FilterTube

Peace of Mind for your Digital Space

Overview

FilterTube is a browser extension that gives you control over your YouTube feed. Filter videos, shorts, channels, and comments using keywords and smart rules—all processing happens privately on your device.

Features

Content Filtering

• Block by Keyword: Hide videos with specific words in the title.
• Block Channels: Filter by Channel Name, @Handle, or ID.
• Hide Shorts: Optional toggle to remove all Shorts from your feed.
• Smart Matching: Supports both partial matches (default) and exact word matching.

Comment Control

• Hide All Comments: Remove the comments section entirely for a cleaner interface.
• Filter Comments: Hide specific comments containing unwanted keywords.

Stats & Insights

• Time Saved: See how much time you've saved by blocking distractions.
• Daily Tracker: Count of videos hidden today.

Performance & Privacy

• Zero Flash: Filters content before it renders on screen.
• 100% Private: No data leaves your browser. No analytics. No tracking.

Installation

For Users

The easiest way to install FilterTube is via our official website: 👉 Install FilterTube (Available for Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Brave, Opera)

For Developers

If you want to contribute or build from source:

1. Clone the repository

   git clone https://github.com/varshneydevansh/FilterTube.git
   cd FilterTube
   npm install

2. Run in Developer Mode

   • Chrome/Edge/Brave: npm run dev:chrome
   • Firefox: npm run dev:firefox

3. Load Extension

   • Chrome: Go to chrome://extensions, enable Developer mode, click Load unpacked, and select the FilterTube folder.
   • Firefox: Go to about:debugging, click This Firefox, then Load Temporary Add-on, and select manifest.json.

Usage

Basic Filtering

1. Click the FilterTube icon in your browser toolbar
2. Enter keywords to filter (comma-separated)
3. Enter channel names, @handles, or channel/IDs to filter (comma-separated)
4. Click "Save" to apply filters

Finding a Channel to Block

1. Go to the channel's page on YouTube
2. Copy the channel identifier from the URL:
   • https://www.youtube.com/@HandleName → Use @HandleName
   • https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxxxxxxxx → Use UCxxxxxxxx or channel/UCxxxxxxxx
3. Enter it in the Channels filter field

Comment Filtering

1. Click the FilterTube icon
2. Toggle "Hide all comments" to completely hide comments
3. Or select "Filter comments with keywords/channels" to hide only matching comments

How It Works

FilterTube filters unwanted content before it appears on your screen, giving you a clean YouTube experience.

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│  YouTube loads video data                                   │
│          ↓                                                  │
│  FilterTube intercepts the data BEFORE it renders           │
│          ↓                                                  │
│  Checks against your keywords & channels                    │
│          ↓                                                  │
│  ┌──────────────┐              ┌──────────────┐             │
│  │ Matches your │  →  HIDDEN   │ Doesn't match│  →  SHOWN   │
│  │ filters      │              │ your filters │             │
│  └──────────────┘              └──────────────┘             │
│                                                             │
│  Result: Clean YouTube feed with only content you want      │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

What Makes FilterTube Different

Lightning Fast - Filters content before YouTube renders it, so you never see unwanted videos flash on screen

100% Private - Everything happens in your browser. No data is sent to external servers.

Comprehensive - Filters videos, shorts, playlists, channels, comments, and more across all YouTube pages

Reliable - Uses a two-layer system: intercepts YouTube's data first, then monitors the page as backup

Future Features (Coming Soon)

• Semantic ML Filtering: AI-powered filtering that understands video context, not just keywords
• Kids Mode: PIN-protected safe environment with whitelisted channels only
• Smart Sync: Automatic linking of channel @handles and IDs for better blocking

Privacy & Permissions

We believe in privacy by design.

• Storage: To save your settings locally.
• Active Tab: To scan the YouTube page you are viewing.
• No External Requests: FilterTube does not talk to any servers other than YouTube (for the content you requested).

Support

Found a bug or have a feature request? Open an issue on GitHub.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License - see the LICENSE file for details.

Changelog

See CHANGELOG.md for a detailed history of changes and improvements.

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Why FilterTube?

YouTube's recommendation algorithms can sometimes surface unwanted content. FilterTube gives you control over what appears in your feed, allowing for a more focused and pleasant viewing experience without distractions or unwanted content.

It all started with this thread on Google's support forum: When a parent said that he is helpless and his kid is just kept crying and screaming because of the content on YouTubeKids, and he asked me if I can create a tool to block videos by keyword or tag. And when Later YouTube Forum maintaner deleted mine and other parents comments and locked the thread, I decided to create FilterTube.

https://support.google.com/youtubekids/thread/54509605/how-to-block-videos-by-keyword-or-tag?hl=en

Perfect for:

• Parents who want to protect their children from inappropriate content
• Students who need to stay focused while researching
• Anyone who wants a distraction-free YouTube experience

For Developers

Building from Source

# Install dependencies
npm install

# Develop for Chrome/Edge/Brave/Opera
npm run dev:chrome

# Develop for Firefox
npm run dev:firefox

# Build packages for distribution
npm run build              # All browsers
npm run build:chrome       # Chrome only
npm run build:firefox      # Firefox only

For detailed technical documentation, see docs/ARCHITECTURE.md and docs/TECHNICAL.md.