How to watch YouTube shorts without the app

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Following the huge success of TikTok, many other apps and social media platforms are implementing similar features to keep us scrolling. YouTube shorts are one of the latest versions of the short-form video format that is so popular today. But do you know how to watch YouTube shorts without the application?

If you don’t have time for 30-minute video essays, YouTube shorts can be a breath of fresh air. You can watch a couple of short films for a quick dose of entertainment. But can you access these videos without downloading the YouTube app? Of course! Here’s how to watch YouTube Shorts without the app.

Watch YouTube shorts without the app

YouTube shorts are videos that are less than 60 seconds long and are recorded in a 9:16 aspect ratio to fill mobile phone screens. Although they belong to a different category than the usual content on this video platform, Shorts does not have its own dedicated application. They are built into the YouTube app and can be accessed from the home page by tapping the “Shorts” button at the bottom of the screen.

But Shorts are not limited only to the home page of the mobile application. They can be accessed throughout YouTube. You may see Shorts suggestions on your home page, in your search results, and in many other places. You can differentiate these videos from regular YouTube videos thanks to the red “Shorts” logo that appears in the corner of each Shorts thumbnail as you browse YouTube.

Fortunately, you don’t have to search for short clips when you feel like watching a couple of quick videos. There are several ways to access them outside of the YouTube app, whether you’re using your PC, mobile device, or tablet. All you’ll have to do is visit YouTube from your browser and use one of several options, depending on your device.

How to watch YouTube shorts on a PC

Finding short films on PC used to be a challenge, but YouTube has added a feature that gives us easy access to these videos right from the home page. Plus, you can always take advantage of YouTube’s search engine to find exactly what you’re looking for.

Find the Shorts tab

The easiest way to open the Shorts feed on your PC requires you to switch to the “Shorts” tab in the sidebar. Find YouTube Shorts as follows.

1. Open your browser and navigate to the Youtube website.
   
2. Look for the “Shorts” button in the left sidebar.
   
3. Short videos will start playing automatically. You can scroll to see the next one.
   

Explore the hashtag

Have you noticed that YouTube Shorts always has “#shorts” in its title or description? According to YouTube, creators should add this hashtag to their content to make their video easier to discover in the sea of ​​other content.

Since most, if not all, shorts are marked with this hashtag, finding and watching shorts on YouTube using your browser will be a breeze. All you need to do is type “#shorts” in the search bar and you will have plenty of options. Here is the process.

1. Open your browser and navigate to Youtube.
   
2. Search for “#shorts” using the search bar.
   
3. The first result will be the Shorts hashtag that contains all the videos uploaded with this tag. Click on the hashtag to access a random selection of Shorts.
   
4. Select any video to enter the endless Shorts feed.
   

Tip: You can also navigate directly to this hashtag page by typing “/hashtag/shorts” after the YouTube URL in your browser’s address bar.

Search shorts on any topic

Browsing the Shorts hashtag is a great option when you’re not looking for anything in particular and are wondering how to watch YouTube Shorts without the app. However, the randomness of the content may not be for everyone. Fortunately, you can easily narrow your search to only see shorts related to a specific topic. Here’s how to do it.

1. Open Youtube in your browser.
   
2. Type “#shorts” and a “+” sign in the search bar.
   
3. YouTube will automatically suggest a variety of different topics for you. Choose any of them or write the topic that interests you.
   
4. Press Enter and you will see Shorts labeled with the topic of your interest.
   
5. Click on any of the shorts to access the feed.

Watch shorts from a specific creator

Are you interested in shorts from a particular creator rather than a general topic? Fortunately, you don’t have to visit the YouTuber’s channel in question every time you want to watch their Shorts. You can use the search bar to filter its content in the blink of an eye.

1. Open Youtube and type “#shorts” in the search bar.
   
2. Add a “+” sign and then type the name of the YouTuber you are interested in.
   
3. Press the Enter key to view the shorts uploaded by this creator.
   
4. Open any video that has the “Shorts” tag in its thumbnail and you will be taken to the Shorts feed.
   

How to watch YouTube shorts on mobile devices without the app

The shorts are optimized for mobile screens, so viewing them on these devices will provide the best experience. But you don’t need to download the YouTube app for this; Instead, you’ll use your mobile browser to access the Shorts feed or search for specific videos.

Use the mobile site

Did you know that you don’t actually need the YouTube app to use most of its features on your mobile device? You can simply open YouTube in your mobile browser and browse the mobile site, just like you do in the app. You don’t even have to log in. Let’s see how to access Shorts this way.

1. Open your mobile browser and go to Youtube Web page.
   
2. Tap the “Shorts” button in the bottom toolbar.
   
3. A random video will start playing automatically. Tap to pause the video or scroll to go to the next.
   

Search shorts on mobile

Just like on PC, you can use the search feature on YouTube’s mobile site to find the shorts you want. This is what you should do.

1. Launch your mobile browser and navigate to Youtube.
   
2. Search for “#shorts” by typing it in the search bar. You can also add “+” and a topic or creator that interests you to narrow your search.
   
3. Not all search results may be shorts. Choose a video with the “Shorts” icon in its thumbnail to open the Shorts feed.
   
4. Scroll!
   

How to watch YouTube shorts on tablets without the app

Do you prefer to watch videos using your tablet? Don’t worry: you can still access YouTube Shorts on your device, even if it doesn’t have the YouTube app. Follow the steps below to find out how to watch YouTube Shorts without the app.

Use your tablet’s browser

The easiest way to watch shorts on a tablet without the app is by visiting YouTube’s mobile site.

1. Open your tablet’s browser app and go to Youtube.
   
2. Tap the “Shorts” button at the bottom of the screen.
   
3. You will be immediately teleported to the YouTube shorts feed.
   

Search shorts directly

If the random shorts that YouTube places in your feed aren’t to your liking, you can also search for other videos.

1. Open Youtube in your tablet’s browser.
   
2. Type “#shorts” into the YouTube search bar.
   
3. Add “+” and any topic or creator you want to search for.
   
4. Tap any result that has the “Shorts” icon in its corner to enter the Shorts feed.
   

cut it short

While accessing Shorts may have been a challenge at the beginning of this feature, now you can watch this content on any device without even downloading the YouTube app. All you need to figure out how to watch YouTube Shorts without the app is a working browser. You can get lost in the endless stream of short videos. Whether you just want to browse or are looking for your favorite YouTuber’s creations, the instructions above will help you find what interests you.