You upload a video, hit publish, and a few hours later, you find yourself replaying it, more than once. The view count rises, and you, as a YouTube creator, ask yourself, ‘Does rewatching a YouTube video count as a view?’
It’s a common question that comes up when YouTube growth feels slow, and monetization seems out of reach. But while YouTube does count some rewatches, not all repeated plays are treated equally. Here’s what you should know:
How Are Views Counted On YouTube?
YouTube counts views only when the viewer clicks the play button and watches the video for 30 seconds or more. The view will not be counted if the viewer quits the video before that. It is to ensure that the view is coming from a real person. YouTube views that don’t meet this requirement may be filtered and not included in the total count.
Does Rewatching A Video Count As A View?
Yes, rewatching a video counts as a view when it’s natural. YouTube may count repeated views from the same viewer if each session shows genuine engagement. Still, it actively filters behaviour that appears to be spam or automated. Here are the key factors to consider:
- Viewer duration: If views last barely a few seconds, they shall be disqualified. Each viewer session on your video should last at least 30 seconds.
- Viewing history: If the same individual repeatedly watches videos, then rewatches will count to some extent, but not all.
Does Rewatching Count as Watch Hours?
Rewatching a YouTube video can contribute to your total watch hours, but there are important nuances you need to understand. Here’s how it works:
- Watch Hours tracks the actual time spent watching a video.
- YouTube’s algorithm filters out repeated plays that appear automated.
- Only Public video hours are counted as watch hours
- YouTube considers watch hours accumulated within the last year.
- Videos with higher retention are more likely to be recommended by YouTube, further boosting watch time.
How to Encourage Natural Rewatches?
Here’s a list of strategies that will grow your view count tremendously.
1. Enable Video Looping
This way, your videos will replay automatically once they end, which may discourage viewers from leaving if they liked the video. This technique can be used for dance videos, songs, instrumentals, remixes, mashups, parodies, or commentary videos.
2. Allow Video Embedding
This way, you will get views on your videos from more platforms than just YouTube. However, views gained from them will qualify only if the user physically clicks the play button.
3. Collab With Creators
If you find a small-time creator with strong growth potential based on how often their videos have gone viral, that will increase the number of viewers on your videos, too (at a lower cost).
4. Increase Engagement Activities
Liking or pinning viewer comments will force viewers to visit your video discussions, ultimately nudging them to rewatch your video. Drawing on ideas from polls or live chats will also spark curiosity among viewers who want to know how their ideas were executed.
5. Classify Videos in Playlists
Your playlists will appear for multiple search terms that include keywords from numerous videos. This will increase the reach and searchability of your videos, which, if compelling enough, could convert into views.
6. Prioritize Optimizations
Video descriptions and titles play a huge role in shaping viewer expectations. You can always hit the right nerves with the AI YouTube Title Generator and the AI YouTube Description Generator.
Conclusion
Most of the rewatchers save your videos. This signals to the algorithm that the content is of value. The mere habit of rewatching favorite content will create a domino effect. It will increase YouTube watch time on your videos as well. Bounce rate will be compensated since the rewatchers are prime viewers who will like, comment, and share. Thus, increasing the subscriber count as well.
For YouTube creators aiming to grow and reach monetization, the focus should be on building the content naturally. Hence, understanding how YouTube evaluates views becomes a stepping stone.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1. Does watching a video 2 times count as 2 views?
So, does rewatching a YouTube video count as a view, especially if you do it twice? Yes, as long as you were present for more than 30 seconds both times.
Q2. Can I watch my own YouTube videos to get 4000 watch hours?
Firstly, it is humanly impossible to watch your own videos to complete 4000 watch hours. It won’t help you reach the goal. Although you can rewatch the video 3-4 times to increase views, the Algorithm will eventually filter the repeat views.
Q3. Does looping a YouTube video increase views?
No, it doesn’t significantly increase YouTube views because the algorithm limits repeated plays from the same user. While YouTube does count repeated views, it restricts them to around 4-5 within 24 hours to prevent manipulation.
Q4. Does refreshing YouTube add views?
No, simply refreshing the YouTube page will not increase the number of views of the YouTube video.
Q5. Does autoplay count as a view on YouTube?
No, autoplay does not count as a view unless the video is intentionally played.