YouTube’s previously discontinued cheaper subscription model is back in select regions, but what is it and will it expand further?

For $13.99 per month, YouTube Premium grants subscribers ad-free videos, offline downloads, background play and YouTube Music. Earlier this year, YouTube Premium and YouTube Music hit 100 million subscribers.

YouTube Premium Lite just focuses on the ad-free aspect of Premium, granting subscribers with “limited ads” and none of the other features for roughly half the price of Premium. “Limited” seemingly means banner ads, but no pre-roll or mid-roll video ads, however this is unclear.

YouTube initially tested Premium Lite subscriptions across some regions in Europe in 2021, before discontinuing the plan last year. With news of the price of Premium subscriptions increasing in select countries around the world last year, some users in Europe reported once again seeing Premium Lite as a “beta” option.

Now, after reports from users in Australia and Germany, Google has just confirmed to Android Authority that YouTube Premium Lite is back.

We’re testing a different version of Premium Lite and some users in Australia, Germany and Thailand may see the option to sign up.

Google, via Android Authority

This is an interesting move, as we thought the death of Premium Lite was about pushing users to the more expensive full-blow Premium option. Perhaps YouTube now believes Premium Lite is an attractive enough deal to convert some free users.

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