How to Fix the Unresponsive Back Button Issue on YouTube

Clicking the back button on YouTube sometimes does nothing, leaving you stuck on the same video or homepage instead of going back to the previous screen. This problem happens because YouTube uses a single-page application setup, which loads new content without fully refreshing the page.

Usually, the main reason is that YouTube doesn’t properly update your browsing history when you move around the site. This is often due to how JavaScript manages navigation on YouTube. Other things that can cause this issue include browser extensions that change how pages work or using an old version of your browser or the YouTube app.

Before diving into the main solutions, try refreshing the website after clicking the back button. A simple refresh can sometimes load the previous video’s page properly.

1. Turn Off Browser’s Hardware Acceleration: The hardware acceleration feature helps your browser run smoother by using your computer’s hardware to speed things up. However, in some cases, it may cause freezing or glitches like the YouTube back button issue. Disabling hardware acceleration might fix the problem.
2. Disable Browser Extensions: Extensions can sometimes interfere with how YouTube and other websites work, including the back button. Try browsing YouTube in incognito (private) mode. If the back button works there, one of your extensions might be the cause. You can disable your extensions one by one to find out which is causing the issue.
3. Update Your Browser: An outdated browser can have trouble displaying or running websites like YouTube correctly. Keeping your browser updated can help avoid such problems.
4. Clear the Browser’s Cookies and Cache: Over time, cookies and cached files can slow your browser or cause errors like the back button not working. Clearing these stored files can often solve the problem.

Note: The following steps for the Brave browser will also apply to any other Chromium-based browsers.

1. Turn Off Browser’s Hardware Acceleration

A hidden reason why the back button might not work is due to problems with how graphics are shown on your screen. Turning off hardware acceleration makes your browser use software to display graphics instead. This can help your browser work better with websites like YouTube and stop things like the back button from freezing or not responding.

1.1. For Mozilla Firefox

1. Click the menu button and choose Settings.

2. Select the General panel.
3. In the Performance section, uncheck ‘Use recommended performance settings’.
4. Then uncheck ‘Use hardware acceleration when available’.

5. Close the Settings and restart Firefox for the changes to take effect.

1.2. For Brave Browser:

1. Open Settings from the menu button.

2. Go to the System tab on the left side.
3. Turn off ‘Use hardware acceleration when available’.

4. Relaunch the browser to apply the changes.

2. Disable Browser Extensions

Some extensions quietly block or change scripts that help websites like YouTube remember your navigation history. Turning off these extensions can fix problems that stop the back button from working correctly.

Note: After disabling your extensions, re-enable them one at a time to find out which one is causing the issue.

2.1. For Mozilla Firefox

1. Click the Menu Button.
2. Select Add-ons and Themes.

3. Go to the Extensions tab.
4. Disable some extensions and check if the back button on YouTube works correctly.

5. If the problem continues, disable the remaining extensions and test again.
6. Repeat the process until you find the extension causing the problem.

2.2. For Brave Browser

1. Open the Menu Button and go to Extensions.

3. Turn off some extensions to check if this fixes the issue.

4. If the problem remains, continue to disable the remaining extensions.

3. Update Your Browser

Older browsers can have trouble with YouTube’s modern page design, which can cause problems like the back button not working. Updating your browser helps it work better with the latest features that YouTube uses, which should fix back button issues.

3.1. For Mozilla Firefox

1. Go to Help > About Firefox from the menu button.

3. If an update is available, Firefox will start installing it automatically.

4. Restart the browser to complete the update.

3.2. For Brave Browser

1. Click the menu button and select About Brave.

3. Brave will automatically check for and install any available updates.

4. Restart Brave after updating.

4. Clear Browser’s Cookies and Cache

Too much stored site data can quietly cause problems with YouTube’s navigation. Clearing your browser’s cookies and cache removes old files and session data that might interfere with how YouTube loads, often fixing issues with the back button not working properly.

4.1. For Mozilla Firefox

1. Open Settings > Privacy & Security via the menu button.
2. Under Cookies and Site Data, click Clear Data.

4. Click on Clear.

4.2. For Brave Browser

1. Go to Settings > Privacy and Security from the menu button.
2. Select Clear browsing data.

4. Select both Cache and Cookies, and set the time range to All time.
5. Click Clear data.

If the YouTube back button still doesn’t work after following these steps, try using a different browser. If you continue to have trouble, feel free to leave a comment below and we’ll do our best to help you further.