Does hiding the YouTube home feed affect my subscriptions?

No. Your subscriptions feed at youtube.com/feed/subscriptions is completely unaffected by both Unhook and News Feed Eradicator. Only the algorithmic home feed recommendation grid is removed — channels you subscribe to still appear in the subscriptions tab.

Does Unhook affect YouTube Premium features?

No. Unhook removes the recommendation surfaces (home feed, Shorts shelf, sidebar). YouTube Premium features — background play, downloads, ad-free playback — are not affected. The extension only modifies what is displayed on the page.

Will this work on the YouTube mobile app?

No. Browser extensions only run in desktop browsers and Chromium-based mobile browsers (Kiwi on Android, Orion on iOS). The official YouTube iOS and Android apps don't support extensions. On mobile, use YouTube's built-in 'Set reminder' instead of the home feed as your entry point.

Can I remove just the Shorts shelf but keep the home feed?

Yes. Unhook lets you toggle each YouTube surface independently — you can remove Shorts, the sidebar, autoplay, end screens, and comments individually without affecting the home feed. Customize which surfaces you remove in the Unhook settings panel.

Does removing the home feed actually help with YouTube overconsumption?

Yes, measurably. The home feed is the primary way YouTube's algorithm surfaces content to extend session time. Removing it means YouTube becomes a player you navigate intentionally — via search or the subscriptions tab — rather than a destination that keeps you browsing. Most users who implement this report significantly shorter and more intentional YouTube sessions.

How to Hide the YouTube Home Page Feed (2026 Guide)

To hide the YouTube home page feed, install Unhook and toggle off "Home feed" — the YouTube homepage becomes a search bar with no recommendation grid in under 2 minutes. News Feed Eradicator replaces the homepage entirely with a blank page if you want zero algorithmic presence. YouTube has no native option to disable home recommendations as of May 2026.

Last verified: May 27, 2026 · Reading time: 3 min · Difficulty: Easy

TL;DR

YouTube has no native home feed toggle — a browser extension is required.
Unhook: Homepage becomes a clean search bar. Subscriptions still accessible.
News Feed Eradicator: Homepage replaced completely with a blank page.
Subscriptions feed at youtube.com/feed/subscriptions is unaffected by both.

Why you’d want this

Every time you open YouTube, the home page shows a grid of algorithmically-selected videos — not your subscriptions, not your Watch Later list, not what you came to find. It’s the algorithm’s best guess at what will keep you on YouTube longest.

If you’ve ever opened YouTube to watch one specific video and found yourself 40 minutes later watching something unrelated, the home feed is what redirected you. Removing it means YouTube becomes a player, not a destination.

The setup

Option A — Unhook (granular control)

Install Unhook from the Chrome Web Store or Firefox Add-ons.
Click the Unhook icon in your toolbar.
Toggle off Home feed.
Go to youtube.com — the recommendation grid is gone.

Optional additions while you’re there: toggle off Shorts, Sidebar, End screens, and Autoplay for complete algorithmic surface removal.

Option B — News Feed Eradicator (complete removal)

Install News Feed Eradicator from Chrome or Firefox extension stores.
Enable YouTube in its platform list.
Navigate to youtube.com — the homepage is replaced with a blank page or quote.

Choose News Feed Eradicator if you also want to remove feeds from Reddit, Twitter, Facebook, or LinkedIn — it covers all platforms in one extension.

What still works after hiding the feed

Both tools leave the following fully functional:

YouTube search
Your Subscriptions feed (youtube.com/feed/subscriptions)
Channel pages you navigate to directly
Watch Later, History, playlists
Individual video playback

Bookmark youtube.com/feed/subscriptions and use it as your YouTube entry point. It shows videos from channels you follow, newest first, with no algorithm.

What this won’t do

This hides the home feed recommendation grid. It does not remove YouTube ads (use uBlock Origin for that), does not block autoplay (use Unhook’s separate Autoplay toggle), and does not work inside the native YouTube iOS or Android app — extensions run only in desktop or Chromium-based mobile browsers.

Going further

Remove all recommendation surfaces: While in Unhook, disable the Sidebar recommendations, End screens, and the Shorts shelf in addition to the home feed. This gives you a fully intentional YouTube experience — only what you search for or subscribe to.
Pair with uBlock Origin: For ads on top of a cleaner feed, uBlock Origin handles ad removal while Unhook handles the recommendation surfaces. They don’t conflict.
Mobile: On Android, Kiwi Browser supports Unhook. On iOS, Orion Browser is the best option. Both let you carry your Unhook settings across devices.

If it’s not working

Home feed still showing? Make sure the Unhook extension is active (the icon should be highlighted/coloured in your toolbar). Visit the Unhook settings panel and confirm the Home feed toggle is on.
Subscriptions feed not loading? This is unrelated to Unhook — check your YouTube account. The subscriptions feed at youtube.com/feed/subscriptions should work independently.
YouTube app on phone not working? Extensions don’t run in native apps. Use a Chromium-based mobile browser (Kiwi or Orion) instead.

How to hide YouTube recommendations — remove the sidebar and end-screen suggestions too.
How to hide YouTube Shorts — specifically for removing the Shorts shelf.
How to control your YouTube feed — full guide covering all YouTube algorithmic surfaces.
Best YouTube feed blockers 2026 — full tool roundup for YouTube.

What to do next

Install Unhook, toggle off Home feed, bookmark youtube.com/feed/subscriptions. Done in two minutes.

Tools you'll want

Unhook

★ 4.7

Strip recommendations, Shorts, comments, and the homepage feed from YouTube — keep search and subscriptions

free chromefirefoxedge

Best for: YouTube users who want to keep search and subscriptions but eliminate every algorithmic surface — the gold-standard YouTube de-doomscroller Install →

News Feed Eradicator

★ 4.3

Replace your social media feeds with an inspirational quote — across every major platform

free chromefirefox

Best for: People who've tried keyword filtering and the feed still pulls them in — the nuclear option for every social platform at once Install →