By Daniel Rowles, lead trainer at Target Internet and author of Digital Branding (Kogan Page). Last updated: November 2026.
You can no longer fully embed a YouTube video without related videos. Since September 2018, adding rel=0 to the embed URL only limits related videos to the same channel as the video you embedded. To hide them fully, host your own videos on a paid platform such as Vimeo or Wistia, or use YouTube's player API to stop the video before the end screen appears.
This guide explains what changed, how to use rel=0 and the other YouTube embed settings that still work, the options for taking back control of what viewers see, and how to decide which approach suits each video on your site. It is written for marketers rather than developers, with code you can copy where it helps.
Why related videos on embeds are a problem for marketers
When an embedded YouTube video finishes, the player shows a grid of suggested videos. By default these can come from any channel and are personalised to the viewer, so someone researching a product on your website may be shown your competitor's videos inside your own page. One click and they are on YouTube, not on your site.
That matters most on the pages where video does the heaviest lifting: product pages, landing pages and sign-up pages. You have paid to attract the visitor, and the video is meant to move them towards a decision, not hand them to a recommendation engine. For tips on making the videos themselves work harder, see our guide to optimising your video content.
What changed: rel=0 no longer hides related videos
The rel parameter used to switch related videos off. YouTube changed its behaviour from 25 September 2018. According to YouTube's embedded player parameters documentation, it is no longer possible to disable related videos: when rel is set to 0, related videos come from the same channel as the video that was just played.
Other settings that marketers once used to tidy up embeds have gone too:
- showinfo is ignored. The channel avatar and video title always show before playback, when paused and at the end.
- modestbranding was deprecated on 15 August 2023 and has no effect. YouTube says branding now depends on factors such as player size and whether controls are shown.
How to embed a YouTube video with rel=0
If the video is on your own channel, rel=0 is still worth using, because at least the related videos will be yours. Follow these steps:
- Open the video on YouTube on a computer, select Share, then Embed.
- Copy the embed code from the box that appears.
- Find the video address inside the code, which looks like https://www.youtube.com/embed/VIDEO_ID.
- Add
?rel=0directly after the video ID. If the address already contains a question mark, add&rel=0instead. - Paste the code into your website's HTML or your CMS's embed block.
The finished address inside the embed code will look like this:
https://www.youtube.com/embed/VIDEO_ID?rel=0
Many CMS video blocks and plugins accept only the video URL and generate the embed code for you. If yours does, check whether it has a setting for related videos, or switch to a custom HTML block so you can add the parameter yourself.
Use privacy-enhanced mode as well
You can also change the domain in the embed address from www.youtube.com to www.youtube-nocookie.com. YouTube's help page on embedding videos explains that privacy-enhanced mode prevents views of embedded content from influencing the viewer's browsing experience on YouTube, and that any ads shown are non-personalised.
It is not a full privacy solution, and you should still treat the embed as a third-party service in your cookie banner and policy. Our guide to cookies in digital marketing explains how the UK consent rules apply.
Copy and paste prompt: "Here is the YouTube embed code from my website: [paste embed code]. Rewrite it so it uses privacy-enhanced mode, limits related videos to my own channel, starts at [time in seconds, or 'the beginning'], and is responsive so it fits mobile screens. Explain each change in one line."
Other ways to embed a YouTube video without related videos
If same-channel suggestions are still too much, you have four further options. Most need either a developer or a paid video host.
1. Host your own videos on a paid platform
Paid video hosts give you full control of the player and what happens at the end. We host our own course and marketing videos on Vimeo at Target Internet for exactly this reason. According to Vimeo's help centre, end screens are available on its paid plans and can show more of your videos, loop the video, or display a call to action after it finishes. Its end screen FAQ adds that choosing the Empty option stops anything appearing after playback.
Wistia and other business video platforms offer similar controls, plus features such as email capture and detailed viewing analytics. Our review of video hosting services compares the main options.
2. Loop the video
A looping video never reaches the end screen. YouTube's player parameters page explains how to loop a single video: set loop=1 and add the playlist parameter with the same video ID, for example ?loop=1&playlist=VIDEO_ID. This suits short product demonstrations and background clips, but not longer videos where viewers expect a clear end.
3. Control the end with the YouTube player API
If a developer can help, the YouTube IFrame Player API lets your page detect when a video ends and respond, for example by pausing on the final frame, returning to the start, or replacing the player with your own call to action. This keeps YouTube hosting while hiding the end screen, and it is the most flexible free option.
4. Use a click-to-load facade
A facade shows a static thumbnail with a play button and only loads the real YouTube player when someone clicks. Google's Lighthouse guidance on third-party facades describes them as static elements that look like the embed but put far less load on the page, and lists libraries such as lite-youtube-embed. Facades do not change the end screen on their own, but they speed up pages and stop YouTube loading for visitors who never press play, which also helps with privacy.
If you want to build your video skills further, the Target Internet platform includes our effective online video course, alongside skills benchmarking, accredited certification, over 400 episodes of the Digital Marketing Podcast, and monthly live masterclasses.
Which approach should you use?
The right answer depends on whose video it is and how important the page is. Videos from other people's channels can only use YouTube's own settings, so rel=0 limits suggestions to their channel at best. For your own videos, the choice comes down to how much control you need.
A practical split for most marketing teams is to use a paid host for videos on high-value pages, such as product, pricing and landing pages, and YouTube with rel=0 and privacy-enhanced mode for blog posts and resources. That way you keep tight control where conversions happen, without paying to host every video twice.
Whatever you choose, audit your site once. List the pages that embed YouTube videos, note whether each video is yours, and decide how each one should behave. It is a small job that stops embedded videos quietly sending visitors to your competitors.
How to audit the video embeds on your site
Most sites have accumulated video embeds over years, added by different people with different settings. A one-off audit shows where visitors are most likely to be pulled away. Work through these steps:
- List every page that embeds a video. A site crawler, a search of your CMS for "youtube.com/embed", or your analytics video engagement report will find most of them.
- For each embed, note whose channel the video belongs to and whether the address includes rel=0 or youtube-nocookie.com.
- Play each video on a high-value page to the end, and pause it part-way, to see exactly what a visitor sees.
- Decide the right approach for each page using the decision tree above, and update the most important pages first.
- Check that your cookie banner and policy list YouTube or your video host as a third party, and update them if not.
Repeat the check whenever you change CMS or video plugin, because many plugins regenerate embed codes and can quietly drop parameters you added by hand.
Should you still put your videos on YouTube?
Yes. YouTube is still where most people search for video, so publishing there helps the right people find your content. The question is not whether to use YouTube, but whether YouTube's player is the right way to show those videos on your own website.
Treat YouTube as a discovery channel, optimised for search, and treat your website as a conversion channel, where you control the experience. Our podcast episode on YouTube video search optimisation covers how to get videos found, and our episode on effective YouTube channels covers how to build a channel that grows.
If you are ready to take a structured approach to building your digital marketing skills, explore Target Internet membership options and discover how the platform's interactive courses, benchmarking tools, podcast, accredited certification and live masterclasses can accelerate where you are heading next.
Frequently asked questions
Does rel=0 still work on YouTube embeds?
Partly. Since September 2018, rel=0 no longer hides related videos. Instead, it limits them to videos from the same channel as the embedded video. That is useful for your own videos, because viewers only see more of your content, but it cannot remove suggestions completely.
How do I hide the "More videos" suggestions on a YouTube embed?
YouTube does not offer a setting that removes suggestions completely. Your options are to add rel=0 so suggestions come only from the same channel, loop the video, use the YouTube player API to control what happens at the end, or host the video on a paid platform such as Vimeo that lets you turn end screens off.
Can I remove the YouTube logo from an embedded video?
No. The modestbranding parameter that used to reduce YouTube branding was deprecated in August 2023 and no longer has any effect. If you need a player with your own branding or no third-party logo, use a paid video hosting platform that supports custom players.
What is privacy-enhanced mode on YouTube?
Privacy-enhanced mode is an embed option that uses the youtube-nocookie.com domain. YouTube says it stops views of the embedded video from influencing the viewer's experience on YouTube, and that ads shown in it are non-personalised. You turn it on by changing the domain in the embed address from youtube.com to youtube-nocookie.com.
Can I embed a YouTube video without an iframe?
Not in a way that plays the video on your page. YouTube's player always runs in an iframe. You can, however, show a thumbnail image linked to the video, or use a click-to-load facade such as lite-youtube-embed, which shows a lightweight placeholder and only loads the iframe when the viewer presses play.
About the author
Daniel Rowles is lead trainer at Target Internet and the author of Digital Branding (Kogan Page). He co-hosts The Digital Marketing Podcast and delivers digital marketing and AI training for organisations around the world, including video marketing and website optimisation. You can find out more on his Target Internet profile.
Bibliography
1. Google for Developers (2026). YouTube embedded players and player parameters. https://developers.google.com/youtube/player_parameters
2. YouTube Help (2026). Embed videos and playlists. https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/171780
3. Vimeo Help Center (2026). About end screens. https://help.vimeo.com/hc/en-us/articles/12426231346449-About-end-screens
4. Vimeo Help Center (2026). FAQ: end screens. https://help.vimeo.com/hc/en-us/articles/15796912749713-FAQ-End-screens
5. Chrome for Developers (2026). Lazy load third-party resources with facades. https://developer.chrome.com/docs/lighthouse/performance/third-party-facades