YouTube is expanding its podcast offerings on large-screen devices with a new dedicated “Podcasts” tab now rolling out widely on the YouTube app for Android TV. 

According to 9to5Google, the new feature appears in the sidebar navigation, positioned between the “Movies & TV” tab and “Subscriptions,” making podcast content more accessible to viewers.

The sidebar integration eliminates the need to navigate through specific YouTube channels to find podcast episodes or series. Instead, users can access podcast content directly through the main navigation menu. 

However, the implementation currently lacks podcast-specific features such as time-skipping controls, treating podcast content like standard YouTube videos with chapters if added by uploaders.

9to5Google notes that some users may notice that the section occasionally displays longer music tracks or mixes not explicitly labeled as podcasts by their creators. The rollout appears to be progressive, with some devices still showing podcasts in the overflow “more” menu.

The Podcast Strategy

The dedicated tab aligns with YouTube’s broader podcast strategy announced earlier this year. 

The platform revealed four key initiatives for 2025 focusing on enhancing podcast monetization, creator tools, and content discovery. According to YouTube’s latest figures, the platform has surpassed one billion monthly podcast users globally, with over 400 million hours of podcast content consumed monthly on living room devices alone.

YouTube’s podcast growth strategy leverages its video capabilities and existing YouTube Partner Program to compete with the likes of Pocket Casts, Podcast Addict, PodBean, and Spotify.

The new sidebar integration represents one of the platform’s first concrete steps toward implementing its announced podcast enhancements for 2025.