YouTube is the largest and most popular platform where you showcase your videos to around 5 Billion users daily! And when guys like you and me can’t get to watch private videos on YouTube, things get a little frustrating.
But on the bright side, that’s good news to uploaders who want to keep their uploads private for whatever reason.
Nonetheless, it begs the question, how to watch private YouTube videos?
Why Can’t You Watch Private Videos on YouTube?
You can’t watch YouTube videos that are private because:
- You may only watch a private video on YouTube if the uploader has granted you access.
- Private YouTube videos do not appear in search results or come up with recommendations.
- The upload of a private video on YouTube does not notify the subscribers about a new upload.
Another thing worth mentioning here is that two types of videos on YouTube do not appear in search results or recommendations. Either it is an unlisted video or a private video.
Unlisted videos are excluded from search results and recommended videos. You can view unlisted YouTube videos if a link to the video is shared with you.
On the contrary, you cannot watch a private YouTube video even if you have a link. They’re set explicitly to private rights by uploaders. It helps YouTubers to schedule their releases without giving away the element of surprise.
How to Watch Private YouTube Videos?
Viewing private YouTube videos may not be as straightforward as typically preached. Even on YouTube Premium, you cannot watch someone’s private videos. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t watch one at all!
Here’s how to watch private YouTube videos.
Watch Private YouTube Videos with Access or Permission
YouTube only lets the original uploader watch a private video or grant access to others. Though it may seem unsetting right now, it’s a commendable privacy feature by YouTube.
The easiest and surest way to view private YouTube videos is by requesting the uploader for access. Stalk and shortlist the uploaders from whom you want to view videos and ask them to grant you access. You’ll need to provide them with a valid username or account to be added to the list of people who can watch the video.
But nine times out of ten, you’ll probably get denied. And that’s fine. It only means you need to try out the following method.
Watch Videos Without Access
You can use this method only to watch private YouTube videos you have a link for. Unfortunately, you cannot watch a deleted video or one you don’t have a link for.
Open a private video you want to watch on YouTube and delete (watch?) from its URL. You will now get a regular link to search for and access the video. The video will appear in full-screen mode; you don’t need to sign in to YouTube via Gmail.
But since the method has gotten quite popular, it has attracted the developers’ attention. And now, it may work at times, and it may not. But it’s worth indeed giving a shot at!
Watch Videos by Signing In
You can only watch a video without hesitation if the uploader has granted you access. As mentioned in the first method, the uploader allows you to watch a video from your username or YouTube account.
It works if you want to sign in to YouTube with a username and not email or vice versa!
Open the email the uploader sent you from the YouTube inbox and click on the red box with white dots to watch the video. However, you must remember that you cannot use this method if you do not have a YouTube or Google account.
In this case, there is one final solution!
Watch Private YouTube Videos Without Signing In
Suppose you want to watch a private video on YouTube without signing in. In that case, you must have seen the video before. Some videos are made private after uploading; chances are, you had seen the video when it was public.
If so, you can still watch the video from the cache that was downloaded to your device. However, you’ll need a third-party Cache Viewer for that. It’ll help you find the video, which will need conversion as it is generically in Mpeg-Dash format.
Once you’ve converted the video, you can use the cache viewer to watch the private video that you want. But if you haven’t viewed the video already, there is no way of watching a private YouTube video without signing in.
Conclusion
Private YouTube videos are a godsend for people who want to keep the public eye away from their content. While it is an amazingly useful feature for uploaders, it irritates nosy viewers like us.
Also, you must be careful of age restriction policies on some private YouTube videos. Other than that, I hope the above information has been helpful to you, and you can now watch a private video that has been messing with your nerves for quite a while!
In the comments below, let us know which methods worked best for you!
