GoKawiilUpdate: January 27, 2026 (9:47 AM ET): A Google spokesperson has informed Android Authority that it’s unclear what the exact situation is for this specific user. However, YouTube users without Premium can still access playback speeds up to 2x and adjust the speed in 0.05 increments. Meanwhile, Premium users can play videos at speeds up to 4x.
The spokesperson adds that the company often runs experiments to specifically highlight premium features to non-subscribers as a way to encourage trying out Premium. It’s possible this user may be seeing a prompt to sign up for Premium in order to use speeds above 2x.
Original article: January 26, 2026 (11:49 AM ET): If YouTube is going to convince more users to sign up for a Premium subscription, then it needs features that will make it worth the money. Premium already offers plenty of exclusive benefits, like no ads, background play, offline downloads, and more. A new experiment suggests that YouTube could soon add another must-have feature to this list. However, adding this feature would come at the expense of the platform’s free users.