# What are YouTube Reels? YouTube’s new beta Stories feature explained

> YouTube has announced plans to makes its own Snapchat-style ‘Stories’ mode called Reels. And while yet to be released, there’s plenty worth getting excited about. Here’s what we know so far.

- **Source:** [Trustedreviews](https://www.trustedreviews.com/explainer/youtube-reels-3493802?utm_source=gearopen.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=feed&utm_content=69653fbb19bcc46c729f8a31)
- **Published:** 2026-01-12
- **Category:** Apps
- **Tags:** #youtube #reels #stories #beta #explained #feature #announced #called
- **Canonical:** http://localhost:4321/a/69653fbb19bcc46c729f8a31

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_GearOpen's distilled summary. The full original article is published at Trustedreviews (source link above); GearOpen does not republish the source's full text._