YouTube says it isn’t testing hiding the dislike button

Dislike counts remain visible to viewers, which was the metric many relied on for content assessment.

YouTube has clarified its stance on the dislike button, stating it is not testing hiding it for users. A YouTube spokesperson confirmed this, addressing user reports and screenshots that suggested otherwise. The company explained that a new user interface is being rolled out for creators, which will move the dislike button into a three-dot menu on their own uploaded videos. Creators will still be able to access their full dislike counts and other analytics within YouTube Studio. This adjustment follows previous changes to the dislike button, including the removal of public dislike counts in 2021 to combat harassment and the elimination of the dislike button on YouTube Shorts earlier this year.

While the public-facing dislike count remains, the platform's move to hide it for creators on their own videos signals a continued effort to manage creator-audience interaction and potentially reduce negative feedback visibility in certain contexts. This subtle UI change, rather than a complete removal, suggests YouTube is seeking a middle ground between user feedback and creator comfort, possibly to maintain platform engagement.

This development indicates YouTube's ongoing strategy to refine user experience and creator tools without fundamentally altering core engagement metrics that users can still observe. The focus on creator-centric UI adjustments suggests that the platform prioritizes providing creators with granular control over their content presentation and analytics, while maintaining transparency for the general audience.