What is YouTube Recap? The video app’s answer to Spotify Wrapped explained
YouTube Recap rounds up your year of content browsing and it's rolling out worldwide this week.
YouTube is rolling out a new annual Recap feature that’ll remind viewers of the content they most enjoyed throughout 2025. The Spotify Wrapped-style feature is launching in North America today (December 2), before arriving in the rest of the world later in the week.
The feature is available via the ‘You’ tab on both mobile and desktop devices and will showcase highlights from users’ watch history, the channels they’ve spent most time watching, and how their viewing has evolved throughout the last twelve months. You’ll see whether you’re in a channel’s top viewers, get insights into your topics of interest, and be assigned a personality type “based on the videos you loved to watch”.
Those traits include The Sunshiner for viewers who are “drawn to content that spreads positivity and good vibes”, and The Skill Builder for those who are “drawn to content that help you develop skills.” I’m hoping there’s a category for The Late Night Tipsy Music Explorer to account for my Friday night expeditions around the deeper cuts and live performances from my favourite artists.
Let’s just hope there’s no insulting personality types akin to Spotify Wrapped last year, which flagrantly went around describing viewers as Pink Pilates Princesses for enjoying pop tunes. YouTube says the feature has been in high demand, but the video pioneer has spent plenty of time refining it.
“Recap was made for you, by you,” YouTube’s product manager Manthra Panchapakesan writes in a blog post. “This is reflected throughout the creation of this feature, with nine rounds of feedback and over 50 different concept testings before we landing on what you see today.”
Chris Smith
