The whole video streaming market is worth around $25 billion, with YouTube claiming a larger chunk of the market. YouTube is by far the most popular YouTube video streaming site with over 2 billion monthly active users.
Launched in 2005, the online video platform offers a wide range of content including educational videos, music and game videos, entertainment, and more.
The core aim of YouTube is just for video streaming but some of its new features allow for video downloading. However, the downloaded videos cannot be moved out of the app. Even though this design might be the intention of YouTube developers, it does not fully satisfy viewers’ interest. Because sometimes you might come across a good video which you’d like to save to your collections and watch later or show it to other people.
Besides this, a slow internet connection can also cause problems while streaming videos online. This might hinder your interest in watching the video.
To solve all these concerns, you can make use of YouTube downloader apps (online or offline). This software allows you to download videos from YouTube directly to your PC or smartphone.
However, though this software is an excellent tool, you must have the permission of a video owner before downloading them. The downloading of copyrighted videos violates the YouTube terms and conditions.
After getting permission to download a video, you then need a detailed guide on how to choose the best YouTube downloader. This review will help you in making this decision. It contains the details of some features of the 5 best YouTube downloaders.
What makes these YouTube downloaders the best are the additional features that they offer. They make it possible to perform different video editing to further improve the output of the downloaded videos.
Benefits of using YouTube Downloader.
- Allow direct video downloading from YouTube:
You cannot download videos directly from YouTube. These YouTube Downloader apps allow you to download YouTube videos from online platforms directly to your PC or mobile device. Some of these YouTube downloaders also allow you to download videos from other platforms, such as Dailymotion, Facebook, and Vimeo.
- Allow video editing to improve the video quality:
YouTube downloader apps have the basic function of downloading video from a video streaming site.
However, some YouTube downloaders have advanced features which include: Video compression by specifying the encoder speed, resolution, and output size, limiting download speed, and saving your videos to an online drive such as Google Drive, OneDrive, or Dropbox.
In addition, you can email the video to yourself or someone else’s email account.
- Ease of usage
You don’t need any tech skills to operate any YouTube downloader. All you need to do is copy the video link from YouTube and paste it into the downloader search bar. The app will look out for the video and then download it directly to your PC or mobile device.
- Allow downloading video in different formats.
YouTube downloader can help you save videos in different formats such as MP4, AVI, FLV, 3GP, WMV, MOV. In addition, you can also specify the application to extract audio and save the file in MP3 downloader and WAV format.
Now that you understand the potential benefits that a YouTube downloader can offer. The next thing is for you to choose a YouTube downloader either based on its mode of operation, additional features, and pricing.
Top 5 YouTube downloader
1. Y2Mate YouTube downloader
Y2Mate is arguably the best download videos for free in SD and HD quality in various audio and video formats on Mac OS, Windows, Linux, or your mobile device.
Y2Mate.com has a simple and easy-to-use interface for downloading online videos. You can search for a video by name or paste a link to the video. It allows you to download videos or extract audio from other sites like YouTube, Facebook, Video, Dailymotion, Youku, etc.
Pros:
- Compatible with all browsers.
- Compatible with any device.
- Unlimited downloads of HD and SD videos.
- Supports MP3, MP4, AAC, 3GP, FLV, MO, WMV, and other formats.
- Upload files to Google Drive or Dropbox.
Cons:
- Does not support batch download.
Price: Free
2. YouTube Video Downloader
YouTube Video Downloader is another great YouTube downloader for downloading YouTube videos and music. It includes no restrictions or ads while downloading the video which makes the downloading process faster.
With this app, you can download YouTube videos and music in SD, HD, Full HD quality for free on Windows, Linux, Mac OS, iPhone, and Android devices. Similar to other YouTube downloaders, all you need to do is paste the link and download the video in your preferred format.
Pros:
- Compatible with all browsers
- Unlimited HD and SD video downloads from YouTube and Facebook.
- The downloading process is fast and secure.
- Supports FLV, MP4, MP3, MO, 3GP, M4V, WMV, WEBM, and other formats.
Cons:
- Does not support batch download.
- Support limited platforms (YouTube and Facebook).
Price: Free
3. iTubeGo YouTube downloader
This app offers the best features which are not seen in many YouTube downloaders. You can download videos in batches from YouTube, Facebook, Netflix, Vimeo, Instagram, Spotify, Amazon, SoundCloud, Dailymotion, as well as many streaming sites to your Mac OS, Windows, iPhone, and Android devices.
Pros:
- Download YouTube playlist.
- Supports MP3, MP4, M4A, and other formats.
- The desktop version of the app supports batch download.
- Download videos from over 1000 online video platforms.
Cons:
- The free version does not support HD download.
- The Premium version is a bit expensive
Price – Basic: Free
Premium: $19.95–$14.95 annual license, $65.95 lifetime license for 1 PC and $30 for free trial.
4. YT1s YouTube downloader
This software allows you to download and also convert YouTube videos to MP4 or MP3 files(top youtube to mp3) for free but supports conversion of YouTube videos to any file format, including MP3, 3GP, MP4, WMA, M4A, FLV, WEBM, and MO on Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iPhone.
Pro:
- Fast and easy to use
- Unlimited download
- Conversion directly to Dropbox or Google Drive
Cons:
- Does not support batch download.
Price: Free
5. 4K YouTube downloader
As its name implies, this is one of the best YouTube downloaders that gives high-quality video resolution (4K). This software is available as an application that is installed. It’s compatible with Mac, Linux, and Windows. You can download from different streaming sites such as YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, Dailymotion, Metacafe, Instagram, and Vimeo. Besides, you can also extract audio from a video.
Pros:
- High video resolution
- Audio extraction
- Allows playlist download from YouTube
Cons:
- Requires app installation
Price: Offers a free version and also licensed version
- Free version: No cost
- Licensed version: A one-time fee of $15 for 3 computers. It also offers a one-time payment of $25 for 3 computers for 3 software – 4K Video Downloader, 4K YouTube to MP3, and 4K Stogarm.
In conclusion, all the YouTube downloader apps listed in this review work well for downloading YouTube videos. However, you can make your choice based on additional values that some of them offer.
