Download Any Online Video Free with yt-dlp

// Before you start

What you need

A Windows, Mac, or Linux computer
Internet connection
On Mac: Terminal app (built-in). On Windows: Command Prompt or PowerShell (built-in)
Optional: ffmpeg installed if you want to merge video+audio or convert formats

Step 1 of 6

Download the yt-dlp executable for your OS

2 min

yt-dlp ships as a single self-contained file — no installer wizard, no Python required on Windows or Mac. You just grab the right file for your system and you are almost done. Pick exactly one command below that matches your OS.

Terminal · mac

$ # Windows — run this in PowerShell:

$ curl -L https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp/releases/latest/download/yt-dlp.exe -o yt-dlp.exe

$ # Mac — run this in Terminal:

$ curl -L https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp/releases/latest/download/yt-dlp_macos -o yt-dlp

$ # Linux — run this in Terminal:

$ curl -L https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp/releases/latest/download/yt-dlp -o yt-dlp

What you should see

A file named yt-dlp.exe (Windows) or yt-dlp (Mac/Linux) appears in your current folder. The curl command prints download progress and ends with a 100% line.

This might happen

curl is not recognised on older Windows versions

Open Microsoft Store, install 'curl for Windows', then retry. Or download the .exe manually from https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp/releases/latest and save it to your Desktop.

Step 2 of 6

Make the file executable (Mac and Linux only)

1 min

Mac and Linux treat downloaded files as untrusted by default. This one command tells your system it is allowed to run yt-dlp. Windows users skip this step entirely.

Terminal · mac

$ chmod +x yt-dlp

What you should see

No output is printed. That is correct — silence means it worked.

Step 3 of 6

Confirm yt-dlp is working

1 min

Before downloading anything, check that the tool runs. This prints the version number. If you see a version string, everything is set up correctly.

Terminal · mac

$ # Windows:

$ .\yt-dlp.exe --version

$ # Mac / Linux:

$ ./yt-dlp --version

What you should see

A version number such as 2025.04.30 is printed on one line.

This might happen

Mac shows 'cannot be opened because the developer cannot be verified'

Go to System Settings → Privacy & Security → scroll down and click 'Allow Anyway' next to the yt-dlp message. Then run the command again and click Open.

Step 4 of 6

Download a video in the best available quality

2 min

Replace the example URL with any video URL you want to save. yt-dlp will automatically pick the best quality available and save the file in your current folder. The filename is set automatically from the video title.

Terminal · mac

$ # Windows:

$ .\yt-dlp.exe https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ

$ # Mac / Linux:

$ ./yt-dlp https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ

What you should see

Lines scroll by showing download progress like '[download] 45.3% of 12.34MiB at 3.20MiB/s'. When finished you see '[download] 100%' and a new video file appears in your folder.

This might happen

You get a file with no audio, or separate video and audio files

Install ffmpeg (free, from https://ffmpeg.org/download.html) and make sure it is on your PATH. yt-dlp uses ffmpeg to merge the best video and audio streams into one file.

Step 5 of 6

Download audio only as an MP3

2 min

Add two flags to extract just the audio track and convert it to MP3. This is useful for podcasts, music, or any video where you only need sound. ffmpeg must be installed for the conversion to work.

Terminal · mac

$ # Windows:

$ .\yt-dlp.exe -x --audio-format mp3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ

$ # Mac / Linux:

$ ./yt-dlp -x --audio-format mp3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ

What you should see

Progress lines appear, then a line like '[ExtractAudio] Destination: Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up.mp3'. An MP3 file appears in your folder.

This might happen

Error: ffmpeg not found — cannot convert to mp3

Install ffmpeg from https://ffmpeg.org/download.html. On Mac you can run 'brew install ffmpeg' if you have Homebrew. On Windows, download the zip, extract it, and add the bin folder to your system PATH.

Step 6 of 6

Keep yt-dlp up to date

1 min

Video sites change their code constantly, which can break older versions of yt-dlp. Running the update command regularly (monthly is fine) keeps downloads working. This replaces the binary in place — no re-download from GitHub needed.

Terminal · mac

$ # Windows:

$ .\yt-dlp.exe -U

$ # Mac / Linux:

$ ./yt-dlp -U

What you should see

Either 'yt-dlp is up to date' or 'Updated yt-dlp to version YYYY.MM.DD' is printed.

This might happen

Permission denied when updating on Mac or Linux

Run 'sudo ./yt-dlp -U' instead. You will be asked for your system password.

// Status

cooked. baked. worked.

A working copy of yt-dlp on your computer that can download videos or extract MP3 audio from YouTube and thousands of other sites with a single command.

// the honest bit

The honest part

yt-dlp works on thousands of sites but not every site. Paywalled content, DRM-protected videos (Netflix, Disney+, etc.), and private videos you do not have access to will not download. Downloading copyrighted content without permission may violate the site's terms of service or local law — check before you download. The tool is command-line only; there is no graphical interface built in.