youtube-dl is a free and open-source software tool for downloading video and audio from YouTube and over 1,000 other video hosting websites. It supports diverse file formats, quality settings, and platforms including Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux. It is released under the Unlicense software license.
As of September 2021, youtube-dl is one of the most starred projects on GitHub, with over 100,000 stars. According to libraries.io, 308 other packages and 1,430 repositories depend on it. Numerous forks of the project exist, among which the community-maintained fork yt-dlp is notable for active development and enhanced functionality. yt-dlp builds upon youtube-dl's core features by offering improvements such as faster multi-threaded downloads, more advanced format selection and subtitle embedding support. Due to its active maintenance and expanded capabilities, yt-dlp has been widely adopted and has replaced youtube-dl in several major Linux distributions, notably beginning with Ubuntu 22.04.
What is youtube-dl?
youtube-dl by youtube-dl (developed by Sergey M) is open-source Windows software in the download managers category. It ranks 1st by popularity among download managers in this catalogue. The first release dates back to 2006. It is written in Python. Besides Windows, it is available for macOS, GNU/Linux, BSD and Unix-like operating system.
Installation and requirements
The publisher provides Portable installers for 32-bit Windows. It runs without installation (portable). It needs Windows 10 or newer.
Popularity and file types
The Chocolatey package has been downloaded 1,033,478 times. The source code on GitHub (ytdl-org/youtube-dl) has 141,372 stars. Wikipedia has an article about it in 13 of our languages. Similar programs include yt-dlp, Transmission and Jackett.
Project description on GitHub: “Command-line program to download videos from YouTube.com and other video sites”
Pros / Cons
Pros
- Open source: the code can be inspected and built by anyone
- Portable: runs without installation
- Also runs on macOS, GNU/Linux and BSD
- Large user base
- Mature project (since 2006)
Cons
- No native ARM64 build
- 32-bit only
- No update for more than a year
In short: youtube-dl is an open-source download manager tool for 32-bit PCs. Updates have slowed down.
Screenshots
Is youtube-dl safe to download?
- The file is served by github.com, the publisher’s own domain
- The download link uses HTTPS
- A SHA256 hash is published, so you can verify the file:
26E5C00C35C5C3EDC86DFC0A720AED109A13B1B7C67AC654A0CE8FF82A1F2C16· Open the VirusTotal report for this hash - The link has not been checked yet
- The source code is public
- ExeAtlas does not host, wrap or modify installers
Related guide: How to check a file’s SHA256 hash on Windows
Security practices (OpenSSF Scorecard)
Automated checks of the ytdl-org/youtube-dl repository on GitHub by the Open Source Security Foundation, last run on October 19, 2026.
- No dangerous workflows10
- Restricted token permissions10
- No binaries in the repository10
- Licence declared10
- Signed releases8
- Code review3
- Actively maintained0
- OpenSSF Best Practices badge0
- Pinned dependencies0
- Security policy0
- Fuzzing0
- Branch protection0
- Static code analysis0
The score rates how the project is developed and released, not whether the program is safe to install. scorecard.dev
Recent versions
All 1 versions ›| Version | Date | Size | Files |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021.12.17Latest | December 17, 2021 | — | 32-bit Portable |
Install from the command line
Silent install ›winget install --id youtube-dl.youtube-dl -echoco install youtube-dl -yProgram files (.exe): youtube-dl.exe
Related guide: How to use winget: install and update apps
Information
- Publisher
- youtube-dl
- Developer
- Sergey M
- Category
- Download managers
- Licence
- unlicense
- Price
- Free
- Source code
- github.com/ytdl-org/youtube-dl
- Written in
- Python
- Requires
- Windows 11 / 10 (Windows 10+)
- Architecture
- 32-bit
- Installer
- Portable
- Other platforms
- macOS, GNU/Linux, BSD, Unix-like operating system
- Version
- 2021.12.17
- Released
- December 17, 2021
- First release
- 2006
- Added to the catalogue
- August 17, 2022
- Versions listed
- 1
- Chocolatey downloads
- 1,033,478
- GitHub stars
- 141,372
- GitHub forks
- 10,663
- Website
- youtube-dl.org
- winget ID
- youtube-dl.youtube-dl
- Chocolatey package
- youtube-dl
Ratings and reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to rate it.
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Frequently asked questions
Is youtube-dl free?
Yes. youtube-dl is open-source software under the unlicense licence.
Is youtube-dl safe to download?
The download comes from github.com, which belongs to the publisher; ExeAtlas does not host or change the file. Compare its SHA256 hash with the one shown here, or open the VirusTotal report for that hash.
How do I install youtube-dl with winget?
Open PowerShell or Windows Terminal and run the winget command shown on this page. winget downloads the official installer and checks its SHA256 hash before running it.
Which Windows versions does youtube-dl support?
The installer requires Windows 10 or newer and is available for 32-bit.
Does youtube-dl run on ARM (Windows on Arm)?
There is no ARM64 build; Windows 11 on Arm can run the 32-bit version through emulation.
Can I use youtube-dl without administrator rights?
Yes, it is portable: unpack and run it.
What are alternatives to youtube-dl?
yt-dlp, Transmission, Jackett, Open Video Downloader and Tribler. The alternatives page compares them.
