YouTube has unwrapped a new digital time capsule for its billions of viewers worldwide. Called YouTube Recap, this
feature creates a personalised summary of your entire year of watching — neatly arranged into a colourful collection of
highlight cards. It has begun rolling out in North America and will reach the rest of the world by the end of the week.
Users can find it directly on the homepage or under the "You" tab on both mobile and desktop.
Capturing every viewer’s unique watch story
YouTube says no two viewers wander through the platform in the same way. For that person who spent months exploring
keyboard mod videos, someone else might be diving into KATSEYE edits or the quirky universe of Labubu blind boxes. Recap
is built to reflect that beautiful, chaotic mix.
Once opened, YouTube Recap presents as many as 12 curated cards, each revealing one aspect of your watch history:
favourite creators, top topics, binge patterns, and defining moments. It cleverly studies how your habits shifted
throughout the year and even assigns a personality type to you.
Some of these common categories include:
Sunshiner: a jolly viewer who likes only uplifting content.
Curiosity Seeker – always in search of some obscurity on YouTube.
Connector: person interested in community-driven videos
Rarer types, such as Philosopher and Dreamer, also come in for those who enjoy reflective, longer-form videos.
A deep dive for music lovers
It gets even better on YouTube Music. There, the user can relive their:
Influence of global music on their listening choices
This section acts like a rhythm diary, mapping how music shaped moods and moments through the year.
Built after heavy user feedback. YouTube says it didn't create Recap lightly. The company ran nine rounds of user
testing, experimenting with more than 50 design concepts to reach the final, polished experience.
The goal was to make something both personal and shareable – allowing users to save, post, and revisit their favourite
Recap cards anytime. Finally, with YouTube Recap, viewers get a storybook of their year stitched from the videos,
creators, and playlists that kept them company.