YouTube Music Lyrics Move Behind Premium Subscription Paywall

Lyrics on YouTube Music are no longer freely available for most listeners, as the platform rolls out a Premium-only requirement following months of testing. The change has begun appearing across accounts worldwide, signaling a broad shift rather than a limited experiment.

Listeners encountering the update will see a new notice in the Now Playing screen, placed prominently at the top of the lyrics tab. The message informs users how many lyric views remain and invites them to unlock full access with a paid subscription. Once the limit is reached, only the opening lines of a song remain visible, while the rest of the text is blurred and cannot be scrolled.

According to the rollout now underway, users receive five free lyric views before hitting the paywall. After that point, full lyrics are restricted to those with either a YouTube Music Premium or a broader YouTube Premium plan. The change alters a feature that had long been treated as a basic part of the listening experience, particularly for users who rely on lyrics to follow unfamiliar songs or languages.

Google has been quietly testing this approach for several months, and the current behavior suggests the company is satisfied enough with the results to move forward globally. The rollout does not appear tied to any single region, device, or operating system, and users are encountering it on both Android and other platforms.

In the United States, YouTube Music Premium is priced at $10.99 per month, offering ad-free listening, background playback, offline downloads, and newer AI-driven features such as Ask Music. The higher-tier YouTube Premium plan costs $13.99 per month and extends similar benefits to the main YouTube app as well.

The decision fits into a broader push by Google to strengthen recurring revenue across its consumer services. Earlier this week, the company disclosed that it has surpassed 325 million paid subscriptions across products including Google One and YouTube Premium. In 2025, combined revenue from YouTube advertising and subscriptions exceeded $60 billion, underscoring the financial importance of converting free users into paying customers.

For listeners, the shift may feel subtle at first, especially with a handful of free lyric views still available. Over time, however, it redraws the line between what YouTube Music treats as a core feature and what it now considers a paid extra. As the rollout continues, lyrics join a growing list of tools and conveniences that sit firmly on the Premium side of the platform.