YouTube is the number one online video-sharing platform in the world. Any person with a camera, computer, and internet connection can create videos and upload them to their YouTube channels for free.
Some people even make money from their videos after building a successful channel under a popular niche. All they need to do is buy YouTube views and upload new videos consistently. That is how a channel can grow and become a real money maker. But that doesn’t help people who are merely looking for videos to watch.
The ease and convenience of uploading videos have crowded the platform with billions of videos. It is difficult to find a video you might want to watch because you have to browse through so many similar videos. That is why an increasing number of people are looking for YouTube alternatives for finding and watching videos.
Below are the top 7 YouTube alternatives to try when you can’t find a video on YouTube.
1) Vimeo
Vimeo is more of a community-oriented video sharing platform. It caters to filmmakers and creative content creators who want to show off their work to specific groups of people. You can expect to find more HD and Ultra HD (4K) videos on the platform because people take their video creation more seriously on it.
People who upload videos have a 500MB storage limit per week on how much content they can upload. If they want to upload videos that are over 500MB in total size per week, they must upgrade their membership to a paid account. That is another reason why you’ll find fewer amateur videos on Vimeo. Only serious content creators are willing to pay money to upload videos.
Viewers are expected to be serious too. You won’t see as many trolls or haters in the comment section. Instead, they will be people who leave real reviews and comments meant to help the content creators. Since it is free to watch videos on Vimeo, you definitely should check out the platform to find some great videos to watch.
2) Dailymotion
Dailymotion is considered to be the next best video sharing platform after YouTube. Its interface and navigation system are very similar to what you’d find on YouTube. If you’re accustomed to searching for videos on YouTube, then you should have no problem getting accustomed to the same process on Dailymotion.
But there are some differences in the platform. For instance, Dailymotion assigns videos to specific categories. That is something you don’t see on YouTube. It makes searching for videos so much easier on the user-end of things because you don’t need to rely on keywords alone to find videos to watch.
Dailymotion has more restrictions on video upload sizes and duration. Each video cannot be more than 2 GB in size and 60 minutes in length. People are only allowed to upload up to 10 videos per day. These restrictions are not too bad because they help reduce the clutter of videos on the website.
3) Flickr
Flickr was initially created as a photo-sharing platform. But over the years, it has gradually transitioned into a video sharing platform too. It lets users upload videos that are 90 seconds or less. The idea is that shorter videos are more artistic because they need to entertain people quickly. That is why content creators are usually artists of both video, photography, music, and film.
If you’re interested in browsing shorter videos, then you’ll find a nice selection of them on Flickr. It seems like the video features are growing each year too. Even though the website might feel restrictive as far as videos are concerned, that could change in the near future. But if you’re only watching videos, then you don’t need to worry about the restrictions. Enjoy watching the short videos for free.
4) Metacafe
Metacafe has some similarities to YouTube because they both have original videos and exclusive videos. The platform has partnered with several mainstream television networks to deliver high-quality videos in many different categories. But the one stipulation is that people cannot upload videos longer than 8 minutes.
That can be a good thing in a way. It means all the videos on the platform are short and to the point. Since most people don’t like watching long videos anyway, it is the perfect site for people who like their entertainment to come quickly. Metacafe does an excellent job of doing that.
You’ll find videos ranging from various categories, including music, sports, video games, movies, and television. They even have a family filter so that children under 18 do not find inappropriate videos. Most video sharing platforms do not have a family filter, so this is truly something unique about Metacafe.
5) Veoh
Veoh is a great YouTube alternative that seems to have stayed under the radar for many years. Users can find personal videos, independent productions, and major studio films and videos on the platform. Its basic interface should be easy enough for anyone to learn how to use.
Just type in your keywords in the search box to find videos to watch. Either that, or you can use the drop-down menus to find videos and movies in various categories. There is even a music section where you can listen to music videos from different genres, such as Rock, Latin, Jazz, Electronic, Country, Classical, and Alternative.
6) DTube
DTube might sound like YouTube. It might have a similar interface to YouTube. It might let users watch videos and upload videos without any restrictions… just like YouTube. Okay, so what’s the difference?
DTube does not have ads! You can enjoy unlimited video watching without any annoying ad interruptions. Not only that, but the interface lets you save videos and watch them later.
Of course, most people have never heard of DTube before. That is why you might struggle to find the types of videos you want to watch. There isn’t nearly as much video variety on DTube as there is on YouTube.
7) 9Gag
Do you like to watch meme videos and images? If so, then you might enjoy the content on 9Gag. It features short entertainment videos and images for your viewing pleasure.
All of the content is categorized, so it is easy to find the content you want to watch. Just look at the vertical navigational bar of categories on the left side of the screen. You can find categories for gaming, cars, animals, memes, politics, relationships, and more.
Many social media users like to share 9Gag videos with their friends on Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. The 9Gag platform makes it easy for you to do this. All you need to do is click the necessary buttons to share the videos.
EDITOR NOTE: This is a promoted post and should not be viewed as an editorial endorsement.