YouTube & Video Downloader Skill

Download videos and audio from YouTube and 1000+ other websites using yt-dlp, the most powerful and actively maintained YouTube downloader.

When to Use This Skill

Use when you need to:

• Download YouTube videos in any quality (144p to 8K, HDR, 60fps)
• Extract audio from videos (MP3, M4A, FLAC, WAV, Opus)
• Download entire playlists or channels
• Get video subtitles/captions in multiple languages
• Download live streams or premieres
• Archive content before it's deleted
• Download from 1000+ websites (not just YouTube)
• Batch download multiple videos
• Download with custom naming and organization
• Extract video metadata and thumbnails

Supported Websites (1000+)

Video Platforms

• YouTube (videos, playlists, channels, shorts, live streams)
• Vimeo, Dailymotion, Twitter/X, Facebook
• TikTok, Instagram (videos, reels, stories)
• Twitch (VODs, clips, live streams)
• Reddit (v.redd.it videos)
• Pornhub (videos)
• Youporn (videos)

Educational

• Coursera, Udemy, Khan Academy
• edX, Pluralsight, LinkedIn Learning

News & Media

• CNN, BBC, NBC, CBS
• ESPN, Sky Sports

And 1000+ more...

Installation

yt-dlp requires Python 3.7+ and ffmpeg for format conversion:

# Install yt-dlp (if not already installed)
pip install -U yt-dlp

# Install ffmpeg (required for format conversion)
# Ubuntu/Debian:
sudo apt install ffmpeg

# macOS:
brew install ffmpeg

# Verify installation
yt-dlp --version
ffmpeg -version

Basic Usage

Download Best Quality Video

yt-dlp "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID"

Download Best Quality Audio (as M4A)

yt-dlp -f "bestaudio" "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID"

Download and Convert to MP3

yt-dlp -x --audio-format mp3 --audio-quality 0 "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID"

Download Specific Quality

# 1080p video with best audio
yt-dlp -f "bestvideo[height<=1080]+bestaudio/best[height<=1080]" "URL"

# 4K video
yt-dlp -f "bestvideo[height<=2160]+bestaudio/best" "URL"

# 720p video
yt-dlp -f "bestvideo[height<=720]+bestaudio/best[height<=720]" "URL"

Advanced Features

Download Entire Playlist

yt-dlp "https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAYLIST_ID"

Download Playlist Range

# Videos 1-10
yt-dlp --playlist-start 1 --playlist-end 10 "PLAYLIST_URL"

# Videos from #5 onwards
yt-dlp --playlist-start 5 "PLAYLIST_URL"

Download All Videos from Channel

yt-dlp "https://www.youtube.com/@ChannelName/videos"

Download with Subtitles

# Download all available subtitles
yt-dlp --write-subs --write-auto-subs --sub-langs "en,es,fr" "URL"

# Download and embed subtitles
yt-dlp --write-subs --embed-subs --sub-langs "en.*" "URL"

# Download only subtitles (no video)
yt-dlp --skip-download --write-subs --write-auto-subs "URL"

Custom Naming and Organization

# Custom filename template
yt-dlp -o "%(uploader)s/%(playlist)s/%(title)s.%(ext)s" "PLAYLIST_URL"

# By date uploaded
yt-dlp -o "%(upload_date)s - %(title)s.%(ext)s" "URL"

# With video ID
yt-dlp -o "%(title)s [%(id)s].%(ext)s" "URL"

Download Thumbnails

# Download and embed thumbnail
yt-dlp --write-thumbnail --embed-thumbnail "URL"

# Download thumbnail only
yt-dlp --write-thumbnail --skip-download "URL"

Download Metadata

# Write metadata to JSON file
yt-dlp --write-info-json "URL"

# Write metadata to description file
yt-dlp --write-description "URL"

Quality Selection Guide

Video Quality Formats

# Best overall quality (may be WebM)
yt-dlp -f "bestvideo+bestaudio/best" "URL"

# Best MP4 format (most compatible)
yt-dlp -f "bestvideo[ext=mp4]+bestaudio[ext=m4a]/best[ext=mp4]" "URL"

# 4K (2160p) maximum
yt-dlp -f "bestvideo[height<=2160]+bestaudio" "URL"

# 1080p maximum
yt-dlp -f "bestvideo[height<=1080]+bestaudio" "URL"

# 720p maximum
yt-dlp -f "bestvideo[height<=720]+bestaudio" "URL"

# 60fps preferred
yt-dlp -f "bestvideo[fps>30]+bestaudio/best" "URL"

Audio Quality Formats

# Best audio quality (extract as M4A)
yt-dlp -f "bestaudio" "URL"

# Extract as MP3 (best quality)
yt-dlp -x --audio-format mp3 --audio-quality 0 "URL"

# Extract as FLAC (lossless)
yt-dlp -x --audio-format flac "URL"

# Extract as Opus (efficient)
yt-dlp -x --audio-format opus "URL"

# Extract as WAV (uncompressed)
yt-dlp -x --audio-format wav "URL"

List Available Formats

Before downloading, check what formats are available:

yt-dlp -F "URL"

This shows all available video and audio streams with:

• Format ID
• Extension
• Resolution
• FPS
• Codec
• File size
• Bitrate

Then download specific format:

yt-dlp -f FORMAT_ID "URL"

Batch Download

From File

Create a text file with URLs (one per line):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO3

Download all:

yt-dlp -a urls.txt

With Archive

Track downloaded videos to avoid re-downloading:

yt-dlp --download-archive archive.txt "PLAYLIST_URL"

This creates archive.txt with IDs of downloaded videos. On subsequent runs, yt-dlp skips already downloaded videos.

Filtering and Selection

Date Filters

# Videos from 2024
yt-dlp --dateafter 20240101 "CHANNEL_URL"

# Videos before 2023
yt-dlp --datebefore 20230101 "CHANNEL_URL"

# Videos between dates
yt-dlp --dateafter 20230101 --datebefore 20231231 "CHANNEL_URL"

View Count Filters

# Videos with 1M+ views
yt-dlp --match-filter "view_count > 1000000" "CHANNEL_URL"

# Videos with less than 10K views
yt-dlp --match-filter "view_count < 10000" "CHANNEL_URL"

Duration Filters

# Videos longer than 10 minutes
yt-dlp --match-filter "duration > 600" "PLAYLIST_URL"

# Videos shorter than 5 minutes
yt-dlp --match-filter "duration < 300" "PLAYLIST_URL"

Live Streams

Download Live Stream

# Wait for stream to start and download
yt-dlp --wait-for-video 60 "LIVE_STREAM_URL"

# Download stream as it's happening (may be incomplete if interrupted)
yt-dlp "LIVE_STREAM_URL"

Rate Limiting and Network Options

# Limit download speed (e.g., 1MB/s)
yt-dlp --limit-rate 1M "URL"

# Set number of retries
yt-dlp --retries 10 "URL"

# Wait between downloads (in seconds)
yt-dlp --sleep-interval 5 "PLAYLIST_URL"

# Use specific proxy
yt-dlp --proxy "http://proxy.server:port" "URL"

# Use cookies from browser (bypass age restrictions)
yt-dlp --cookies-from-browser chrome "URL"

Geo-Restriction Bypass

# Use proxy
yt-dlp --proxy "socks5://proxy.server:1080" "URL"

# Use specific geo-bypass country
yt-dlp --geo-bypass-country US "URL"

Post-Processing

Video Post-Processing

# Merge video and audio to MP4
yt-dlp --merge-output-format mp4 "URL"

# Re-encode to H.264
yt-dlp --recode-video mp4 "URL"

# Add metadata
yt-dlp --add-metadata "URL"

# Embed thumbnail
yt-dlp --embed-thumbnail "URL"

Audio Post-Processing

# Extract audio and convert to MP3
yt-dlp -x --audio-format mp3 --audio-quality 0 "URL"

# Add metadata to audio file
yt-dlp -x --audio-format mp3 --add-metadata "URL"

Common Use Cases

1. Download Music from YouTube

yt-dlp -x --audio-format mp3 --audio-quality 0 \
  -o "%(artist)s - %(title)s.%(ext)s" \
  --add-metadata \
  --embed-thumbnail \
  "MUSIC_VIDEO_URL"

2. Download Educational Course

yt-dlp -o "%(playlist)s/%(playlist_index)s - %(title)s.%(ext)s" \
  --write-subs --embed-subs \
  --write-info-json \
  "COURSE_PLAYLIST_URL"

3. Archive Channel (New Videos Only)

yt-dlp --download-archive downloaded.txt \
  -o "%(uploader)s/%(upload_date)s - %(title)s.%(ext)s" \
  -f "bestvideo[height<=1080]+bestaudio/best" \
  "https://www.youtube.com/@ChannelName/videos"

4. Download Podcast as Audio

yt-dlp -x --audio-format mp3 --audio-quality 0 \
  -o "%(playlist)s/%(playlist_index)s. %(title)s.%(ext)s" \
  --add-metadata \
  "PODCAST_PLAYLIST_URL"

5. Download Conference Talks

yt-dlp -f "bestvideo[height<=720]+bestaudio" \
  -o "Conference/%(title)s.%(ext)s" \
  --write-subs --embed-subs --sub-langs en \
  "CONFERENCE_PLAYLIST_URL"

6. Batch Download from Multiple Sites

# Create urls.txt with mixed URLs (YouTube, Vimeo, etc.)
yt-dlp -a urls.txt \
  -f "bestvideo+bestaudio/best" \
  -o "%(extractor)s/%(uploader)s/%(title)s.%(ext)s"

Configuration File

Create ~/.config/yt-dlp/config for default options:

# Default format
-f bestvideo[height<=1080]+bestaudio/best

# Output template
-o ~/Downloads/%(uploader)s/%(title)s.%(ext)s

# Embed metadata
--add-metadata
--embed-thumbnail

# Write subtitles
--write-subs
--sub-langs en

# Continue on errors
--ignore-errors

# Rate limit
--limit-rate 5M

Troubleshooting

Video Unavailable

# Try with cookies from browser
yt-dlp --cookies-from-browser chrome "URL"

# Update yt-dlp
pip install -U yt-dlp

Age-Restricted Content

# Use browser cookies
yt-dlp --cookies-from-browser firefox "URL"

# Or login with credentials
yt-dlp --username YOUR_USERNAME --password YOUR_PASSWORD "URL"

Format Not Available

# List all formats first
yt-dlp -F "URL"

# Then select specific format
yt-dlp -f FORMAT_ID "URL"

Slow Downloads

# Use multiple connections
yt-dlp --concurrent-fragments 4 "URL"

# Or use external downloader
yt-dlp --external-downloader aria2c "URL"

Integration with Other Tools

FFmpeg Integration

yt-dlp automatically uses ffmpeg when installed for:

• Merging video and audio streams
• Converting formats
• Embedding thumbnails and metadata
• Post-processing

Aria2c for Faster Downloads

yt-dlp --external-downloader aria2c \
  --external-downloader-args "-x 16 -s 16 -k 1M" \
  "URL"

Legal and Ethical Considerations

⚠️ Important:

• Only download content you have rights to
• Respect copyright and Terms of Service
• Don't distribute copyrighted content
• YouTube's ToS prohibits downloading most content
• Use for personal archival and educational purposes
• Many creators offer official download options
• Consider supporting creators through official channels

Performance Tips

1. Use Archive Files: Track downloads to avoid re-downloading
2. Limit Rate: Prevent network congestion with --limit-rate
3. Concurrent Fragments: Speed up with --concurrent-fragments 4
4. Choose Format Wisely: Lower quality = faster download
5. Use External Downloader: aria2c can be faster than built-in
6. Batch Smartly: Process in chunks, not all at once

Updates

Keep yt-dlp updated for best compatibility:

# Update via pip
pip install -U yt-dlp

# Check version
yt-dlp --version

Resources

• yt-dlp GitHub: https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp
• Supported Sites: https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp/blob/master/supportedsites.md
• Format Selection: https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp#format-selection

Version: 1.0.0 Last Updated: 2025-11-07 Maintained by: Claude Code Skills Collection