13 Sites like YouTube as Alternative to Watch Videos Online
It goes without saying that YouTube is one of the biggest video platforms in the world. However, there are some restrictions involved or you may simply not find the movie or a particular video that you’re looking for. This is where alternative video hosting sites come into the equation. By our estimate, there are several dozen sites out there that provide (non adult) video streaming services.
So what are some of the options if you’re looking for a viable alternative to YouTube? Well, there are several actually. This is why we decided to compile a list of some of the best YouTube alternatives we could find. Unsurprisingly, we managed to find 11. There are more out there, no doubt, but these provide the best in terms of user experience and quality of content.
So without waiting any further, let’s have a look at our list.
13 Sites like YouTube as Alternative to Watch Videos Online
Vimeo
This has long been considered one of the primary rivals to YouTube. Vimeo provides a high quality video streaming service that uses a completely different player compared to YouTube. While it’s not particularly hard to embed Vimeo links, it’s just the fact that not many people use it around the world. However, if you’re looking for decent content, this could be your best YouTube alternative. There is a search option which allows you to look for something, just as you would on YouTube. It’s no secret that this cannot compete with YouTube in terms of numbers.
However, Vimeo has undertaken a handful of projects over the past few years, involving some amount of overhaul for the platform. For video producers, the company is offering something known as Vimeo Pro which offers extensive video editing tools, HDR video, and advanced security features. This is a subscription offering, which means you will have to pay each month to keep this going. There are three tiers to Vimeo’s subscription offering – Pro, Business and Premium with varying price points.
Open-Video.org
This is not the best solution for watching YouTube like videos, but still worth a mention if you work in the educational sector. Needless to say, most of the videos you find on this platform is educational in nature. That’s because open-video.org came into fruition at the Interaction Design Laboratory at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill’s School of Information and Library Science. You can also find some decent clips from NASA on this platform along with older TV commercials, so it’s not all too bad. It goes without saying that this is a free offering and accessible to everyone.
Veoh
This is a proper video platform that serves as an alternative to the likes of YouTube and Vimeo. It comes with an extensive range of videos, including shows like Two and a Half Men, The Price Is Right as well as NCIS. This streaming platform comes from Israeli startup Qlipso, which has previously described itself as a company with focus on internet TV. You will also find a decent collection of music on Veoh.
One concern with a platform like Veoh is that it’s too easy to upload a video and there’s barely any moderation involved. You may also find a ton of clickbait videos on the homepage, which isn’t necessarily a good thing, but wiser users will look past it. The lack of a safe search filter makes this slightly inconvenient for families. Of course, Veoh is completely free to use and allows you to create accounts so you can find all your uploaded videos in one place. In theory, Veoh works exactly like any other video streaming platform. However, the fact that it doesn’t have a proper content moderation system is a bit of a letdown.
Sony Crackle
This is one of the best places on the internet to watch full length feature films, original TV shows and even kids shows. Sony Crackle is a U.S. only offering and has been around for quite some time now. It comes with an extensive collection of content, most of which are larger than 10 minutes. Some series on Crackle like Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee has received critical acclaim as well, speaking volumes about the production quality on the platform. Naturally, you also have access to a ton of Sony movies here, including popular blockbusters like Paranormal Activity, Rudy, as well as the Will Smith starrer Concussion.
The best part about Crackle is that all this premium content is offered to the customers at no cost. However, Sony will include advertisements in your content to monetize the platform in some way. This is a worthy tradeoff and I’m sure the customers don’t mind this. If you’re in the mood to discover some new TV content, be sure to have a closer look at the TV section on Crackle.
The Internet Archive
This is probably the most unlikely place you’d expect to find movies, but archive.org has a great collection of videos from both recently as well as the past. What gives this platform its weight is the fact that it contains some of the older videos that may have been hidden from the public eye. Of course, you will also need a penchant for history to scour through hours of footage and ascertain the significance of them. But this is not to say that you will only find older videos.
You will find categories like Comedy, Noir, Sci-Fi / Horror, and so on. Naturally, this means you can find full length feature films here, something you may not find elsewhere. There are some recent videos as well, which is thanks mainly to the fact that practically anyone can upload videos on the platform. The standard format used on the internet archive is H.264. Thanks to the openness and educative nature of the internet archive, it’s not surprising that it continues to offer content despite juggernauts like YouTube single handedly dominating the market.
DailyMotion
This is undoubtedly one of the most popular streaming services out there barring YouTube and Vimeo. It often comes up on search results, although YouTube usually dominates this area as well. DailyMotion has gone through an overhaul of sorts, which now means you will find results tailored to your location. This is pretty great in helping discover new content, especially the ones that are relevant to you. It is also important to mention that DailyMotion came into existence a month after YouTube back in 2005, so this platform has been around through quite a tough time these past 14 years.
Despite that, the platform continues to host excellent content, mostly by independent producers, offering a truly viable alternative to the likes of YouTube. Just like its rival, you will find channels (video uploaders) here and creating an account can tailor your feed with the content that you’re looking for. This is one of the aspects that makes YouTube such a massive convenience to everyone. This is an international platform, which means you will probably find content pertaining to any part of the world. Expectedly, it’s a free to use platform and some of its videos may be ad supported.
Howcast
What if there was a YouTube alternative just to learn something? Well, Howcast appears to be an ideal solution to this problem. This is a video platform dedicated to helping people learn something new. You might be considering curling your hair, or learning something new that could significantly boost your savings, Howcast is filled with solutions for your everyday problems. The website is well laid out and there’s a small search button on the top right, allowing you to search for specific keywords.
Moreover, there are specific categories to choose from, allowing you to pick what you’re looking for. This can also come in handy if you’re simply looking to learn and/or add a new skill to your repertoire. Categories include Health & Wellness, Home & Garden, Arts & Crafts, Dance & Entertainment, and so on. What I personally like about Howcast is the fact that it also appears to provide step by step instructions to some of its videos, further helping educate the viewers. This is certainly a cue that several other video platforms can take. Given the nature of Howcast, we can safely say that it’s safe for anyone to use. The site runs on ads and there’s no other way to monetize the platform, which essentially means that it’s completely free to use for everyone.
Metacafe
This is yet another independent video platform that has been around for quite some time. The quality of videos here, though, is definitely not on par with YouTube, Vimeo or even Daily Motion. Luckily, there’s a decent content moderation system here, but since most uploads are driven towards views, you will find content with odd and catchy titles. This is not necessarily a bad thing as it can let you discover some really hilarious videos online. Browsing through videos is fairly simple here thanks to a prominent search bar on top.
There are Latest, Popular, and Trending sections right below the search bar, giving you a glimpse of what’s currently being watched on the platform. Metacafe also has a second category list, which can be accessed through the drop down menu on the top left. This will reveal categories like Video Games, How To, Comedy, Art Animation, Cool Commercials, and several others. Metacafe is considered the best place to find short yet effective videos, mostly involving humor although there are several other categories to choose from as we’ve mentioned.
Ustream
This came off as a brilliant concept which was started off to allow members of the military stay in touch with their loved ones over live video chat. This has now turned into a streaming phenomenon, although the market has no doubt gotten more crowded since Ustream was launched. For those watching the videos, Ustream n0w has plenty of other content that can be caught live. It also offers broadcasters the ability to create pay per view events, thus helping monetize the platform to keep it running.
Users can head over to Ustream to catch some of the most pertinent livestreams happening around the world. While most prefer Facebook Live or YouTube for live streaming, there’s a vast community of creators out there who churn out live events to the populace. It also has partners like Panasonic, Samsung, Logitech, CBS News, PBS NewsHour, Viacom, and others which tells us about the popularity it has gained in the market since its inception.
Vevo
This is a name that many might be familiar with, thanks to partnerships with several big ticket artists from the music industry. While you may have caught some of Vevo’s videos on YouTube, you’d be pleased to know that Vevo also has a standalone site that offers video content to users. Vevo is jointly owned by companies like Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, Google, and Abu Dhabi Media. However, the site’s reach is somewhat limited compared to other platforms. As of now, Vevo is only available in regions like United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland, Spain, Italy, Brazil, and a few other parts of Europe.
Vevo is also closely involved with Google as you would expect given the relationship between the two companies. There are over 50,000 videos to access on Vevo, so it’s clearly behind YouTube by a big margin. However, Vevo is a platform designed for music videos and other artist related content. So 50,000 doesn’t sound too bad, to be honest.
IGTV
This may be a surprising choice for many, but Instagram TV is one of the hottest places for independent videos right now. The platform was started off by Instagram last year and despite a lukewarm response initially, the service has picked up steam subsequently. The best part about this platform is that videos are all designed for mobile, so you will find most of them adhering to the vertical form factor of your smartphone. Unfortunately, there’s no other way to enjoy IGTV right now, although Instagram technically allows uploading videos from a desktop.
Users can really boost their discovery features using IGTV as they will automatically see content from the accounts they follow. This, in turn, offers more incentive for creators to target a certain demographic. If you frequently use the Instagram app, it’s very likely that you’ve tried out this app already. The company has somehow resisted the urge to launch a standalone app, so Instagram is the only way you can access IGTV right now. As you would imagine, the service is completely free for viewers.
DTube
DTube comes from a blockchain background and offers users the ability to earn money as well. The user interface is eerily similar to YouTube, which should be no surprise to anyone. Each video you upload on D Tube earns you Steem crypto-currency rewards for seven days. This is why you see the amount of money written on D Tube videos. In terms of content, this is host to plenty of independent videos ranging from gameplay videos to informational content. Those who comment on the videos also have a chance to make some quick bucks.
You will also find handy filters like Watch Later, Watch Again, New Videos, and so on. It’s unlikely that you’ll discover groundbreaking videos on this platform, but the fact that this is running entirely on cryptocurrency gives it a rare distinction in the industry.
9GAG.TV
9GAG is one of the most popular apps out there that helps you discover the best memes out there. 9GAG.TV is its video section where you can find thousands of funny, witty, and sometimes educational videos. The homepage is scattered with video content, and it may be overwhelming at first glance. But this is the nature of the streaming business today, with the focus on offering the most effective content to the consumers. You have access to sections like Fun Off!, WTF, NSFW, Movie & TV, and Wow. This should give you a very good idea of the kind of content you can find on the platform.
Undoubtedly, the platform is filled with filth which is mostly due to the fact that practically anyone can upload videos on the platform. 9GAG, however, has a very strict content moderation policy and wrongly listed videos are quickly removed. Be sure to check it out.
Honorary mention
Twitch
This is perhaps one of the only video platforms out there that outperforms YouTube (at least in terms of gaming videos). Thanks to the versatiltity of the platform and the ability to stream entire gameplay sessions, Twitch has effectively remained the leader in the world of game streaming. This is probably why you won’t find anything but gaming related content on Twitch.
There are some definite negatives with Twitch compared to YouTube. While gamers definitely prefer this over YouTube, the payout is significantly lesser with Twitch. This maybe one of the reasons why we see YouTube also acting as a decent hub for live game streams. If you’re a gamer and are yet to check out Twitch, we highly recommend you to give this a look.