YouTube appears to have switched the subscribe button from red to a black/white system around 2022 , with users and creators discussing the change as already rolled out by late 2022. A later post also describes the switch as happening in 2021 , but that seems to reflect when people noticed it rather than an exact launch date.

What likely happened

  • In light mode, the button can appear black or dark text on white.
  • In dark mode, it can appear white , which is why people describe it differently depending on the theme.
  • The older red/orange subscribe-button era existed before this redesign, which is why the color change felt so noticeable to users.

Best estimate

The safest answer is: YouTube changed the subscribe button’s red look to a black/white theme around 2021–2022 , depending on rollout and theme settings.

Quick note

If you mean the official developer documentation for the Subscribe Button, that page mostly tracks API behavior changes, not the public-facing color redesign, so it doesn’t give the exact color-change date.

TL;DR: Around 2021–2022 is the best estimate for when YouTube changed the subscribe button to black/white, with appearance varying by dark mode or light mode.