Okay, Iām not sure how significant this is, but YouTube seems to think that this is a pretty big deal, and for at least some creators, it probably is.
Today, YouTube has announced some changes to its search filter options, which aim to clarify the purpose of each element, and could help you drill down to more relevant results.

YouTube has made a range of changes here, including:
- Adding a Shorts filter to the Type menu, which will make it easier to hone in on Shorts specifically
- The āSort byā menu has been renamed āPrioritize.ā This is apparently clearer as to what youāre filtering for (?)
- Within the new Prioritize menu, the āView Countā option has been renamed āPopularity,ā and YouTube will take into account broader signals when populating this list (including watch time)
In addition to these tweaks, YouTube is also simplifying and reorganizing the filter menu āto make it more intuitive and improve the overall search experience.ā
āThis includes removing some options that were not working as expected and had contributed to user complaints. The two filters weāre removing are āUpload Date – Last Hourā and āSort by Rating.ā However, you can still find the most recent search results in one of our āUpload Dateā filters, and explore popular, highly-viewed videos using the new āPopularityā filter option.ā
Is this a big deal?
Well, I donāt know, a lot of these changes seem fairly pedantic, and I donāt really see how changing āSortā to āPrioritizeā makes things any clearer for users.
But clearly, YouTube thinks this is a relevant improvement, which will improve the user experience in the app.
I doubt that itās going to be a significant update, but itās worth noting either way, as it could help you understand what people are seeing as they go searching for videos in-stream.

