Annoying gray bars replace black borders on YouTube on Android

It seems like YouTube just can’t let its users view content in peace. Earlier we reported about how the platform is blocking users with adblockers from viewing videos, and now there’s another annoyance popping up. Many users have taken to Reddit and Google’s support forums to report that YouTube now displays gray bars at the side of videos in fullscreen instead of the traditional black borders.

This is especially distracting when watching videos at night or in dimly lit environments since you’ll constantly notice those gray bars at the side. I also notice the same thing on a Pixel 8 with YouTube version 20.11.37. So it’s clear that a recent update has brought these unwanted gray bars at the side of videos.

Interestingly, I checked the YouTube app on an iPhone, and it retains the black borders, so there are no distractions even if the video doesn’t fit the phone screen’s aspect ratio. Check out the screenshots I took from each phone for reference below:

One Redditor vented, calling it “the most stupid idea I ever seen,” while another on a Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra pointed out the bars were pitch-black until just hours ago, proving this change is fresh and unwelcome. I’ve seen over a couple dozen individual posts about the problem already, and new ones keep popping up. Therefore, it’s clear that this is a widespread change and not something that’s affecting only a small portion of users.

Some users link it to the ambient mode feature, even when it’s switched off. For instance, rotating your device to landscape can make the bars “fade” from black to gray, mimicking ambient mode’s behavior. But since iPhone users are still enjoying those crisp black borders, it’s likely a bug specific to Android’s app implementation.

Right now, the only reasonable workaround is to uninstall updates to the YouTube app. Head to the Google Play Store, search for YouTube, then uninstall YouTube updates. It worked for some, like a Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra owner, but it’s a shaky fix since the newer update might auto-download again. However, you can try stopping that by tapping on the three-dots icon on the YouTube listing in the Play Store, then uncheck the “Enable auto-update” option.

This gray bar nonsense feels like a step backward. Those black borders were subtle, letting you sink into your videos without distraction — especially at night. Switching to gray seems pointless, benefiting no one and bugging everyone. With the backlash brewing on Reddit and beyond, here’s hoping YouTube rolls out a patch soon to ditch the gray and bring back the black.