YouTube just added the one filter users have been begging for, and it’s going to change how you search

YouTube is rolling out updates to its search filters, giving users more control over the types of videos that appear in search results. The headline change is a new option that allows viewers to completely filter out Shorts, the platform’s short-form videos, from their search results.

This long-requested feature addresses a common frustration among users. Many have complained that YouTube’s search results often mix short and long videos together, making it harder to locate full-length content. By adding the ability to exclude Shorts, the platform aims to make searching more precise and help users find the videos they actually want to watch more quickly.

According to Dexerto, the new filters are part of a broader overhaul of YouTube’s search tools. The company is also renaming some existing options to make them more intuitive, while retiring filters that saw little usage. Overall, the changes are designed to streamline the search experience and give users greater flexibility in tailoring results to their preferences.

YouTube gives Shorts their own separate filter option

The most important change is a new Shorts filter in the Type menu. Now you can choose if you want to see only Shorts or only long videos when you search. Before this update, both types of videos showed up together by default, which frustrated many users.

YouTube is also changing the name of its “Sort By” menu to “Prioritize.” The company says this new name better explains how search results are ranked. As part of this change, the “View count” option is now called “Popularity.”

The Popularity filter doesn’t just look at view count. It also considers other factors like watch time to show you videos that many people have watched and stayed engaged with. YouTube has been improving its platform in several ways recently, including winning exclusive streaming rights to major events.

YouTube is removing some filters that people weren’t using. The “Upload Date – Last Hour” filter and the “Sort by Rating” option are going away. You can still find recent videos using other Upload Date filters, and the new Popularity option will help you discover highly viewed content.

These changes are meant to make searching simpler and less confusing, especially as Shorts become more common on the platform. The company also recently rolled out updates for TV users to enhance the viewing experience across different devices.