YouTube download tools
Six tools for public YouTube links. Compare them, and see what YouTube does and does not expose before you start.
Which of the six tools you want
Start with the video downloader for an ordinary watch-page link: it lists every format the extractor returns and lets you pick. The Shorts tool takes the same approach for a vertical Shorts URL, and the HD page is the one to use when you are searching by resolution rather than by container. Use the MP3 page when you only need an audio track and the source exposes one. The MP4 and MKV pages approach the same question from opposite ends: one for people who need that specific container, one for people who have received MKV and want to know why. All six submit to the same engine; they differ in the guidance around them and in which format is preselected.
A container is not a quality setting
YouTube frequently publishes audio and video as separate streams. We download both and combine them, and the result is MP4 or MKV depending on what the source codecs allow. That choice is made by the media, not by the page you started from, which is why the MP4 tool cannot promise an MP4 for every link. Renaming the file afterwards does not convert it. Resolution is a separate question: a cap of 720p limits what we request, but it cannot add detail that the upload never contained.
What no YouTube tool here can reach
Private videos, unlisted videos you do not have the link for, members-only uploads, active live streams and DRM-protected media are out of scope. A fully public video can also fail when YouTube refuses an automated request from a server, which is a different failure from the video being restricted. We do not accept account cookies and do not sign in on your behalf, so retrying will not change the outcome for genuinely restricted media.
Playlists, channels and chapters
This release processes one video per job. A playlist or channel URL does not identify a single piece of media, so submit the individual watch page instead. Chapter markers are metadata inside the video and are not used to split the download.
Questions before you download
Can I download a whole YouTube playlist?
No. Each job handles one video, so submit the individual watch-page URL rather than a playlist or channel address.
Why did I get an MKV when I used the MP4 page?
The container follows the source codecs. When YouTube supplies streams that cannot be packaged as MP4, the combined file is MKV instead. The media determines this, not the tool.
Is 4K available?
Only when the upload itself publishes it. The format list reflects what the extractor finds for that specific video.
Do Shorts need the Shorts tool?
No. Any of the video tools accepts a public Shorts URL; the Shorts page simply explains the vertical format.
Related tools and guides
Save something from YouTube
Pick the tool that matches your link, or paste it on the homepage and let the workspace work out the rest.
Open the downloader