Joe Hindy / Android Authority
TL;DR
- YouTube Music now lets you download songs and podcasts for offline listening within its web app.
- This feature brings the web version in line with the mobile app, offering greater convenience for users.
YouTube Music, Google’s dedicated music streaming service, is making offline listening more accessible with the rollout of offline downloads for its web app. This welcome feature brings the website in line with its mobile app counterpart, allowing users to save songs and playlists for enjoyment even without an internet connection (h/t 9to5Google).
YouTube has been testing this feature out for a while now, but it seems to have gained wider availability as of March 29th. While the feature isn’t showing for everyone yet, some users are being greeted with a “New! Download music to listen offline” message beside their Library tab.
Saving music for offline use is simple. Navigate to an album or single’s page and look for the download button nestled between the “Save to library” and three-dot overflow menu options.
While the mobile app has long supported offline listening, the lack of a native desktop app made this feature unavailable on computers. Just like the YouTube Music mobile app, downloaded content on the web gets its own “Downloads” tab within your library, and convenient filters allow you to sort by playlists, podcasts, songs, or albums.
Offline downloads on the web app will count toward YouTube Music’s 10-device download limit, which is generous enough not to concern most users. As is the case on the mobile app, offline downloads will expire if your device doesn’t connect to the internet at least once every 30 days.
We can expect this feature to roll out gradually to more YouTube Music users soon.