Nick Holmlund

How the YouTube Algorithm Really Works: What You Need to Know

How the YouTube Algorithm Works One of the most important things to remember about the YouTube algorithm is that it is highly secretive. While the algorithm behind Google is ever-changing based on what people are searching for, what’s going viral, and general trends, the YouTube algorithm is much more fixed. The team behind YouTube has never released a full-fledged algorithm that explains how it works, but they have released some details. Because the algorithm is based on views, watch time, click-through rate (CTR), and other factors, there are ways to manipulate it. There are also ways to avoid being manipulated by the algorithm. This can be difficult, especially for new YouTubers who are trying to gain traction in a very competitive space.