YouTube is joining the year-end recap rush with its first-ever summary of the videos people actually watched on the main platform — a long-requested addition that finally brings YouTube’s core experience in line with the annual rundowns offered by music and social apps. For years, users have had access to YouTube Music Recap, but video viewing remained a black box. The new YouTube Recap fills that gap with a set of personalized cards that break down what viewers watched, how their tastes evolved and which creators dominated their screen time.
The recap includes up to 12 cards covering top channels, viewing categories and even a personality-style descriptor based on consumption patterns. These assignments span everything from Skill Builders, who focus on instructional content, to Sunshiners, who prefer upbeat or feel-good videos, to Trailblazers, whose habits skew toward unconventional or genre-bending creators. Other categories — Wonder Seekers, Connectors, Dreamers — attempt to map common behavior patterns without drifting into gimmick territory. It’s YouTube’s way of translating billions of possible viewing combinations into something easily shareable.
Users will also see a snapshot of top songs and artists, though deeper listening insights remain tied to the separate YouTube Music Recap that began rolling out last week. This split underscores how YouTube is trying to treat video and audio consumption as related but distinct experiences while still giving people a consolidated sense of their year online.
Recap is live now for users in North America, with a global rollout happening over the week. It appears either on the homepage or under the You tab, and it works on both mobile and desktop. YouTube says the project came directly from user feedback and that the team tested more than 50 concept variants before settling on the current design — a sign of how carefully the company wants to land a feature that will inevitably be compared to Spotify’s Wrapped.
Alongside the personal summaries, YouTube also published its broader trend charts. MrBeast remained the platform’s top creator for the sixth consecutive year, The Joe Rogan Experience topped the podcast list and Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga’s “Die with a Smile” led the year’s songs. The timing of the release is also notable: YouTube dropped its recap the same day as Apple Music Replay and Amazon Music’s Delivered 2025, while Spotify’s Wrapped has yet to appear, putting YouTube among the companies racing to generate early social momentum around share-friendly listening and viewing stats.
