What it is
yt-dlp is a small app that saves online videos or their sound to your computer. Paste a link from sites like YouTube and it fetches the file for you, so you can watch or listen offline without the website. It’s fast, reliable, and works on macOS, Windows, and Linux.
What’s new
Recent releases (late Sep 2025) brought lots of site-compatibility fixes and some house-keeping: a few old options were retired, defaults were tidied, and security patches from August were rolled in. In short: fewer errors on big sites, cleaner options, same speed.
What else is similar to it
Other video downloaders exist, like you-get for simple one-liner downloads, or GUI apps such as 4K Video Downloader for users who prefer buttons over command lines. For live streaming playback, Streamlink is often mentioned, though its focus is on watching rather than saving. Have a look at our 5 Best Downloaders roundup for a broader view of the landscape.
Why it’s different
yt-dlp covers the widest range of video sites and gives you easy ways to grab just the audio (for podcasts or tracks), pick quality, and merge streams behind the scenes. It’s the “one tool that usually just works” for video.
How to get started
- Install:
brew install yt-dlp - Any OS with Python
pip install -U yt-dlp - Enable conversions:
brew install ffmpeg - Download a video:
yt-dlp "video-link" - Save just the audio (MP3):
yt-dlp -x --audio-format mp3 "video-link" - Update later:
yt-dlp -Uor if using,pip install -U yt-dlp
References (4)
Linked from The 5 Best Downloaders for Videos, Music & Images (No Browser Needed), Linked from streamlink: video streams ➞ your player, Linked from you-get: downloader that scrapes the web, Linked from spotDL: download spotify playlists