How to Turn Off YouTube Shorts on PC (3 Ways)

6 min read · Brainrot Test

Can you turn off YouTube Shorts on PC? Not with an official switch, since YouTube doesn't have one. But you can remove them almost completely. The fastest way to turn off YouTube Shorts on PC is a browser extension that hides Shorts. The most customizable is a uBlock Origin filter. The no-install option is YouTube's own "Not interested" button on the Shorts shelf. All three work on Windows, Mac and Chromebook.

If you opened YouTube for one tutorial and surfaced 90 Shorts later, that "just one more" reflex is exactly what Brainrot Test measures: Check my brainrot.

Can you turn off Shorts on PC? The quick answer

Method	Effort	How well it hides Shorts	Works on
1. Browser extension	2 minutes	Very well	Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Brave, Chromebook
2. uBlock Origin filters	5 minutes	Very well, fully customizable	Most desktop browsers
3. "Not interested" + settings	30 seconds	Partly, and it comes back	Any browser

If you just want it gone, do Method 1. If you like tweaking things or don't trust random extensions, do Method 2.

Method 1: a YouTube Shorts disable extension

This is the easiest way to turn off YouTube Shorts on desktop.

How to block YouTube Shorts in Chrome

Open the Chrome Web Store.
Search "hide YouTube Shorts" or "remove YouTube Shorts".
Pick one with lots of users, recent updates and good reviews. Well-known options include extensions like Unhook, which also lets you hide recommendations, comments and the home feed.
Click Add to Chrome → Add extension.
Open the extension's settings and switch on Hide Shorts (plus anything else you want gone).
Refresh YouTube.

Edge, Firefox and Brave

Edge: Chrome extensions work. Go to the Edge Add-ons store, or allow extensions from other stores.
Brave: uses the Chrome Web Store directly.
Firefox: search Firefox Add-ons for the same keywords. Many popular Shorts blockers have a Firefox version.

Before you install any extension

Check the permissions. A Shorts blocker should only need access to youtube.com. If it wants "all websites," look for another.
Check the last update date. YouTube changes its layout often, and abandoned extensions stop working.
Don't pay for this. Plenty of solid Shorts blockers don't charge anything.

Method 2: uBlock Origin filter rules

If you already use uBlock Origin (or want to), you can write your own rules to remove YouTube Shorts on PC. No extra extension needed.

Steps

Install uBlock Origin from your browser's extension store.
Click its icon, then the gear (dashboard).
Open the My filters tab.
Paste in rules like these:

www.youtube.com##ytd-reel-shelf-renderer
www.youtube.com##ytd-rich-shelf-renderer[is-shorts]
www.youtube.com##ytd-guide-entry-renderer:has(a[title="Shorts"])
www.youtube.com##ytd-mini-guide-entry-renderer:has(a[title="Shorts"])
www.youtube.com##ytd-video-renderer:has(a[href^="/shorts/"])

Click Apply changes and refresh YouTube.

These target the Shorts shelf on the home page and in search, the Shorts button in the sidebar, and individual Shorts in search results.

If a Short sneaks through

YouTube renames page elements every so often, so filters sometimes break. The fix:

Right-click the thing you want gone.
Choose Block element (uBlock Origin's option).
Click the Shorts shelf, preview it, then Create.

Search "uBlock Origin YouTube Shorts filter" on Reddit and GitHub to find up-to-date filter lists other people maintain.

Method 3: settings and "Not interested"

No extension allowed on a school or work laptop? You've still got options.

Hide the Shorts shelf

On the YouTube home page, find the Shorts row.
Click the ✕ or the three dots next to it.
Choose Not interested (or Show fewer Shorts).

This hides the shelf for a while, usually around 30 days. Then it comes back, because of course it does.

Pause your watch history

In your Google account's YouTube History settings, you can turn watch history off. When it's off and you don't have enough history, YouTube stops filling your home page with recommendations, which removes a lot of the pull, including Shorts. Downsides: you lose personalized recommendations everywhere, and search results still show Shorts.

Open a Short as a normal video

If a friend sends you a Short, change the link from youtube.com/shorts/VIDEO_ID to youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID. It plays like a normal video, with no infinite swipe to the next one. That swipe is the whole trap.

Here's the catch: blocking Shorts on your laptop doesn't touch your phone, and you won't really know if you're watching less or just watching somewhere else. Brainrot Test asks 17 questions about what you actually do when you pick up your phone, gives you a score from 0 to 100, and measures it again every Sunday so you can see if the change is real. Check my brainrot

On a laptop or Chromebook

Windows and Mac laptops

Same steps as any PC: extensions and uBlock Origin work in Chrome, Edge, Firefox, Brave and Safari (Safari has fewer Shorts blockers, so check the Mac App Store's Safari extensions).

How to disable YouTube Shorts on a school Chromebook

School Chromebooks often block new extensions. If you can't install one:

Use Method 3.
Ask your school's IT team. Some schools already filter YouTube.
Don't try to bypass school controls. It's not worth the detention.

The YouTube app on Windows

If you use YouTube through an installed "app" on Windows, it's usually just the website in a window. Extensions from the matching browser may still work there. If not, use YouTube in a regular browser tab instead.

Don't forget your phone

Your laptop is probably not where the damage happens. Most Shorts watching happens on phones at 1am. Check out how to check watch time on TikTok for the same "find your real number" approach, and if Instagram Reels are the problem, see how to take a break from Instagram.

What to do instead of Shorts

Removing Shorts leaves a gap. If you don't fill it, you'll end up on Reels.

Keep YouTube for long stuff. Subscribe to channels you actually want and use the Subscriptions tab instead of the home page.
Use "Watch Later" on purpose. Save videos during the day, watch them in one planned block.
Put a to-do on screen. Before opening YouTube for "one tutorial," write the exact video you need on a sticky note.
Take a real break. Stand up, get water, text someone back. Five minutes of anything that isn't a screen.

Turn Shorts off, then check the habit behind them

Now you know how to turn off YouTube Shorts on PC in three ways. In the next minute, Brainrot Test shows you how deep the scroll habit goes: a brainrot score from 0 to 100 and how you compare with everyone else. Then a two-minute drill each day finishes with a real-world phone action on a timer, and each finished drill takes a point off your score.

Check my brainrot

FAQ

Is there a setting to turn off YouTube Shorts on desktop?

No, YouTube doesn't offer an official off switch for Shorts on desktop. You can hide the Shorts shelf with "Not interested" for a while, but for a lasting fix you need an extension or uBlock Origin filters.

What is the best YouTube Shorts blocker extension?

Look for one with many users, recent updates and permissions limited to youtube.com. Unhook is a popular choice because it can also hide recommendations and comments. Plenty of Shorts blockers don't cost anything, so you don't need to pay.

How do I remove YouTube Shorts from the homepage on my laptop?

Click the ✕ or three dots on the Shorts row and choose "Not interested" to hide it temporarily. For a permanent fix, use a Shorts-hiding extension or a uBlock Origin filter that targets the Shorts shelf.

How do I turn off YouTube Shorts on Chrome?

Install a Shorts blocker from the Chrome Web Store, turn on its "Hide Shorts" option, and refresh YouTube. Chromebooks work the same way unless your school blocks extensions.

Does turning off YouTube Shorts on PC turn them off on my phone?

No. Browser extensions only work in that browser on that computer. Your phone's YouTube app needs separate steps, like app limits in Screen Time or Digital Wellbeing.