Which extension solves which problem?
Start with the problem that annoys you most and add others only when you need them:
| Problem | Extension | How it works | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sponsor reads in popular videos | SponsorBlock | Skips segments the community marked; also intros, reminders and more | Free |
| Sponsor reads in new or unmarked videos | SponsorSkip | Reads the captions with AI and skips the sponsor; English videos, Chrome | 20 free videos, then paid plans |
| Endless recommendations, Shorts, comments | Unhook | Hides the home feed, sidebar, Shorts, comments, end screens and more | Free to install |
| Clickbait titles and thumbnails | DeArrow | Replaces them with crowdsourced titles and frames from the video | $1 license or free option |
| Watching at custom speeds | Video Speed Controller | Keyboard shortcuts for speed and 10-second jumps on any HTML5 video | Free, open source |
| Hidden dislike counts | Return YouTube Dislike | Shows an estimated dislike count | Free |
Skipping sponsor reads
SponsorBlock is the established choice: free, open source and, on October 8, 2026, about 2 million Chrome users and Google's Featured badge. It only skips segments someone has submitted.
SponsorSkip covers the gap: it reads the video's captions and finds the sponsor itself, so it works on fresh uploads and smaller channels. It is in beta, analyzes English videos with captions and is paid after the first free videos. We make it, so judge it on your own videos.
Hiding recommendations and Shorts
Unhook's listing describes hiding the homepage feed, video sidebar, related videos, Shorts, comments, end-screen walls, live chat, merch shelves and more, plus disabling autoplay. When we checked, it showed about 1 million users, a 4.9 rating and an update from March 22, 2026.
Fixing clickbait
DeArrow, from the SponsorBlock developer, swaps titles and thumbnails for community submissions and reformats original titles when there is no submission. Its listing offers a $1 license and a free option for people who don't want to pay.
Controlling playback speed
Video Speed Controller by igrigorik adds shortcuts on any HTML5 video: S and D to slow down or speed up, R to reset, Z and X to jump 10 seconds back or forward. Its listing showed about 3 million users and an update from August 15, 2026. YouTube's own player also changes speed with Shift+> and Shift+<.
How many extensions are too many?
Every extension that runs on youtube.com can read and change the page, and two tools that both control playback can interfere with each other. Install only what you use, prefer known publishers and recent updates, and remove anything you've stopped using.
Common questions
What is the best YouTube extension for skipping sponsors?
SponsorBlock for popular videos the community has marked; an AI skipper such as SponsorSkip for new or unmarked videos. Many people need only one of them.
Do YouTube extensions slow down Chrome?
Each extension adds some work on the pages where it runs. A handful of well-maintained extensions is rarely noticeable; dozens of overlapping ones can be.
Sources
This list is written by SponsorSkip, which appears in it. It is grouped by problem rather than ranked, and store figures were read from each listing on the date below; they change often. External sources were checked on October 8, 2026. Product details describe SponsorSkip as of the update date above.
Use Google Search? Add SponsorSkip as a preferred source ↗Google may then show our guides more often in your results.