Note: as of November 2015, as long as you use your Google account name (aboutme.google.com) your channel is already disconnected from Google+. Learn more in the YouTube Help Center.
Note: as of January 9, 2014 this process will NOT work for newly created YouTube channels connected to a Google+ Profile or channels that have been connected to Google+ for longer than 14 days. If you don't want to use your real name on YouTube, you can ask YouTube support to disconnect your channel from your Google+ Profile and connect it to an existing Google+ Page instead.
Note: this is a slightly edited version of a post I originally made in the Google+ help forum in July 2013.
Do you not want to use your real name on YouTube? Unlink your YouTube channel from your Google+ Profile.
If you have created your YouTube channel using a Google+ Profile identity you should be able to unlink your YouTube channel from Google+ and either use YouTube username or switch to using a Google+ Page identity. Note that if you created your YouTube channel with a Google+ Page (by choosing the "business or other name" option), your YouTube channel cannot be unlinked from Google+.
Do NOT try change the name of your Google+ Profile to a brand, business or organization. Violating the Google+ Profile name policy can cause your Google+ Profile - and linked YouTube channel - to be suspended.
There are three steps to unlinking your new YouTube channel from a Google+ Profile:
1. Add a custom URL to your YouTube channel in your advanced account settings (www.youtube.com/account_advanced)
Note: as of November 2014 it is no longer possible to add a custom URL this way.
2. Go to your account settings (www.youtube.com/account) and choose the option to unlink your channel from Google+.
3A. (optional) Link your YouTube channel to a Google+ Page from your YouTube channel's advanced settings (www.youtube.com/account_advanced)
OR
3B. (optional) Delete your Google+ Profile
Each of these steps is shown in detail below.
1. The first step is to add a custom URL to your YouTube channel if you have not done so already.
Note: as of November 2014 it is no longer possible to add a custom URL to your channel this way. Learn more about the new Custom URL option, which adds a custom URL to both your channel and the connected Google+ Page or Profile.
The option to add a custom URL is in your YouTube channel's advanced settings: www.youtube.com/account_
Keep in mind that the custom URL for your YouTube channel cannot be changed, so choose carefully!
If your YouTube channel had a YouTube username before you linked your channel to Google+, that is your channel's custom URL.
Instructions on how to add a custom URL to your YouTube channel:
2. Once your YouTube channel has a Custom URL you should then be able to unlink your Google+ Profile in your YouTube settings
Go to your YouTube settings: www.youtube.com/account
Click: "Return name to [custom URL/YouTube username], and disconnect Google+ profile"
When you have unlinked your YouTube channel from Google+, it will be using the custom URL you set as your YouTube channel username.
You can stop at this point, but YouTube will to keep suggesting you link your YouTube channel to Google+ again.
3. If you do not wish to use Google+ and you are 100% positive that your YouTube channel is not linked to a Google+ Profile or Google+ Page, you can delete your Google+ account at this step.
Do NOT delete Google+ if you are not certain whether your YouTube channel is unlinked or not!
You can delete your Google+ account by following these instructions in the Google+ Help Center:
Delete my Google+ profile (NOTE: as of April 2, 2019 all consumer Google+ Profiles and Pages will be deleted by Google)
Delete my Google+ profile (NOTE: as of April 2, 2019 all consumer Google+ Profiles and Pages will be deleted by Google)
Note that YouTube will continue to encourage you to link your YouTube channel to Google+ by showing you a popup - usually when you are adding a comment or performing some other activity. The way to dismiss the prompt is to click the X in the upper right-hand corner of the popup:
Alternatively, if you would like to link your YouTube channel to Google+, but don't want to use your personal Google+ Profile name, you can link you channel to a Google+ Page instead.
Updated March 2019.
This REALLY HELPED!! BUT there's one little problem... on #2 of adding custom url plus disconnecting from G+, I didn't know before I could disconnect, so I did the url "TheSnivyChannel" and continued, but i didn't disconnect like I said, and now my Youtube name is still "snivy parkourist" (with the space in the middle). So its been since 2013 when I did the custom url, and now I don't know what to do! SO PLZ HELP ME AND TELL ME HOW TO DISCONNECT NOW!! PLZ REPLY BACK!!!
ReplyDeleteHi snivy parkourist. Your custom URL won't ever change your name on your YouTube channel. Your channel name is taken from the name of the connected Google+ Profile or Page. If you want to use a one word name for your channel, here is what you can do:
Delete1. Create a Google+ Page for your YouTube channel - that can be called whatever you like. Create the Page at plus.google.com/dashboard.
2. Then contact YouTube support and ask them for assistance in moving your YouTube channel from your Google+ Profile to your new Google+ Page using this form:
https://support.google.com/youtube/contact/ytgplus
I'm sorry my post wasn't up to date - I'm updating it right now!
hello, today i linked my google plus with youtube to ask a fellow youtube a question. when i tried to unlink it, i went to my account overview and there was no option to unlink the accounts. i tried to delete my google plus page, but it said i couldn't delete the page because it was connected to youtube, and it said i had to either disconnect from youtube or delete my youtube channel. but when i clicked the disconnect option, i was just redirected back to my youtube account overview again, still with no option to disconnect my account. please help, thank you
ReplyDeleteThere have been multiple reports that users cannot disconnect their channel from YouTube, even though it has been connected less than 14 days. It's been reported to YouTube but I don't know when or if there will be a fix.
DeleteNONE of the options you specfied are available to me!!! I HAVE custom URLs for BOTH profile AND YouTube, I AM verified, and I DO use my Google account name but it DID NOT automatically disconnect and there is NO OPTION to disconnect it ANYWHERE!!! ALL THE SETTING that the screenshots on this page ARE NOT AVAILABLE TO ME!!!!
ReplyDeleteHOW DO I FIX THIS?????????????
Justinrpg: as I noted at the top of the article, if your channel uses your Google account name (aboutme.google.com name) your channel ID already disconnected from Google+. You can delete your Google+ profile. Although if you do that you will no longer get messages under the Bell.
ReplyDeleteIf your channel uses a business or other name and a Google+ Page, there isn't any way to disconnect from Google+, other than moving your channel to your main Google account. When you do that, your channel name will change to your Google account name.
Justinrpg: as I noted at the top of the article, if your channel uses your Google account name (aboutme.google.com name) your channel ID already disconnected from Google+. You can delete your Google+ profile. Although if you do that you will no longer get messages under the Bell.
ReplyDeleteIf your channel uses a business or other name and a Google+ Page, there isn't any way to disconnect from Google+, other than moving your channel to your main Google account. When you do that, your channel name will change to your Google account name.