YouTube Retires Trending Page, Prioritizes Enhanced Content Charts
YouTube is set to retire its trending section, which currently highlights videos gaining rapid popularity on the platform. The YouTube Trending Page and the “Trending Now” list are slated for removal within the next few weeks, as the platform redirects its efforts towards expanding its existing YouTube Charts feature for top-performing content.
Ahead of the trending page’s discontinuation, YouTube is encouraging users to rely on personalized recommendations and the revamped YouTube Charts for video discovery. YouTube Charts offer insights into popular content across specific categories, presently including music videos, podcasts, and movie trailers. The company indicates that additional content categories will be integrated into the charts over time. In the interim, trending gaming videos will remain accessible via the Gaming Explore page.
In a recent blog post, YouTube elaborated on its decision, stating, “Back when we first launched the Trending page in 2015, the answer to ‘what’s trending’ was a lot simpler to capture with a singular list of viral videos that everyone was talking about. But today, trends consist of many videos created by many fandoms, and there are more micro-trends enjoyed by diverse communities than ever before.”
The platform acknowledges that viewers now discover viral video trends through various sources, including Shorts, search suggestions, and external platforms like TikTok. YouTube notes that the rise of these alternative discovery methods has significantly reduced traffic to the YouTube Trending Page, particularly over the last five years. Furthermore, creators have voiced criticism regarding the high viewership thresholds required to appear in the trending section, especially when compared to branded accounts posting traditional media content such as movie trailers or TV clips. This feedback suggests that the existing trending experience may not fully reflect the actual breadth of popular videos on YouTube.
For creators who utilize the trending page for video idea research, YouTube is directing them towards the “Inspiration Tab” within YouTube Studio, which offers AI-generated content suggestions. The company also states its commitment to developing new mechanisms to boost discovery for emerging creators, referencing initiatives like the “Hype” promotional system launched last year, which enables viewers to amplify videos onto a platform-wide leaderboard.
