YouTube clarifies mid-roll ads overhaul ahead of May 2025 update

YouTube is making significant changes to how mid-roll ads work, and creators who manually place ad breaks should pay close attention. In a detailed post on its community forum, YouTube clarified new features designed to optimize ad opportunities and addressed concerns about the upcoming changes rolling out in May 2025.

For creators who rely solely on automatic mid-roll placements, these changes won’t affect them directly. However, for those who manually insert mid-roll ads, YouTube is introducing two major updates aimed at improving ad placement efficiency.

New tools to optimize YouTube mid-roll ads

1. Feedback on ad slot viability – YouTube Studio now provides insights into which manually placed mid-roll slots are unlikely to serve ads. Previously, creators had no visibility into whether their chosen ad slots were effective. This feature helps creators fine-tune their placements to maximize revenue potential.

   

2. Hybrid manual + automatic mid-roll ads – Creators can now allow YouTube’s automated ad system to work alongside their manual placements. YouTube claims that in an experiment conducted in July 2024, channels that enabled this hybrid approach saw an average increase of over 5% in ad revenue.

May 2025: The big ad system shake-up

While the new features are available now, YouTube is also preparing for a major overhaul of its ad-serving system in May 2025. Here’s what’s coming:

• Auto mid-rolls will be enabled by default – Starting May 12, 2025, YouTube will automatically add ad slots to existing videos that have manual mid-roll placements. Creators who want to opt out must do so via YouTube Studio’s ‘Earn’ tab before the deadline.
• Better auto mid-roll placement – YouTube’s system will identify and insert more ad slots at natural breakpoints, even for creators who don’t currently see automatic placements.
• Stronger focus on viewer retention – YouTube is adjusting its algorithm to prioritize mid-roll ads at natural pauses to reduce viewer drop-off. This means interruptive placements may become less effective, potentially affecting revenue for creators who ignore the new guidelines.

Will your revenue take a hit?

If your existing videos show a lot of red warnings on mid-roll slots, it means those placements were unlikely to serve ads in the first place. The new feedback system merely reveals what was already happening. However, after the May update, failing to adjust placements or use automatic mid-rolls could result in lower ad earnings.

This move is the latest in YouTube’s relentless push to maximize ad revenue, following controversial ad rollouts like pause ads and the removal of skip buttons. Creators have been vocal about intrusive ad placements frustrating viewers, yet YouTube appears determined to strike a balance between revenue generation and user experience.

What should creators do now?

• Check the feedback tool – Ensure manual mid-rolls are placed at natural breaks.
• Enable hybrid mid-rolls – This increases the chances of ad placements without disrupting videos.
• Opt-out if necessary – If you want full control, manually disable automatic mid-rolls before May 12, 2025.
• Reassess past videos – Use YouTube Analytics to optimize high-earning videos.

With YouTube tightening control over ad placements, creators must adapt or risk seeing revenue dips. While YouTube frames these changes as pro-creator, they align with the company’s broader agenda to maximize ad exposure — sometimes at the expense of viewer experience. Whether this ultimately benefits creators or leads to more frustration remains to be seen, but it’s clear that YouTube wants ads front and center, whether you like it or not.