On Wednesday, YouTube announced a plan to roll out direct messages (DMs) in the U.S. and several other regions. As such, you can now share YouTube videos with your friends on YouTube directly, rather than sending content to other chat apps. YouTube now joins the ranks of other apps that you might not expect to have DMs, like Spotify and Zillow. While it likely won't become the next WhatsApp, it might make sense for friends who frequently pass YouTube videos back and forth: Considering that the vast majority of my Instagram DMs are friends sharing reels, I can see how YouTube's DMs could be popular. This feature, which YouTube has been testing since late last year, is now available to everyone. Here's how it works.
How to send DMs in YouTube
You need to add people as YouTube friends before you can send them DMs on the platform. If the feature is available to you, then you'll see a messages icon at the top of the home screen in YouTube's mobile apps. Tap this icon, then select Invite to chat to send an invitation. Once the other person accepts your invite, you'll be able to send them a YouTube DM. When you receive a DM request from someone, you can choose to allow it or select Not now, which lets you review the invite later instead of declining it outright.
The next time you're watching a video you'd like to send, you can tap the Share button, and your YouTube friends will appear alongside other sharing options. Select any contact to share a video with them. You can also type messages alongside the video if you'd like to add a bit more context, and you can, of course, chat with your YouTube friends using this feature.
What do you think so far?
Access and availability of YouTube DMs
You'll have access to this feature in YouTube's mobile apps, as long as you're over 18 years old. YouTube DMs are available in 40 regions at the time of writing, including the U.S., the U.K., and many in Europe. It's worth noting that YouTube users from India don't yet get access to it. YouTube says this feature requires you to be signed in to your account, and that you might have to verify your age to use it. The company also emphasized that your DMs will be subject to its community guidelines, which prohibit spam, sensitive content such as nudes, violent or dangerous content, misinformation, and illegal activity.
