What Was YouTube Vanced Music?
YouTube Vanced Music was a modified version of the official YouTube Music app for Android. It was distributed through Vanced Manager alongside the main YouTube Vanced app. Key features included:
- Ad-free listening: All audio and video ads removed
- Background playback: Continue listening with the screen off or while using other apps
- Forced shuffle override: Play songs in any order on the free tier
- Higher audio quality: Access to premium audio quality settings
- Google account support: Sign in via MicroG for playlists and recommendations
Current Status of YouTube Vanced Music
YouTube Vanced Music is no longer functional for most users in 2026. While the app may still open on some older Android devices, it suffers from:
- Playback failures due to YouTube Music backend changes
- Login issues from outdated MicroG authentication
- Missing new features and content
- No security patches since March 2022
If you still have YouTube Music Vanced installed, it is strongly recommended to migrate to ReVanced Music or another actively maintained alternative.
ReVanced Music - The Direct Replacement
ReVanced Music is the community successor to YouTube Vanced Music. It uses ReVanced Manager to patch the official YouTube Music app on your Android device, adding features like:
- Ad blocking (all audio and video ads removed)
- Background playback enabled
- Custom themes and AMOLED dark mode
- SponsorBlock integration for skipping non-music segments
- Google account login via GmsCore
To set up ReVanced Music, follow the same process as installing ReVanced for YouTube but select the YouTube Music app in ReVanced Manager instead.
All YouTube Vanced Music Alternatives Compared
| App | Ad-Free | Background Play | Offline | Google Login | Cost | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ReVanced Music | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | Free | Active |
| ViMusic | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | Free | Active |
| InnerTune | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | Free | Active |
| NewPipe | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | Free | Active |
| YouTube Music Premium | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | $10.99/mo | Official |
| YouTube Vanced Music | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | Via MicroG | Free | Dead (2022) |
ViMusic & InnerTune - Standalone Music Apps
If you don't want to patch the official YouTube Music app, ViMusic and InnerTune are standalone Android music players that use YouTube Music as their source. They are lightweight, ad-free, and support offline downloads — but they don't support Google account login.
Frequently Asked Questions
It may still open on some devices but is unreliable. It was discontinued in 2022 and no longer receives updates or security patches.
ReVanced Music is the direct replacement. It patches the official YouTube Music app using ReVanced Manager to add ad blocking and background playback.
Use ReVanced Music, ViMusic, or InnerTune. All are free and actively maintained.
Yes, when downloaded from official sources (revanced.app). It is open-source with publicly auditable code.