The Ultimate Guide to YouTube's Ambient Mode: What It Is and How to Manage It

What is Ambient Mode?

Ambient Mode on YouTube adds a soft, glowing light around the video player, reflecting the colors from the video itself. This effect makes viewing more immersive, similar to watching a TV in a dark room where the screen’s light spills onto the surrounding area. YouTube introduced this feature to enhance dark mode and provide a more cinematic feel to video playback.

How to Enable and Disable Ambient Mode

The process for enabling and disabling Ambient Mode requires dark mode to be active first. Below are the steps for web, Android, and iOS.

On the Web

• Enable:
  • Click your profile icon (or three dots if not logged in).
  • Go to 'Appearance', select 'Dark theme'.
  • Open any video, click the gear icon, select 'Additional settings', and toggle on 'Ambient mode'.
• Disable:
  • Open any video, click the gear icon, select 'Additional settings', and toggle off 'Ambient mode'.

On Android

• Enable:
  • Enable dark mode in device settings (Settings > Display > Dark theme).
  • Open a video in YouTube, tap the gear icon, select 'Additional settings', and toggle on 'Ambient mode'.
• Disable:
  • Open a video, tap the gear icon, select 'Additional settings', and toggle off 'Ambient mode'.

On iOS

• Enable:
  • Enable dark mode in device settings (Settings > Display & Brightness > Dark).
  • Open a video in YouTube, tap the gear icon, select 'Additional settings', and toggle on 'Ambient mode'.
• Disable:
  • Open a video, tap the gear icon, select 'Additional settings', and toggle off 'Ambient mode'.

Benefits and Troubleshooting

Benefits

• Enhances immersion in videos.
• Reduces eye strain in dark environments.
• Adds aesthetic appeal to the viewing experience.

Troubleshooting

• If Ambient Mode doesn’t work:
  • Ensure dark mode is enabled.
  • Toggle Ambient Mode on and off.
  • Check for app updates.
  • Clear cache and cookies if needed.

Surprising Detail: Toggle Flexibility

Even with dark mode enabled, you can choose to turn Ambient Mode on or off, giving users flexibility to customize their viewing experience.