{"id":895630,"date":"2026-03-30T07:36:43","date_gmt":"2026-03-30T12:36:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/30\/youtube-adds-android-auto-support-for-background-play-controls\/"},"modified":"2026-03-30T07:36:43","modified_gmt":"2026-03-30T12:36:43","slug":"youtube-adds-android-auto-support-for-background-play-controls","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/30\/youtube-adds-android-auto-support-for-background-play-controls\/","title":{"rendered":"YouTube adds Android Auto support for background play controls"},"content":{"rendered":"
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YouTube for Android is rolling out support for Android Auto but, before you get too excited, keep in mind that what you can actually do with it is rather limited.<\/p>\n

Android Auto will always pipe through whatever audio is playing on your phone, but it doesn\u2019t always give you additional controls for that. We\u2019ve noticed over the past few months that more apps have been showing functionality through Android Auto\u2019s media controls, and now it seems YouTube has been added to the list.<\/p>\n

Through recent updates, YouTube seems to have added Android Auto support, which is now available widely. We\u2019re seeing the functionality across multiple devices, accounts, and app versions, both in the beta and stable tracks, and users on Reddit report the same.<\/a> <\/p>\n

This is not<\/em> a YouTube app on Android Auto. You can\u2019t play videos, nor can you even see a full screen of media controls. YouTube shows up solely in the dashboard media widget with the ability to play\/pause content and also skip forward to the next video \u2013 that\u2019s a full video skip, not skipping forward within<\/em> the video, and the same action applies to the steering wheel controls too as we\u2019ve tested.<\/p>\n

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This is sure to be handy for some \u2013 there are plenty of podcasts, clips, and even full YouTube videos that make for a great audio-only listen while driving. But this is certainly not the full \u201cYouTube for Android Auto\u201d release many have been hoping for. According to Google, though, that\u2019s not off the table. <\/a><\/p>\n

You\u2019ll also need a YouTube Premium subscription for this to work, as background play isn\u2019t available otherwise. As of February 2026<\/a>, though, background play is included in the $7.99\/month Premium Lite plan, which is a much more affordable option.<\/p>\n

More on Android Auto:<\/h2>\n