com in Chrome, Safari or Firefox, and sign in.
2. Scroll the Home page to the Playables shelf, or go straight to youtube.com/playables. On a computer, Explore in the left menu also lists Playables.
3. Choose a game. It loads inside YouTube; there is no separate download.
4. To come back later, save the game; saved games sit in the You tab.

0:10 Typing a game's name into YouTube search also finds it, and searching for "YouTube Playables" brings up the whole catalog, where tapping a game loads it straight into the app. If the shelf never appears, the usual reasons are an old app version, a country not on the list, or a device below the requirements (YouTube Help).

Which devices and countries get Playables?

YouTube Help lists Android app 20.46 or higher on Android S and later, with Android O to R supported only on 64-bit or high-memory 32-bit devices, the iOS app 20.44 or higher on iOS 14 or later, and the web in Chrome, Safari and Firefox. Playables are not offered everywhere: the Help page names 87 countries as of Nov 6, 2026, from Algeria to Zimbabwe, including the United States, the UK, Canada, Australia, most of the EU, Japan, Taiwan, Brazil and Mexico. Help names no smart TV or console version.

Saving progress and history

Progress saves on its own and follows the signed-in account to every supported device. Each game keeps a single save file, stored in YouTube History under Interactions, and the all-time best score is kept separately, so deleting one does not delete the other. Deleting a save wipes that game's progress everywhere. With YouTube History turned off, games played are not recorded, and YouTube says game progress is not used for video recommendations, though Playables history does shape which games it suggests (YouTube Help; see Recommendations and Watch History).

Hiding Playables

Viewers who do not want games can mark the shelf, or a single game, "Not interested", which demotes it rather than removing it for good (YouTube Help). Help describes no switch that turns Playables off entirely.

Playables for creators and developers

Eligible creators can play Playables while live streaming vertically from a phone, added in YouTube's creator updates of March 2026 for select countries and games (YouTube Help; see Live Streaming). Game studios that want a title on YouTube apply through an interest form linked from the Playables Help page. In his Jan 21, 2026 letter, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan said creators would be able to make games from a text prompt during 2026 (Tubefilter); as of Nov 6, 2026, Help describes no such tool.

What creators say

0:36 In a Jun 16, 2024 video, less than three weeks after Playables opened to everyone, George Vanous, who runs the Freedom! network, opened Playables from the left menu and played State.io, a real-time game of taking over regions on a map, inside the YouTube player. He noted that the games were ones also found on the Google Play Store, and that playing them on YouTube had earned him 18,300 of the in-game tokens, which he called "pretty cool". The game list has changed since, and Help is the current word on it.

Frequently asked questions

Are YouTube Playables free? Yes. YouTube Playables cost nothing and do not need YouTube Premium; any signed-in viewer in a supported country can play them.

Where is Playables on YouTube? YouTube shows a Playables shelf on the Home page, and the full catalog is at youtube.com/playables. On a computer it is also under Explore > Playables in the left menu.

Why can't I see Playables on YouTube? YouTube offers Playables only in its listed countries and needs a recent app (Android 20.46 or iOS 20.44 or higher as of Nov 6, 2026) or Chrome, Safari or Firefox on the web. Marking the shelf "Not interested" also pushes it down.

Does YouTube save my game progress? Yes. YouTube saves Playables progress automatically and syncs it to every device signed in to the same account, unless YouTube History is turned off.

Can I play YouTube Playables on a TV? YouTube Help lists only Android, iPhone and iPad and web browsers for Playables; it names no TV or console app as of Nov 6, 2026.

Sources

• Play games on YouTube with Playables, YouTube Help, read Nov 6, 2026
• Creator updates, YouTube Help, read Nov 6, 2026
• Neal Mohan's 2026 letter to creators, Tubefilter, Jan 21, 2026
• Google Brings Over 75 Free-to-Play Games to YouTube, Thurrott, May 29, 2024
• YouTube Playables Play games on YouTube!, Freedom!, Jun 16, 2024 (video)
• How To Play Games On YouTube App (YouTube Playables), ForceRestart, Aug 7, 2026 (video)