YouTube links not opening in the app? Fixes for iPhone and Android
Published: · 9 min read
When YouTube links open in a browser instead of the YouTube app, the cause is a setting on your own phone. On iPhone, press and hold the link and choose Open in “YouTube”: iOS remembers that choice for future links. On Android, open Settings, Apps, YouTube, Open by default, and turn on Open supported links. If the link is in Samsung Internet, Brave, Firefox or Opera, that browser has its own switch, covered below.
Quick fix: find where you tapped the link
The fix depends on the app you tapped the link in.
| Where you tapped the link | What usually holds it back | Section |
|---|---|---|
| Safari on iPhone | iOS remembered a choice to stay in Safari | iPhone |
| Chrome, Firefox or the Google app on iPhone | That app decides on its own | iPhone |
| Chrome on Android | YouTube isn’t allowed to open its links | Android |
| Samsung Internet | Its “open in other apps” switch is off | Samsung Internet, Brave, Firefox and Opera |
| Brave, Firefox or Opera | The browser keeps YouTube for itself | Samsung Internet, Brave, Firefox and Opera |
| WhatsApp, Gmail, Messages | The phone’s setting, or the app’s own browser | WhatsApp, Gmail and Google Messages |
| Instagram, TikTok, Facebook | The app’s in-app browser | Instagram, TikTok and Facebook |
iPhone: YouTube links open in Safari instead of the app
YouTube registers its web addresses (youtube.com, m.youtube.com and youtu.be) with Apple, so a tap on one of them in Safari normally opens the YouTube app. When that stops working, the reason is almost always a remembered choice.
Undo the remembered “stay in Safari” choice
Apple’s developer documentation says the option you pick when you press and hold such a link becomes your device’s default for that website. One earlier choice to open a YouTube link in the browser keeps every later one in Safari.
- Find any YouTube link in Safari, Messages, Mail or Notes.
- Press and hold the link until the preview and menu appear (Apple’s guide to previewing links in Safari shows the gesture).
- Choose Open in “YouTube”.
- Tap a different YouTube link normally. It should now open in the app.
No YouTube option in the menu? Update the app in the App Store and try again.
The Notes workaround
No link handy? Paste any YouTube link into a new note in Notes, press and hold it, and choose Open in “YouTube”. Apple suggests this same test to developers, and the choice sticks for future links. Delete the note afterwards.
Links you typed or tapped on youtube.com itself
Two cases never open the app, by design: an address you type into Safari’s address bar, and a YouTube link you tap while already on youtube.com in Safari (you are moving within the same website). Open the link from Notes or Messages instead.
Chrome, Firefox and the Google app on iPhone
Apple leaves it to each browser whether it hands links to apps, so Chrome, Firefox and the Google app don’t always behave like Safari. Press and hold the link and look for an option to open it in YouTube; if there is none, open it from Notes as above. To send links from other apps through Safari, choose it in Settings, Apps, Default Apps, Browser App.
Still in Safari: reinstall the app
If nothing works, delete the YouTube app, install it again from the App Store and repeat the press-and-hold step, the usual last resort in Apple’s community forums. Your subscriptions stay with your Google Account; downloaded videos are removed.
Android: let YouTube open supported links
Each Android app has a list of web addresses it may open. If YouTube isn’t allowed, Chrome and most apps send YouTube links to the browser.
- Open Settings, then Apps.
- Tap YouTube. If it isn’t listed, tap See all apps first.
- Tap Open by default. On Samsung Galaxy phones the item is called Set as default.
- Turn on Open supported links.
- Under Links to open in this app, check that the YouTube addresses are ticked.
Google’s help page on default apps on Pixel shows the same Open by default screen and notes that some steps need Android 14 or later. Other makers may word the menus differently, so as of November 2026, if you can’t find the screen, search Settings for “open by default” or “supported links”.
Two more checks. If the YouTube screen offers to turn the app back on, it has been disabled and links can’t reach it. And if another app (a second browser or video app) has claimed YouTube addresses, turn off supported links on that app’s Open by default screen.
Samsung Internet, Brave, Firefox and Opera keep YouTube links
Some browsers keep links even when Android would hand them to the app. Each has its own switch; the names below are as of November 2026.
Samsung Internet. Open the menu (the three lines), then Settings, then Useful features, and turn on Open links in other apps. Samsung has no public help page for it, and its place in the settings has moved between versions.
Brave. Open the menu, then Settings, then Media, and turn Open YouTube links in Brave off. While it is on, Brave plays YouTube itself. The same switch exists in Brave on iPhone.
Firefox for Android. Open the three-dot menu, then Settings, scroll to Advanced, tap Open links in apps, and choose Always or Ask before opening. Mozilla’s help article on opening links in apps notes the option is off by default.
Opera for Android. Opera has no official help page for this. Its forum moderators suggest opening a YouTube page, tapping the icon in front of the address, opening the site settings link in that panel, and turning on the option to always open in the app.
Links from WhatsApp, Gmail and Google Messages
WhatsApp. Links in ordinary chats are handed to the phone, so whether a YouTube link opens the app depends on the iPhone or Android settings above. If WhatsApp links to YouTube open in Safari on your iPhone, the remembered Safari choice is the usual cause: fix it with the press-and-hold or Notes step. WhatsApp’s help center says some links sent by businesses can open inside WhatsApp instead. Our guide to sharing YouTube videos on WhatsApp covers the sending side.
Gmail. Gmail can open links in its own built-in browser. On Android, versions that have it show Open web links in Gmail under the menu, Settings, General settings; untick it. On iPhone, pick your phone’s browser in Gmail’s default-apps setting. The wording varies between Gmail versions.
Google Messages and Apple Messages. Both hand links to the phone. If YouTube links from them open a browser, the Android or iPhone settings above are the fix.
Links inside Instagram, TikTok and Facebook
These apps open links in an in-app browser that usually doesn’t hand youtube.com addresses to the YouTube app, and no phone setting changes that. Tap the ⋯ or ⋮ menu in the in-app browser and choose the option to open the page in your phone’s browser (the wording varies by app and version). From Safari or Chrome, the YouTube app usually takes over.
If these are your own links and you want your viewers to land in the app, their phone settings are out of your reach, but the link isn’t: a YouTube-only short link such as Ytgo asks the phone to open the YouTube app when it is tapped inside these apps. See how to make YouTube links open in the app for your viewers.
The app opens, but not the video
If the YouTube app opens on its home feed or shows an error, the link reached the app and the problem is the video or the link. The video may be private, removed or blocked in your country, the app may be out of date, or the link may be damaged or point at a channel instead of a video. Our guide to YouTube links that don’t work goes through each cause, and copying the link again with Share and Copy link fixes most broken copies, as shown in how to copy a YouTube link.
The opposite: keep YouTube links in the browser
If you would rather watch in the browser, reverse the steps above:
- iPhone: press and hold a YouTube link and choose the option that opens it in the browser instead of YouTube; iOS remembers that choice too.
- Android: in Settings, Apps, YouTube, Open by default, turn Open supported links off.
- Browsers: turn Samsung Internet’s Open links in other apps off, Brave’s Open YouTube links in Brave on, or set Firefox’s Open links in apps to Never.
More on this, including tablets and computers, in our guide to opening YouTube in the browser instead of the app.
Frequently asked questions
Why do YouTube links open in Safari instead of the YouTube app?
Usually because the iPhone remembers an earlier choice to open YouTube links in the browser. Press and hold a YouTube link and choose Open in “YouTube” to switch it back. Links you type into the address bar, or tap while already on youtube.com in Safari, stay in Safari by design.
How do I make YouTube links open in the app on Android?
Open Settings, Apps, YouTube, then Open by default (Set as default on Samsung phones) and turn on Open supported links. Check that the YouTube addresses are ticked in the list below it. If you use Samsung Internet, Brave, Firefox or Opera, also change that browser’s own setting.
Why won’t YouTube links from WhatsApp open in the YouTube app on my iPhone?
WhatsApp hands ordinary chat links to the iPhone, so the iPhone’s remembered choice decides. If it once chose Safari for YouTube links, every link goes there. Paste the link into Notes, press and hold it, and choose Open in “YouTube” to reset it.
What does “Open supported links” mean on Android?
It lets an app open the web addresses it supports instead of the browser. For YouTube, that means youtube.com and youtu.be links go to the YouTube app. When it is off, those links open in your browser.
Can I make YouTube links open in the browser instead of the app?
Yes. On Android, turn off Open supported links for YouTube. On iPhone, press and hold a YouTube link and choose to open it in the browser, which iOS then remembers. Some browsers, such as Brave, can also keep YouTube links for themselves.