YouTube is giving its budget subscription a meaningful upgrade. The company is adding background playback and offline downloads to YouTube Premium Lite, its lower-priced plan that costs $7.99 per month in the US. The update allows subscribers to keep videos playing while using other apps or when their screen is locked, and to download content for offline viewing. Notably, these capabilities were previously limited to the full Premium subscription.
Premium Lite was initially designed as a simplified alternative to the full Premium bundle. Its primary benefit was ad-free viewing on most standard videos, offering a lower-cost option for viewers who wanted fewer interruptions but did not need the complete feature set. With the addition of downloads and background playback, the Lite plan now delivers two of the most requested Premium conveniences while maintaining its lower price point.
Background playback enables users to listen to long-form content like podcasts, lectures, interviews, and commentary videos while multitasking – a feature especially valued by commuters, students, and users who treat YouTube as an audio platform. Meanwhile, offline downloads allow videos to be saved directly to a device, helping users watch content without a data connection.
The company has begun rolling out the new features gradually, with background playback and offline downloads arriving first in select markets before expanding to all regions where YouTube Premium Lite is currently available. The tier has also grown beyond its early pilot phase and is now offered in more than 20 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Canada, Brazil, South Korea, and India.
However, despite the upgrade, Premium Lite remains distinct from the full subscription. Ads may still appear on music videos, YouTube Shorts, and certain browsing surfaces like search results and the homepage feed. The plan also does not include ad-free music listening and access to YouTube Music Premium, both of which remain exclusive to the full YouTube Premium plan. Users who rely heavily on music streaming and want a fully ad-free experience across all content may still prefer the higher-tier option.
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