YouTube is replacing the ‘Trending’ tab in its app with a new ‘Explore’ listing, which will showcase more video categories, along with popular videos, in order to prompt broader discovery.

As explained by YouTube:

“We’ve been testing a new tab in the YouTube mobile app called Explore – with Explore, you not only have access to Trending videos, but also to destination pages for some popular content categories like Gaming, Music, Fashion & Beauty, Learning and more – all from one place.”

YouTube has been testing out a range of variations of the Explore tab since 2018 in order to get more people tapping through to different topic segments and discover additional content.

The platform expanded its Explore test early last year, with a Stories-like panel at the top of the screen to highlight topics.

YouTube’s obviously opted not to go with this format in the end, with the actual, launched variation looking much cleaner, and likely easier to navigate.

In addition to this, YouTube’s also adding “Creator on the Rise” and “Artist on the Rise” tags to related videos in order to highlight up and coming creators.

As noted, the idea here is to get more people coming across more YouTube content, while it could also set the scene for YouTube to establish more customized Explore listings based on your previous viewing behavior, drawing users into more content.

It seems like a good addition – the usage numbers will eventually tell the tale, but it looks good, and will likely generate more interest in content categories.

YouTube says that the Explore update is rolling out over the next few days across mobile and tablet devices (both Android and iOS).