Clicks: If you click on some videos, YouTube will take them as a sign of your interest. Like, Comment, Shares: When you like, share or comment on a video, it especially shows your positive response towards the topic.Watch Time: YouTube algorithm also takes note of how long did you watch a video. Whether you clicked off or watch it till the end. Survey Response: Sometimes YouTube asks you to rate a video that you have just watched. Based on your ratings, YouTube’s recommendation determines how satisfying the content was for you.
Despite this, YouTube recommendations can still not be accurate or aligned with your interests. You can fix this problem by resetting the engagement variables.
Why Does YouTube Recommend Us Irrelevant Contents?
YouTube could fail to make accurate recommendations if you send the wrong signal to its algorithm. This can happen because of the following reasons:
How to Reset YouTube Recommendations?
You can fix your YouTube recommendation by resetting the YouTube engagement variables by resetting search and watch history, by using feedback options, and lastly, by using VPN.
Resetting Watch and Search History
Whenever you search or watch videos on YouTube, the algorithm takes note of that and recommends similar videos in the future. So, you can reset your recommendation by either deleting or pausing the Watch and Search History.
When you are Signed In
To access all YouTube features on your PC browser, you must sign in with your Google account. Similarly, if you are using the YouTube app on your PC or phone, or Smart TV, you can only access it after signing in. The steps to reset your watch history or pause history are similar when you sign in on your YouTube browser or if you are using the YouTube App. Delete or Pause Watch History Delete or Pause Search History Similarly, if you want to pause your search history, follow these steps: With this, you can control and reset your YouTube algorithm by pausing and deleting your watch and search history. When you have not signed in on YouTube, you can still delete or pause either watch history or pause history. To do this, To delete watch or search history, To pause watch or search history,
On Smart TV
Similarly, if you want to delete your search history, follow these steps:
When you aren’t Signed In
On PC, you can use YouTube without having to sign in on a Google account. Similarly, on mobile phones, you can access YouTube on your browsing apps like Google Chrome or Safari as well. And even if you are not signed in, YouTube recommendation still works in your browser. You cannot access the list of video history you havep watched or searched for. But you can still delete or pause either watch history or search history to reset your YouTube recommendation.
Using Feedback Options (Not Interested/Don’t Recommend)
If you have subscribed to a channel, then you will get recommendations to watch their different videos. You can also sometimes get recommended videos from other channels that also make similar content. So, to avoid or fix this, If you want to avoid the contents of a recommended channel, follow these steps: Your YouTube recommendations will be better, as the algorithm will know what content or channel you don’t want to see.
Using VPN
The country you live in also makes a vast difference in the recommendation. The content that is trending in your country or gaining massive engagement is most likely to be suggested to you. You can use a VPN to change your country’s location. There are many free VPN apps and software available online. Alternatively, you can download them for free or purchase premium VPN services. By using VPN, you will be able to avoid your country-specific contents. In addition, you will also be able to access a number of videos that were originally restricted in your country.
Disable Recommendation Notifications
Not only does YouTube recommend videos, but it also sends us notifications. You can easily change this setting on YouTube. With this, you will no longer be bothered by unwanted notifications.
Related Questions
How to Reset YouTube Shorts?
You don’t have to take any extra steps to reset your YouTube Shorts. When you delete or pause your watch and search history, your YouTube shorts will automatically reset.
How Can I Get Better Recommendations on YouTube?
After you delete your search and watch history, try to engage with the content you like as much as you can. This means immediately searching for the content you would like in your recommendation. Doing so will provide YouTube with a better idea of what you prefer.
