June 2, 2025, 2:29 pm | Read time: 4 minutes
YouTube Premium Lite is intended to be an affordable way to watch content on the platform with minimal ads. However, a recent announcement is causing increasing doubt about the concept.
If you want to watch YouTube without ads, you have had to subscribe to the Premium plan for several years now. However, this is quite expensive, costing 12.99 euros per month for Android users and 15.99 euros for iOS users. A cheaper alternative is YouTube Premium Lite, priced at 5.99 euros or 7.99 euros per month. The subscription launched in spring 2025 for all users in Germany and primarily shows ads on music videos. But that is about to change. YouTube is currently informing its subscribers via email about an upcoming change: Starting at the end of June, ads will also appear in short vertical videos, known as Shorts. This adjustment has upset many customers.
More Ads Despite Payment in YouTube Premium Lite
Until now, YouTube’s Lite subscription was considered a cheaper alternative to the full Premium model with reduced advertising. However, with the newly announced expansion of ads to Shorts, the value of the subscription is increasingly in question.
YouTube will increase the ad frequency starting June 30. As stated in an email to affected subscribers, YouTube is particularly targeting the increasingly popular Shorts. In addition to existing ads on music videos, in search results, and on the homepage, ads will now also be visible here. The company previously promoted the subscription with the promise of “YouTube with less advertising.” However, YouTube doesn’t seem to see this promise as set in stone, considering that the Premium Lite subscription is being adjusted shortly after its nationwide introduction in Germany. The email now rather casually states that “most videos will remain ad-free.”
Read also: “This subscription is a joke!” YouTube Premium Lite is back
Popular Content Loses Ad-Free Status
Users view the new measure critically, especially since Shorts are among the most-used formats on YouTube. The ad-free experience was a key argument for the Lite subscription. With the expansion of ads, only regular videos will retain limited ad-free status–and even that is conditional.
There is a strong suspicion that Google is deliberately creating incentives with the gradual devaluation of the Lite subscription to push users toward the full Premium subscription. Only this offers complete ad-free viewing and additional benefits like YouTube Music Premium, downloads, and background playback. In comparison, the Lite model is becoming increasingly unattractive.
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Advertising as a Growing Nuisance
The advertising pressure on YouTube has significantly increased in recent years. Ads often appear at the start of a video, sometimes lasting up to 20 seconds. For many users, this is a constant annoyance–even with a paid subscription. The trend toward more advertising alongside rising subscription prices is also evident on other platforms.
Users who disagree with the new terms can cancel their Lite membership at any time. Whether the recent changes will lead to a loss of users or a switch to the more expensive Premium subscription remains uncertain. What is clear is that with each ad-based intervention, the Lite subscription loses value.