Youngs, 26, has made an unprecedented move from backline to front row and has established himself with club and country this season, as well as being chosen for the summer’s British & Irish Lions tour to Australia.
He was presented with his award at the Aviva Premiership Rugby Awards at the London Hilton, Park Lane on Thursday evening on an eventful night for the Tigers.
"Tom’s story is extraordinary," said Phil Winstanley, rugby director at Premiership Rugby.
"To move from the centre to hooker is practically unheard of in professional rugby. To then make your England debut and a Lions tour the following season is what dreams are made of. He has proved almost anything is possible.
“I’m sure he will be the first to tell you that this award is also a tribute to the coaching staff at Leicester Tigers who have helped him every step of the way. He wouldn't be on the Lions tour and have become England hooker without their patience, dedication and expertise, and it is such a positive endorsement of the Leicester Tigers academy system which has produced Tom and five of his team-mates for this year’s Lions tour.
"Tom certainly didn't get it his own way in the voting, with every player on the shortlist getting significant support. In the end, though, it was Tom's positional move and what he has achieved in such a short time that edged it his way."
Youngs has also been selected in the talkSPORT Dream Team which was, for the first time, selected by supporters of Aviva Premiership Rugby.
More than 1,000 votes via Twitter were cast for the team and Youngs was joined in it by his brother Ben and six other Tigers players – Dan Cole, Ed Slater, Geoff Parling, Julian Salvi, Toby Flood and Manu Tuilagi. Parling and Flood are the only two players to appear in the Dream Team for the second consecutive season.
Dan Bowden was another Tigers winner at the Aviva Premiership Rugby Awards as his score against Saracens at Welford Road was named Guinness Try of the Season.
The winners and nominees in full were as follows:
Aviva Premiership Rugby Player of the Season
Winner: Tom Youngs (Leicester Tigers)
Shortlist: Steve Borthwick (Saracens), Danny Care (Harlequins), Akapusi Qera (Gloucester Rugby), Julian Salvi (Leicester Tigers), Christian Wade (London Wasps), Tom Youngs (Leicester Tigers)
Land Rover Discovery of the Season
Winner: Joe Launchbury (London Wasps)
Shortlist: Freddie Burns (Gloucester Rugby), Joe Launchbury (London Wasps), Christian Wade (London Wasps), Jonny May (Gloucester Rugby), Mako Vunipola (Saracens), Luke Wallace (Harlequins)
QBE Director of Rugby of the Season
Winner: Mark McCall (Saracens)
Shortlist: Richard Cockerill (Leicester Tigers), Lyn Jones (London Welsh), Mark McCall (Saracens), Dai Young (London Wasps)
Guinness Try of the Season
Winner: Dan Bowden (Leicester Tigers v Saracens – 23.2.13)
Shortlist: Christian Wade (London Wasps v Harlequins - 1.9.12), Manu Tuilagi (Leicester Tigers v Worcester Warriors – 8.9.12), James Simpson-Daniel (Gloucester Rugby v London Wasps – 22.9.12), Dan Bowden (Leicester Tigers v Saracens – 23.2.13), Elliot Daly (London Wasps v Northampton Saints – 23.3.13)
Gatorade Game Changer of the Season
Winner: Ollie Lindsay-Hague (Harlequins)
Runners up: Mike Brown (Harlequins) – 2nd, Billy Vunipola (London Wasps) – 3rd.
Aviva Community Player of the Season
Winner: Shaun Perry (Worcester Warriors)
Shortlist: Myles Dorian (Exeter Chiefs), Tinus Du Plessis (London Wasps), Soane Tong’uiha(Northampton Saints), Jamie George (Saracens) and Shaun Perry (Worcester Warriors)
J.P. Morgan Premiership Rugby 7s Series Player of the Season
Winner: Jonathan Joseph (London Irish)
Shortlist: Alex Gray (London Irish), Aaron Myers (London Welsh), Ian Clark (Gloucester Rugby), Jonathan Joseph (London Irish)
Towergate Top Try Scorer of the Season
Winners: Tom Varndell and Christian Wade (both London Wasps) – 13 tries
Gilbert Golden Boot
Winner: Freddie Burns (Gloucester Rugby) – 240 points
Runner-up: Gareth Steenson (Exeter Chiefs) – 239 points
TalkSPORT Dream Team
Mako Vunipola (Saracens), Tom Youngs (Leicester Tigers), Dan Cole (Leicester Tigers), Ed Slater (Leicester Tigers), Geoff Parling (Leicester Tigers), Tom Wood (Northampton Saints), Julian Salvi (Leicester Tigers), Richie Baxter (Exeter Chiefs); Ben Youngs (Leicester Tigers), Toby Flood (Leicester Tigers); Billy Twelvetrees (Gloucester Rugby), Manu Tuilagi (Leicester Tigers); Christian Wade (London Wasps), Tom Varndell (London Wasps) and Luke Arscott (Exeter Chiefs).
