To minimize YouTube and listen on your iPhone, use the Picture-in-Picture (PiP) feature by enabling it in your iPhone's Settings (General > Picture in Picture) and YouTube's Playback settings, then swipe up from the video to shrink it and continue using other apps. For background play (screen off), a YouTube Premium subscription is usually needed, or you can use workarounds with Safari or Bluetooth controls to keep audio playing after locking the screen.
It's because YouTube music doesn't allow playback while screen off. It's only a premium feature, provided by YouTube. Playback feature while screen off is only available for premium subscriptions.
With a YouTube Music Premium membership, you can listen to music and podcasts uninterrupted while using other apps or when your screen is off. Explore one of the richest music catalogs on earth with YouTube Music.
How to Stop YouTube from Pausing on Mobile Devices
Background play only works in YouTube mobile apps and requires a YouTube Premium membership. Some videos aren't available for background play or to download offline, even if you have a channel membership.
Resize the video window: To make the small video window larger, pinch open. To shrink it again, pinch closed. Show and hide controls: Tap the video window. Move the video window: Drag it to a different corner of the screen.
You can play YouTube in the background using a browser trick (requesting desktop site in Chrome/Safari) for free audio, enabling Picture-in-Picture (PiP) in app settings for video multitasking (often needs Premium), or by subscribing to YouTube Premium for seamless background audio and video across devices.
Method 1: Use Built-In PiP Mode in Chrome
Picture-in-picture (PiP) shrinks a video into a small player so you can keep watching while using other apps on your mobile device. You can move the small player around your device's home screen and position it over other apps.