YouTube comments open to pictures and GIFs in November – Notebookcheck

YouTube comments open to pictures and GIFs in November  Notebookcheck

Amid complaints that YouTube comments are basically over, with all bots and barely any humans left, Google has decided to shake up the comment section. Users, however, are split on the introduction of media to the text-only experience. YouTube comments are about to get a lot noisier, similar to those on Instagram, TikTok, and other comment sections. Google has updated the YouTube Data API v3 revision history with a new field for comment image URLs, confirming that images and GIF animations will be available to all users in November 2026. Until now, the comment section has only handled text and emoji with a limited GIF support rollout on the mobile app from a dedicated library.

The change is part of a wider community update as TV viewers will be able to post comments by voice instead of typing with a remote, and creators will get more personalized comment management tools that are still in testing. Channel memberships are also getting a members-only community for posts and discussions, plus a new membership page for discovering tiers. As mentioned, the GIF part is not exactly new since YouTube announced it at the Made on YouTube event, and GIFs are meant to come from a dedicated in-app repository and only in the mobile app. Reddit's r/YouTube channel has been flooded with reports of