Add household members directly through account settings

YouTube TV lets you add up to six people to one account. Each person gets their own profile, their own watch history, and their own recommendations. To add someone, go to your YouTube TV home page, select your profile icon in the top right, then choose Settings. From there, click Manage family group or Family and parental controls, depending on your device.

Select Add member and enter the email address of the person you want to add. They will receive an invitation to join your family group. Once they accept, they can sign in with their own Google account and start watching when ready. The person you add does not need to live with you, though YouTube TV's terms say household members should be the primary users.

If the person does not have a Google account yet, they can create one for free before accepting the invitation. They will need access to their own email to set up the account and receive the invite.

Key Takeaways

  • YouTube TV allows up to six people per account, each with their own profile and watch history.
  • You add members through Settings > Manage family group by entering their email address.
  • New members receive an invitation and must accept it before they can watch.
  • Each person needs their own Google account to join and watch on the shared YouTube TV subscription.
  • You can remove members at any time from the same family group settings page.

What happens when someone joins your family group

Once a person accepts your invitation and joins the family group, they can sign in to YouTube TV on any device using their own Google account. They will see their own recommendations based on what they watch, and their viewing history stays separate from everyone else's on the account.

Each member can create multiple profiles within their account if they want to keep different viewing histories separate — for example, one profile for themselves and another for a child. This is useful if one person in the household wants to watch different content than another.

All members share the same YouTube TV subscription and channels. No one pays extra, and everyone can watch at the same time up to the limit your plan allows. Most YouTube TV plans let three people stream simultaneously.

Remove or manage members you have added

To remove someone from your family group, go back to Settings > Manage family group and find their name in the list. Select their profile and choose Remove member. They will lose access to YouTube TV when ready, though their watch history and preferences stay saved in case they rejoin later.

You can also change someone's role within the family group. The account owner (the person who pays) has full control. Other members can be set as managers, who can add or remove people, or as regular members, who can only watch. Decide who needs to manage the account before you add them.

If someone moves out or no longer needs access, removing them frees up a slot for someone else. You can add and remove members as many times as you want.

Add members on different devices

The steps to add a family member are the same on most devices, but the exact menu path changes slightly. On a phone or tablet, open the YouTube TV app, tap your profile icon, then tap Settings. On a computer, go to youtube.tv, click your profile icon, and select Settings. On a TV device like Roku or Apple TV, navigate to Settings from the home screen.

If you cannot find the family group option on your device, try adding the member from a computer or phone first, then sign in on the TV. The member will appear in the account once they accept the invitation, regardless of which device you used to add them.

Troubleshoot when someone cannot accept the invitation

If someone says they did not receive an invitation email, ask them to check their spam or promotions folder. Google sometimes sends invitations to the wrong folder. If they still cannot find it, you can resend the invitation from the family group settings page.

Make sure the email address you entered is correct and that it belongs to an active Google account. If the person does not have a Google account, they need to create one first at accounts.google.com. Once they have an account, you can send the invitation again.

If the invitation keeps failing, try removing the member and adding them again with the correct email address. Sometimes a typo or outdated account information causes the system to reject the invite.

Understand the limits of sharing your account

YouTube TV allows you to add household members, but the service's terms say the account is meant for people who live together. Sharing with people outside your household may violate the terms of service, though YouTube TV does not actively police this. If you share with someone far away and they are the only one using the account, YouTube TV may flag the account or ask you to verify.

Each plan has a limit on how many people can watch at the same time. Most plans allow three simultaneous streams. If four people try to watch at once, the oldest stream will stop, and the person watching will see a message that the limit has been reached.

If you need more simultaneous streams or want to share with people outside your household, consider whether a separate YouTube TV account for them would work better. Each account costs the same, so the choice depends on whether you want one shared bill or separate ones.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I add someone who does not have a Google account?

No, they need a Google account to join your family group and watch YouTube TV. They can create one for free at accounts.google.com using any email address. Once they have an account, you can send them an invitation to join your family group.

What if someone in my family group changes their email address?

They will need to remove themselves from the family group and rejoin using their new email address. You can also remove them and add them again with the new email. Their watch history and preferences will be tied to their Google account, so they may see the same recommendations when they rejoin.

Can I see what other people in my family group are watching?

No, each person's watch history is private to their own profile. You can only see what you have watched. If you want to monitor what a child is watching, you can set up parental controls and create a child profile, which gives you visibility into that profile's viewing.

How many people can watch YouTube TV at the same time?

Most YouTube TV plans allow three people to stream at the same time. If a fourth person tries to watch, the oldest active stream will stop. Check your specific plan details to confirm the simultaneous stream limit.

What happens to someone's watch history if I remove them from the family group?

Their watch history and preferences stay saved in their Google account. If they rejoin the family group later, they will see the same recommendations and history they had before. Removing someone does not delete their data.