Download Video
Download videos from YouTube, Bilibili, Twitter/X, TikTok, and 1000+ other sites using yt-dlp.
Step 1: Check prerequisites
which yt-dlp && yt-dlp --version
which ffmpeg
If yt-dlp is missing, install it:
# macOS
brew install yt-dlp ffmpeg
# Cross-platform
pip install yt-dlp
Step 2: Download
Use the bundled script — it wraps yt-dlp with sensible defaults and clear error messages.
python3 scripts/download.py "VIDEO_URL"
Default output: ~/Downloads/Videos/
Common options
python3 scripts/download.py "URL" -f 1080 # Max 1080p
python3 scripts/download.py "URL" -a # Audio only (MP3)
python3 scripts/download.py "URL" -F # List formats
python3 scripts/download.py "URL" --subs # With subtitles
python3 scripts/download.py "URL" -o ~/Desktop # Custom output dir
python3 scripts/download.py "URL" --cookies chrome # Use browser cookies
Direct yt-dlp commands
For cases the script doesn't cover, use yt-dlp directly:
# Download playlist
yt-dlp -P ~/Downloads/Videos "PLAYLIST_URL"
# Custom filename template
yt-dlp -o "%(uploader)s - %(title)s.%(ext)s" "VIDEO_URL"
# Download with subtitles in specific languages
yt-dlp --write-subs --sub-lang zh,en -P ~/Downloads/Videos "VIDEO_URL"
Troubleshooting
Most download failures fall into these categories:
| Symptom | Fix |
|---|---|
| "Sign in required" or age-restricted | Add --cookies chrome to use browser session |
| Only low quality available | Update yt-dlp (brew upgrade yt-dlp), then try with --cookies chrome |
| Slow downloads | Try --concurrent-fragments 3 or --downloader aria2c |
| Network errors (behind firewall) | Use --proxy socks5://127.0.0.1:1080 or set ALL_PROXY env var |
For platform-specific details (YouTube PO tokens, Bilibili series, TikTok watermark removal, etc.), see references/platform-tips.md.