# Youtube Audio

> Stream just the audio from YouTube to save bandwidth and battery life

Canonical page: [https://chrome-stats.com/d/youtube-audio](https://chrome-stats.com/d/youtube-audio)

## Overview

- **ID:** `youtube-audio`
- **Platform:** Firefox
- **Type:** Firefox add-on
- **Status:** Available
- **Publisher:** Animesh Kundu
- **Category:** download-management,photos-music-videos,games-entertainment
- **Daily users:** 13,640
- **Weekly downloads:** 73
- **Rating:** 3.74 / 5 (531 ratings)
- **Version:** 1.0.4
- **Last updated:** 2026-08-07
- **First published:** 2016-10-14
- **Size:** 95 KB
- **Data as of:** 2026-09-09
- **Store listing:** [Firefox Add-ons Store](https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/youtube-audio/)
- **Website:** [https://animesh.kundus.in/youtube-audio](https://animesh.kundus.in/youtube-audio)

## Description

The Youtube Audio Chrome extension allows you to disable video playback with a single click, enabling you to stream only the audio from YouTube videos. This helps save bandwidth and extends battery life, especially useful when you want to listen to music, podcasts, or other audio content without using unnecessary video data or screen power. Perfect for users on limited data plans or those looking to reduce distractions, Youtube Audio offers a simple and efficient way to enjoy YouTube audio seamlessly.

## Rankings

- #641 — Overall
- #49 — Download Management
- #49 — Games & Entertainment
- #102 — Photos, Music & Videos
- #3 — audio
- #5 — udio

## Permissions and access

### Permissions

- `tabs`
- `webRequest`
- `webRequestBlocking`
- `storage`
- `downloads`
- `*://*.youtube.com/*`
- `*://*.youtube-nocookie.com/*`
- `*://music.youtube.com/*`
- `*://m.youtube.com/*`
- `*://*.googlevideo.com/*`
- `https://sponsor.ajay.app/*`

### Content script matches

- `*.youtube.com`
- `*.youtube-nocookie.com`
- `music.youtube.com`
- `m.youtube.com`

## Safety

- **Risk impact:** Very high risk impact
- **Risk likelihood:** Moderate risk likelihood

### Analysis details

- Grants access to browser tabs, which can be used to track user browsing habits and history, presenting a privacy concern.
- This extension was updated in the past 3 months. New updates may not be stable or safe.

> Some risk analysis details are omitted from this free response. [Upgrade to view the full analysis](https://chrome-stats.com/pricing).

## Review summary

User reviews overwhelmingly report that Youtube Audio no longer works across platforms, with many saying it does nothing and has been abandoned by the developer. Some recall it once worked well and saved resources. A few raise privacy concerns about permissions, and a minority find the usage unclear. Overall, the add-on is viewed as non-functional currently, despite a promising concept in the past.

### Pros

- Promising concept for extracting YouTube audio.
- Historically worked well and was resource-efficient when it did work.

### Cons

- Not working / currently doing nothing in many cases.
- Abandoned / not updated for years (dev has not maintained the extension).
- Past functionality was good but now broken (users note it used to work well).
- Privacy concerns: mentions of broad permissions to reach all tabs and websites.
- Usability/learning curve: some users report not understanding how to use it.

## Similar extensions and apps

- [Stream Audio Only](https://chrome-stats.com/d/stream-audio-only) — 132 users, 3.40 / 5
- [Youtube Audio](https://chrome-stats.com/d/youtube-only-audio) — 68 users, 3.40 / 5
- [YouTube Audio Mode](https://chrome-stats.com/d/youtube-audio-mode) — 205 users, 4.11 / 5
- [Audio Only on YouTube™](https://chrome-stats.com/d/audio-only-on-youtube) — 21 users, 1.57 / 5
- [YouTube: Play Only Audio](https://chrome-stats.com/d/youtube-play-only-audio) — 9 users, 3.00 / 5
- [Tube Audio Options+](https://chrome-stats.com/d/tube-audio-options) — 135 users, 4.14 / 5
- [YouTube Only Music](https://chrome-stats.com/d/youtube-only-music) — 12 users, 5.00 / 5
- [Audio Only for YouTube™](https://chrome-stats.com/d/audio-only-for-youtube) — 1,139 users, 3.40 / 5
- [Audio Only Mode](https://chrome-stats.com/d/audio-only-mode) — 1 users
- [YT\_Music](https://chrome-stats.com/d/yt_music) — 6 users, 4.43 / 5
- [Youtube audio\_only](https://chrome-stats.com/d/youtube-audio_only) — 1,156 users, 3.50 / 5
- [YouTube Audio Only](https://chrome-stats.com/d/youtube-audio-only) — 63 users, 3.60 / 5

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Source: [Chrome-Stats](https://chrome-stats.com/d/youtube-audio)