Is YouTube Premium Worth the Cost? 7 Things to Consider

If you enjoy watching videos on YouTube, you may have thought about subscribing to YouTube Premium. Is YouTube Premium, on the other hand, a good investment?

Let's look at what YouTube Premium has to offer, what you should know about it, and how to decide if it's worth it for you.

1. How Much Does YouTube Premium Cost?

After a one-month free trial, YouTube Premium (formerly YouTube Red) costs $11.99 per month. There are also two other plans for families and students to choose from.

YouTube Premium's Family plan costs $17.99 per month. It allows you to add up to five additional people who are at least 13 years old and live in your household (a total of six members) to receive the same benefits. These people must live at the same address as you, according to YouTube's terms.

If you are a student and can provide verification (which is required each year), the Student YouTube Premium plan costs $6.99 per month instead.

The cost of Premium is determined by how many of the benefits of YouTube Premium you use. Keep this in mind as we examine them further below, particularly in comparison to what other services, such as Spotify Premium and Netflix, have to offer.

2. No Ads in YouTube Videos

The most appealing feature of YouTube Premium is that it removes advertisements from all YouTube videos. While there are other ways to avoid advertisements on YouTube, they are not officially sanctioned and deprive creators of revenue. Furthermore, the lack of advertisements extends to all platforms, including smart TV apps, game consoles, and your phone.

As it turns out, one of the driving forces behind YouTube Premium is the prevalence of ad-blocking. YouTube has long been the king of free videos, but hosting and streaming those videos is expensive. If people continue to block ads, YouTube will be forced to pursue alternative revenue models.

We understand how annoying advertisements can be, especially when you have to sit through a 15-second ad just to watch a 30-second YouTube clip. Do you want to get rid of them? YouTube Premium allows you to do so in a way that benefits both the service and the creators you watch.

YouTube explains that the money received from Premium subscribers is distributed among the channels that those people watch. So by watching your favourite channels with Premium, they're earning money that they wouldn't have been able to earn otherwise through advertisements.

3. Full Access to YouTube Originals

Even if you don't mind watching ads on YouTube, there are a few other features that could justify the price of YouTube Premium. One of the early benefits of YouTube Premium was access to YouTube Originals, a collection of original shows created by YouTube.

However, YouTube has recently made many YouTube Originals available to everyone. Free users can now watch YouTube Originals content with advertisements, just like any other video. According to the company, "only select episodes may be available for streaming at any given time," but in our experience, the majority of Originals content is accessible to all.

However, being a YouTube Premium member has some advantages when it comes to Originals. Aside from ad-free access, subscribers can watch all available episodes of a series as soon as they are released. They also have access to additional content such as deleted scenes and director's cuts.

Check out the YouTube Originals channel to see what's new. Some Premium videos are only available to subscribers.

4. YouTube Music Premium Is Included

Access to YouTube Music Premium is included with a YouTube Premium subscription. YouTube Music is Google's music streaming service, if you're not familiar with it. It took the place of Google Play Music, which was phased out in late 2020.

YouTube Music, like Spotify and other music streaming platforms, is free to use. You also get ad-free access, the ability to play music in the background, and the option to download music for offline listening with YouTube Music Premium.

YouTube Music Premium is $9.99 per month on its own, so it adds a significant amount of value to YouTube Premium. If you don't already have a Spotify, Apple Music, or similar subscription, you can enjoy two types of subscriptions under one roof.

5. Video Downloads and Background Play

The benefits of YouTube Premium listed above are available wherever you use YouTube. However, there are a few advantages to watching on mobile devices.

One advantage of YouTube Premium is the ability to download videos to your iPhone or Android phone for offline viewing. This is useful for watching videos on the go if you have a limited data plan, as well as in places where there is no connection, such as on a plane.

You can also enable background video playback on YouTube's mobile apps. Your video will continue to play even if you switch to another app or turn your screen off. This is useful if you frequently listen to long YouTube videos where all you care about is the audio. Keeping your phone's screen turned off will also save battery life.

If you have children, you'll be relieved to know that the ad-free and offline access benefits extend to the YouTube Kids app as well.

6. YouTube Premium Is Not YouTube TV

Because the names of YouTube's paid services are so similar, it's easy to get them mixed up. We've mentioned that YouTube Premium includes YouTube Music Premium, as well as that you can sign up for YouTube Music Premium independently of YouTube Premium.

However, you should be aware that neither of these services is the same as YouTube TV. YouTube TV is a television streaming service that allows you to watch live television channels. It has a DVR and other features associated with TV streaming.

YouTube Premium does not grant access to YouTube TV, and YouTube TV does not include YouTube Premium features. Subscribers to YouTube TV, on the other hand, have full access to YouTube Originals, as described above.

Channel memberships are a separate YouTube subscription from Premium. These allow you to directly support a channel while also reaping a few benefits. However, the benefits of YouTube channel membership do not include the removal of ads from a channel.

7. YouTube Premium Isn't Necessary

YouTube Premium has been around for a while, but it hasn't really changed the way YouTube works. If you don't want to pay, you can still watch videos from your favourite channels as usual.

The most significant advantage of YouTube Premium is, without a doubt, the removal of all advertisements. If you watch YouTube on a regular basis, it may be worth the money just for that reason. If you want to catch up on your Watch Later list offline during a trip or flight, you could sign up for one month and then cancel. And, as previously stated, getting YouTube Music Premium is useful if you don't already subscribe to a premium music service.

Otherwise, there isn't much of a reason to subscribe to YouTube Premium. The majority of the Originals no longer require a subscription. Cobra Kai, arguably the most popular YouTube Original, is now available on Netflix. And if you mostly watch smaller channels, it's very unlikely that any of them will be chosen to create a YouTube Original that will be available behind a paywall.

A Netflix subscription provides far more high-quality shows and movies than YouTube Originals for roughly the same price. Amazon Prime, which costs $10 per month if paid annually, provides access to Prime Video, Prime Music, free shipping, and other perks. In comparison, YouTube Premium appears to be far less appealing.

There's also a case to be made that supporting YouTube Premium helps YouTube gain control of traditionally user-generated content, which is what YouTube was all about in the first place.

Should You Join YouTube Premium?

The truth is that YouTube Premium is a mixed bag that will only appeal to a select group of people. You don't need Premium if ads don't bother you. Premium isn't worth it unless you're a big fan of YouTube Originals. Furthermore, if you do not frequently use YouTube's mobile apps, you will not benefit from all of the Premium features.

However, if you want to get rid of YouTube ads and use YouTube Music Premium on a regular basis, YouTube Premium is a good value. Whether you join the service or not, you can benefit from useful YouTube tips to get the most out of it.