YouTube Shorts Favors New Content

Analysts working with some of YouTube’s largest channels have observed a notable drop in views for Shorts that are older than roughly 30 days. While YouTube has not officially confirmed any changes to its algorithm, data from multiple creators suggests a shift in how older videos are being recommended.

Retention experts report that videos surpassing the 28–30 day mark are increasingly being deprioritised in Shorts recommendations. This trend affects channels with very high traffic, ranging from 100 million to one billion monthly views, signalling a broad impact across the platform.

Mario Joos, a retention strategist who works with prominent creators including MrBeast, the Stokes Twins, and Alan’s Universe, first noticed the pattern after investigating performance dips among his clients’ Shorts. He found consistent declines in impressions for older content, hinting at an algorithmic preference for newer uploads.

Joos’ analysis, reported by Dot Esports, indicated a clear “threshold” at around 28–30 days. Shorts beyond this age now receive significantly fewer views than they did before September 2025. The effect was subtle at first, often masked by the performance of newer videos. Only by isolating older content did the decline become evident.

He described the trend as “the flattening,” arguing that the shift encourages creators to produce high volumes of content quickly, rather than investing time in quality. While he acknowledges YouTube’s competitive response to TikTok, Joos warns that creators who rely on Shorts for income may be disproportionately affected.

Several creators have corroborated this pattern. Tim Chesney, whose channels have accumulated over two billion views, confirmed on X that evergreen Shorts “simply tanked” in September. He observed that prioritising fresh content diminishes incentives for improving videos and pushes creators to focus on quantity over quality.

Chesney also warned that if this trend continues, YouTube could resemble platforms like TikTok, dominated by low-effort, high-volume content. Many creators share his concerns, noting that the change could undermine the long-term strategy of producing content that continues to generate views and revenue over time.

Earlier in the year, other creators documented synchronised drops in viewership, though those were linked to updates in how desktop views were counted, particularly when ad-blockers were involved. The September shift, however, appears to specifically affect the recommendation algorithm rather than the view counting methodology.

Evergreen content has long been valued for its lasting impact. Tutorials, how-to guides, and other timeless content typically continue attracting viewers months or even years after publication. This model allows creators and businesses to generate revenue from past investments while focusing on new content strategically.

A recency-focused algorithm challenges this approach. If older Shorts stop gaining impressions after approximately 30 days, creators are compelled to produce new videos constantly to maintain visibility. This transforms the content strategy from quality-driven production to continuous output, tying revenue directly to ongoing activity rather than accumulated content.

The economic implications are significant. Instead of building a library of videos that consistently generate income, creators face a treadmill where content loses value quickly. This also impacts smaller creators who may lack the resources to produce a high volume of Shorts regularly.

This trend mirrors broader changes observed across Google Search, where freshness signals sometimes take priority over long-standing, high-quality content. For marketers and content strategists, this suggests that platforms previously considered stable may be subject to sudden shifts in algorithmic preference.

Transparency remains limited. YouTube’s Creator Liaison team exists to communicate changes to creators, but algorithm updates are rarely confirmed officially. Most creators identify these shifts themselves through careful data monitoring, leaving them to adapt reactively.

Creators should now closely monitor analytics for content older than 30 days. Comparing September 2025 performance with previous months can reveal whether older Shorts are being deprioritised. Channels across various sizes and categories seem to reflect the same trend, suggesting a platform-wide shift.

In conclusion, while YouTube has not officially acknowledged any algorithm change, the evidence points towards a preference for fresh content over evergreen Shorts. Creators and strategists need to adjust their content approach, balancing the production of new videos with the desire to maintain the long-term value of existing content libraries.