Featured channels are the row of other channels showcased on your channel page. They’re useful for cross-promoting collaborators or a second channel of your own — but they also send viewers away from your content, so it’s worth removing ones that no longer earn their place.
How to Remove a Single Featured Channel
- Go to YouTube Studio and click Customization.
- Select the Layout tab.
- Scroll to the section containing your featured channels (it may be labeled Channels or Featured channels).
- Hover over the channel you want gone and click the X or trash icon that appears.
- Click Publish to save — changes aren’t applied until you do.
Removing the Whole Section
If you’d rather remove every featured channel at once, don’t delete them individually. In the same Layout tab, find the section header itself and remove the entire section. This is faster and prevents an empty section heading from lingering on your channel page.
Reordering Instead of Removing
If the issue is prominence rather than presence, you can drag sections in the Layout tab to change their order. Moving featured channels below your playlists and popular uploads keeps the cross-promotion without it being the first thing visitors see.
Why Creators Remove Them
- The relationship ended — a collaborator you no longer work with, or a channel that’s since gone inactive.
- You want viewers to stay — every featured channel is an exit route from your page. For a channel focused on growth, that’s a real tradeoff.
- The channel changed direction — a featured channel that’s since pivoted to unrelated (or unsuitable) content still reflects on you.
- Channel restructure — you’re simplifying your page around your own content and playlists.
What Removing Doesn’t Do
Removing a featured channel doesn’t unsubscribe you from it, notify the other creator, or affect either channel’s standing in any way. It’s purely a display change on your own page.
If You Can’t Find the Section
If there’s no featured channels section in your Layout tab, you simply don’t have one set up — nothing to remove. Note also that YouTube periodically redesigns Studio, so section labels shift over time; look for anything referencing Channels rather than a specific wording.
FAQ
Can I remove just one featured channel?
Yes — hover over it in Customization > Layout and click the X or trash icon, then Publish.
Does removing a featured channel notify that creator?
No. It’s purely a display change on your own channel page — no notification is sent and nothing about their channel changes.
Does removing a featured channel unsubscribe me?
No. Featuring and subscribing are separate — removing one from your page leaves your subscription intact.
What if I can’t find the featured channels section?
You don’t have one set up. Also note YouTube redesigns Studio periodically, so look for anything referencing Channels rather than exact wording.