SkipSeenSkipSeen vs. Stop AutoLoop, hide-watched extensions and Unhook
Checked September 2026 · By Keenan Kaufman, who makes SkipSeen
Short answer: if you want autoplay to keep going but stop replaying videos you've seen, you need a tool that acts on autoplay itself: SkipSeen, or the older Stop AutoLoop. Hide-watched extensions only clean up your feeds, and Unhook or YouTube's own toggle stop autoplay altogether.
Most tools for “watched videos on YouTube” solve a different problem than SkipSeen. They fall into three groups:
- Autoplay-aware tools, SkipSeen and Stop AutoLoop, keep autoplay on and steer it away from videos you've already watched.
- Hide-watched extensions clean up what you browse: they remove or dim watched videos in your feeds so you can pick something new yourself.
- Autoplay blockers, including YouTube's own toggle, stop autoplay altogether. No repeats, but no autoplay either.
| Tool | Skips watched videos during autoplay | Hides watched videos | Turns autoplay off | Available for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SkipSeen | Yes | No | No | Chrome, Firefox |
| Stop AutoLoop | Yes, picks a different next video | No | No | Chrome (last updated 2020) |
| Hide Youtube Watched Videos | No | Subscriptions feed | No | Chrome |
| UnseenTube | No | Home, Subscriptions, Search | No | Chrome |
| YouTube Hider | No | Home, Subscriptions, Search, channels, related videos | No | Chrome |
| YouTube: Hide Watched Videos (userscript) | No | Subscriptions and other pages, dimmed or hidden | No | Any browser with Tampermonkey or Greasemonkey |
| Unhook | No | No (hides recommendations, Shorts, comments instead) | Yes | Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera |
| YouTube's autoplay toggle | No | No | Yes | Built into YouTube |
All are free. Based on each tool's own store listing or website; features change, so check the listing before you install. Spotted something out of date? Let me know.
Which should you use?
- You like autoplay but hate the repeats: SkipSeen, or Stop AutoLoop on Chrome. The differences are below.
- You want a cleaner feed to browse: a hide-watched extension such as YouTube Hider, UnseenTube or Hide Youtube Watched Videos, or the Hide Watched Videos userscript if you already use a userscript manager.
- You want fewer recommendations overall: Unhook, or YouTube's autoplay toggle if you just want playback to stop after each video.
SkipSeen vs. Stop AutoLoop
Both keep autoplay on and avoid videos you've already watched, but they go about it differently. According to its listing, Stop AutoLoop keeps a history of the video URLs you've visited and, in the tab you're watching, picks a different autoplay video from the recommendations; it also supports whitelists, blacklists and a maximum video length. Its Chrome listing was last updated in 2020.
SkipSeen lets YouTube choose the next video and presses Next only when that video is one you've already watched. It counts a video as watched once you've seen a set share of it (30% by default), picks up videos you watched before installing from YouTube's red progress bars, leaves playlists you chose and never-skip channels alone, and runs in Firefox as well as Chrome. The how it works page lists every rule.
Can I use SkipSeen alongside them?
Yes. SkipSeen only acts on autoplay transitions, so it pairs naturally with a hide-watched extension: one keeps your feed fresh, the other keeps autoplay fresh. Pairing it with an autoplay blocker makes less sense, because with autoplay off SkipSeen has nothing to skip.
Try SkipSeen
It's free, has no account, and keeps your history on your device. If you're not sure why autoplay keeps repeating videos in the first place, the guide to why YouTube autoplay replays watched videos covers what YouTube's own settings can and can't do.