YouTube Music Is Finally Adding a Playlist Search Feature
YouTube Music is finally about to introduce a playlist search feature that users have been waiting for for years. However, the “Find in Playlist” option is still only available to a few users. However, wider distribution could come soon.
YouTube Music gets playlist search
There are currently several controversies surrounding YouTube. For example, the platform deleted some Windows 11 videos with flimsy reasons, blocked all channels of a popular tech tuber and launched a new update against ad blockers. But now Google is about to introduce a new function that is likely to be well received by YouTube Music users and that many have been wanting for a long time. YouTube Music is currently testing the ability to browse playlists directly.
The new option, which appears as “Find in Playlist” in the menu, could close one of the streaming service’s biggest usability gaps and save users a lot of time and stress. Playlist search may seem like a basic feature, but users have been waiting for it for ages. Many music lovers have created massive playlists with hundreds or even thousands of songs over the years. Without a built-in search function, they had to rely on tedious endless scrolling to find specific titles. Like user xerus9915 on Reddit (via Android Authority), YouTube has quietly started rolling out the new search feature to at least some customers. It appears in the menu of a playlist page and can be accessed by clicking on the three dots.
Function probably still in testing phase
The new search function appears directly below the “Shuffle play” option. However, availability appears to be severely limited at the moment. The Reddit user found the feature in YouTube Music version 8.45.3 on iOS. However, some other users report that the new search is not yet displayed for them.
Android users shouldn’t expect to see the feature in YouTube Music’s Android client just yet either. It is possible that the feature is currently in an A/B testing phase and is therefore only available to a small group of users. This is a common approach from Google before broadly releasing new features. This testing method allows the company to assess functionality and user acceptance before a full rollout.
Years of demand
The lack of playlist search functionality has been a recurring theme in online communities and forums. Users had regularly expressed their frustration with this restriction on social media and platforms such as Reddit. Even memes emerged on the topic, highlighting the absurdity of a modern music streaming service not offering basic playlist search functionality.
Until now, the only way to search within playlists was to use browser extensions on the desktop. App users were left without an integrated way to browse playlists and had to make do with cumbersome workarounds or split their playlists into smaller, thematically sorted lists.
Small restrictions
However, the few lucky users who have already gained access to the function report a small limitation. While you can browse playlists you have created yourself, there is probably no such option for radio playlists stored in the library. An expansion may follow at a later date.
For now, however, users will have to wait and see whether Google decides to roll out the function for everyone or test it more broadly. However, the introduction of the playlist search function would finally deliver one of the community’s most requested features.
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