Pause YouTube watch history: what happens after

Quick answer

This is the most recommended trick in every 'I watch too much YouTube' thread. Here's how to do it and what actually changes.

What 125x is: 125x is a web app at 125x.app. You connect your YouTube subscriptions, and it gives you a feed of the latest videos from the channels you follow, each with a summary: a verdict, the 5 key takeaways, and the spoiler, plus Actionable and Lessons tabs with more tips. You read that and decide what's actually worth opening.

Open 125x

How to pause it

Go to Google's My Activity, sign in, open the Controls tab, and turn YouTube History off (YouTube Help). You can also delete some or all of your past history there, or set auto-delete.

What changes

Per YouTube, videos you watch while history is off won't show up in your history, and if you have no relevant recent history and don't want recommendations based on it, features like recommendations on the Home page are removed (YouTube Help). YouTube's help also says you can delete and turn off watch history if you don't want Home recommendations (YouTube Help).

People who do this say Home and the Shorts feed go nearly blank. Some notice the phone app's top bar of feeds can disappear too, so test where your Subscriptions page lives.

When it's worth it

You keep falling into Home or Shorts
One late night binge has taken over your recommendations
You want YouTube to work like a search engine

The tradeoff

You lose the history list for finding old videos.
Recommendations get worse, which is the point.
You can turn it back on any time.

How 125x fits

125x builds its feed from your subscriptions, separate from YouTube's watch history, so pausing history doesn't affect it. You keep a feed of channels you chose, with a summary on every video.

FAQ: questions people ask

How do I pause my YouTube watch history?

In Google's My Activity, open the Controls tab and turn off YouTube History.

What happens when you turn off YouTube history?

New views aren't saved, and with no relevant recent history, Home recommendations can be removed.

Does pausing history affect my subscriptions?

Your subscriptions stay. Some people find the app's feed tabs move or hide, so check how you'll reach Subscriptions.