5 Steps To Listen To YouTube Music Offline (Updated 2023)

Being able to stream my favorite songs offline is…

1 of the best features I love about Youtube Music. 

And if you’re not part of the offline-streaming-squad yet…

Unfortunately, you’re missing out on a lot of good stuff. 

But don’t worry. Allow me to help you hop in on the trend. 

Just… 

Continue reading to learn:

• 5 quick steps to listen to Youtube Music offline. 
• How to enable Youtube Music’s Smart Downloads. 
• 3 easy fixes you can try if the offline-streaming feature isn’t working. 
• And this is just the beginning… 

Can you listen to YouTube Music offline?

You can listen to Youtube Music offline. Just click the playlists or songs you wish to play without the Internet. And tap the download option of that specific track or album. Or, you can also ask Youtube to automatically download the songs you’ve listened to recently. 

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How to listen to YouTube Music offline? 5 steps

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#1: Open your Youtube Music app

Don’t have it on your phone or tablet yet? Don’t worry. 

Here’s how you can easily…

Download the Youtube Music app on your device

For Apple users:

1. Turn ON your device and head to the App Store. 
2. On the bottom-right, tap the Search icon. 
3. Type in “Youtube Music.” 
4. Click the official app. 
5. Tap the blue GET option. 
6. Input your credentials if needed.
7. Wait for Youtube Music to finish downloading. 

To access the app directly, you can also click here. 

For Android users:

1. Turn ON your Android device. 
2. Go to the Google Play Store app. 
3. In the search bar, type in “Youtube Music.”
4. Tap the Install button beside the app. 
5. Follow the on-screen instructions. 
6. Wait for the process to finish. 

Note: Many companies use Android as the OS of their devices. So, the steps may vary slightly depending on your device’s model. 

But if you want a shortcut, you can simply click this link to download the app directly. 

Now that you have Youtube Music on your device’s home screen, open it up and… 

#2: Sign in to your Youtube account

If you’re already logged in to the regular Youtube app on the same device… 

You’ll have the option to continue with Youtube Music using the same account. 

All you need to do is tap the “CONTINUE AS (YOUR NAME)” option that’ll show up once you open the app. 

But if you wish to use a different account… 

Just tap the Select another account option at the bottom of the screen. 

Then, input your necessary credentials to sign in to the app. 

Now, before you proceed to the next step… 

Reminder: You need to have a Youtube Music Premium membership to stream using the app offline. 

So if you’re not subscribed to Youtube Music yet… 

Here’s a chart that can give you an idea of how much Youtube Premium costs:

Suitable for:	Prices
Individuals	$9.99
Family use (5 members)	$14.99
Students	$4.99

So pick the best plan for your interests. And once you’ve logged in using Youtube premium…

#3: Optimize your Youtube account

The 1st page you’ll see on the app is your Home page. 

Here you’ll find the most popular songs based on:

• Your location.
• Different genres.
• The artists that you like. 

Now, if this is your 1st time using the Youtube Music app…

I recommend telling Youtube which artists you like now. In other words, you need to optimize your account. 

Why?

Because this makes it easier to find and select the songs you wish to download later. 

Here’s how you can optimize your Youtube Music: 

1. Scroll down your screen.
2. Click the LET’S GO blue button. 
3. Tap on the name of any artists you like. 
4. Tap Done. 

Fun fact: You can select as many musicians as you want to. 

Now, once you’ve optimized your account…

Youtube will prioritize suggesting your favorite artists on your home page. 

And it’ll be much easier to…

#4: Select the songs you wish to download

Now, only you can decide which songs, playlists, or albums you want to download. 

But if you don’t have anything specific in mind yet… 

I recommend checking out the playlists Youtube made for you. 

“Youtube made playlists for me?” 

Well, yes. By choosing your favorite artists in the previous step…

You gave Youtube Music hints on how it can better personalize the app for you. 

Now, here’s how you can… 

Download Youtube’s recommended playlists: 

1. Scroll down until you find the “Mixed for you” heading. 
2. Under this section, swipe left and right to navigate through the playlists. 
3. Tap a playlist you want to download. 
4. Once it’s open, tap the download arrow under the playlist’s name. 

Note: The process of downloading any album or playlist in the app will be similar to this. 

But of course, you won’t always like all the songs on playlists or albums. 

So if you only wish to keep certain songs from 1, here’s how you can…

Download selected songs from a playlist:

1. Tap the name of the song.
2. Click the menu (3 dots) option on the top-right corner. 
3. From the options, tap Download. 

“Is there another way to download songs for offline streaming?”

There is. 

If you want Youtube to automatically download songs based on your listening history… 

Here’s how you can enable Youtube Music’s Smart Downloads: 

1. Open the Youtube Music app. 
2. On the top-right of your screen, tap your profile icon. 
3. Under the Youtube Premium section, click the Downloads option. 
4. At the top, click the gear icon (Settings). 
5. Scroll down until you find the Smart downloads option.
6. Toggle it ON. 

Read next: Can Alexa Play Music From YouTube? 1 Simple Trick

#5: Enjoy listening to Youtube Music offline

Your downloaded songs will now play even if you don’t have an Internet connection. 

But there’s a small catch. 

“What is it?” 

You can’t simply click a song from your app’s Home screen or Library. And expect it to play offline. 

Why?

Because there’s a specific process you need to follow to… 

Play songs offline on your Youtube Music app: 

1. Open your app.
2. Tap your profile icon on the top-right. 
3. Click Downloads under the Youtube Premium section. 
4. You’ll find your downloaded albums, playlists, and songs. 
5. Select the 1 you wish to play. 

Reminder: You have to play downloaded songs from the Downloads section. As this is the only way they’ll play offline. 

Now, if you want to know more about what you can do in the Youtube Music app, watch this video: 

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Why can’t I listen to YouTube Music offline? 3 causes & fixes

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#1: You’re not playing your music the right way

Believe it or not, the number 1 cause of this issue isn’t a software or hardware problem.

Instead, it’s caused by a simple mistake Youtube Music users always make…

When they’re trying to stream offline in the app for the 1st time. 

Don’t worry. I’ll explain this in detail. 

As you know, the easiest way to play songs in the Youtube Music app…

Is to simply tap a track or a playlist on your Home or Library page. 

Now, this method will work fine if you’re connected to the Internet.

But unfortunately, if you’re streaming offline, this process won’t work.

Why?

Because you need to…

Access your downloaded songs through the Download section:

1. On the app, tap your profile picture or icon. 
2. Under the title Youtube Premium, tap Downloads. 
3. Select any of the music listed on your screen. 

Try playing your songs this way and check if it fixes the problem.

#2: The app hasn’t connected to the Internet for a month

Honestly, being able to stream songs offline…

Will make you forget the need to connect your Youtube Music app to the Internet again. 

So if you haven’t done this in ages…

I can’t blame you. Because I can totally relate to that. 

But you see, according to Youtube themselves… 

You must reconnect the app to the Internet at least once every 30 days. To maintain the downloaded songs on your device.

So if you don’t remember when the last time you connected your app to the Internet was…

It’s time to let it reunite with your Wifi or data again. 

Now, if you’re going to use your Wifi network to do this…

All you need to do is connect your device to the network and open the Youtube music app. 

But if you’re going to use your cellular data for this process… 

You’ll need to do a bit of extra work.

Don’t worry, though. That doesn’t mean it’s going to be any harder. 

Here are the… 

2 simple steps to allow your Youtube Music app to use your data

Step 1: Turn off the Stream via Wi-Fi Only option inside the app

1. Turn ON your data and open your Youtube Music app. 
2. Tap your profile icon at the top-right corner. 
3. Select Settings. 
4. Find the Stream via Wi-Fi Only section.
5. Ensure that the toggle is turned OFF. 

Step 2: Allow the app to access your data in your device’s settings

For iOS devices:

1. Go to your Settings app. 
2. Tap Cellular.
3. Scroll down to the CELLULAR DATA menu. 
4. You’ll see all the apps using your data.
5. Find the Youtube Music app and ensure it’s toggled ON. 

For Android devices:

1. Go to your Settings. 
2. Select Network & Internet > Data Usage.
3. Find the Youtube Music app from the list.
4. Turn it ON using the toggle option. 

Once you finish these steps… 

Open your Youtube Music app again and leave it connected to the Internet for a couple of hours. 

You might also want to know: 17 Amazing Alexa Music Commands (You’ll Love #7)

#3: You’re not using a premium account 

If none of the previous solutions fixed this problem.

Then the account you’re currently using may not be subscribed to the premium plan. 

Because simply speaking, the free accounts aren’t eligible for offline streaming. 

“But I’ve already subscribed to Youtube Music Premium.”

Then if that’s the case… 

You should check if your account is still connected to the plan.

Because your subscription period may have recently ended without you realizing it. 

Here’s how you can…

Check if your Youtube Music account is subscribed to the premium plan: 

1. On your device, open the Youtube Music app. 
2. Tap your profile picture or icon. 
3. From the menu that appears, tap the Paid memberships option.
4. You’ll find your subscription information.

Now, if this page is empty, or if Youtube asks you to subscribe to premium…

Then that means that your account is currently not subscribed to the plan. 

And you should do so if you want to use Youtube Music offline.