These include ad-free playback, the ability to play audio in the background, and the option to download songs for offline listening.

[3][4] On May 17, 2018, YouTube announced a new version of the YouTube Music service, including a web-based desktop player and redesigned mobile app, more dynamic recommendations based on various factors, and the use of Google artificial intelligence technology to search songs based on lyrics and descriptions.

[12] Product manager Elias Roman stated in 2018 that they aimed to reach feature parity with Google Play Music before migrating users to it, but as of 2024 this has not been achieved.

Google claimed that they planned to address this and other "gaps" in features between the services before Play Music was shut down.

It allows users to create a custom radio station, selecting up to 30 artists with an option to hear only their songs or from comparable musicians.

The premium tier plays official tracks of the album unless the user searches for the music video version.

[26] In July 2024, YouTube rolled out an additional high quality option, 256 kbit/s OPUS, to premium tier subscribers.

[28] Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Google indefinitely suspended all of its all payment and subscription-based services in the country, including YouTube Music.