How to download YouTube Videos on Your Mac or PC 2023

• You can download YouTube videos on your computer using 4K Video Downloader. 
• You can download YouTube video on your computer using VLC media player.
• YT5s.io is another free YouTube video downloader option to download on PC or Mac.
• You can also use MacX YouTube Downloader. Mac or WinX  PC version available.

Save YouTube videos in a matter of a few simple steps. The easiest way to download a video from YouTube: Choose and download one of the video downloader applications (like 4K Video Downloader, VLC Media Player, YT5s.io, MacX, or WinX), install on your computer, go to YouTube and copy the video url, paste into the downloader app, select your download preferences, and download YouTube video.

It’s pretty easy and we’ll walk you through it.

Before we break down the how-to of downloading a YouTube video and the best YouTube downloader options, let’s look at some of the mind-blowing YouTube statics that just keep growing daily.

• YouTube has more than 2.6 billion active users as of 2023 and over 122 million people visit YouTube every day via its Website and Apps.
• 720,000 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every day.
• YouTube is the world’s largest video-sharing platform and second-largest social media platform.

Wow! That’s a lot of content to consume. But what if I’m going to be offline or without internet and can’t stream but I still want to watch videos?

Now back to back to how to download YouTube videos online because sometimes you need to download and save videos to watch later, offline. This is great especially if you might be in an unreliable Wi-Fi situation later, on a plane, or commuting. Or maybe you’d like to save your cellular data, so you want to download a few videos while you still have Wi-Fi.

But the big question is, is it legal?

As far as copyright goes, if you’re only downloading a video for your own personal offline use, you should be okay according to Google’s terms of service for YouTube. Read carefully before you download YouTube video!

Keep in mind that video creators earn income from advertisers. YouTube wants users to develop loyalty to their platform. The longer you stay on the YouTube platform, the more ads you see. Sharing a YouTube video is as easy as embedding, emailing, or sharing via social networks. Is it absolutely necessary to download YouTube video? Always consider your options before downloading.

Best Options to Download YouTube Videos 

You can download YouTube videos in several formats like MP4, AVI, MPEG, and more. If you just need the audio, you can convert YouTube videos into MP3 or WAV formats. All you need is the video URL and the YouTube downloader.

There are a lot of options out there but here are 3 that stand out. You’ll need to find a YouTube video downloader that is compatible with your operating system (PC, Mac) and then follow a few simple steps to download YouTube videos. Always do your homework and vet any software or app before downloading. If a link looks suspicious, don’t click.

YouTube Premium Downloading

YouTube Premium. Downloading YouTube videos is pretty straightforward and simple. The easiest way to download YouTube videos is to use a video converter or paying for YouTube Premium is always an option.

YouTube Premium currently costs $11.99 a month after a one month free trial. Premium lets you save videos for when you’re low on data or can’t get online. 

This is not a true standard download that saves forever to your computer. The YouTube Premium download feature is similar to the download features you can find on mobile apps for Hulu and Netflix. This type of download makes a streaming video available to watch later using your local storage and can be viewed using the app’s interface only. 

To access your downloaded videos with YouTube Premium, you can follow these steps:

1. Open the YouTube app on your device
2. Tap on the Library tab at the bottom of the screen
3. Select “Downloads” from the menu
4. You should see a list of all your downloaded videos, tap on the one you want to watch.

According to the app, “Downloads remain available as long as your device has an active internet connection at least once every 30 days.” 

If this isn’t the type of download you were searching for, read on for tools that do.

Download YouTube Videos Using a Video Downloading Tool.

Third-party software is where you will get the best control over the “how to download YouTube videos” process. Typically, you paste the URL for the YouTube video you want into the program, and it downloads the highest quality version it can find. Using a YouTube downloader is the fastest way to download YouTube videos. 

Here are the three ways to download YouTube videos on your computer:

4K Video Downloader

Free; Windows, macOS, Linux

4K Video Downloader is an easy-to-use desktop application that allows users to download and save video, audio, and subtitle content from various online platforms, including YouTube, Facebook, and Vimeo, among others. It supports a wide range of file formats and resolutions, including 4K and Full HD, and enables users to save content for offline viewing. Free and paid upgraded versions are available.

To use 4K Video Downloader to download a YouTube video:

1. Open the YouTube video that you want to download.
2. Copy the URL of the video from the address bar of your browser.
3. Open 4K Video Downloader and click the “Paste Link” button.
4. Select the desired format, quality, and output location for the video.
5. Click the “Download” button to start the download process.
6. The video will be saved on your device in the selected format and quality.

Note: There are many alternatives to choose from when picking a YouTube video downloader, but if you feel skittish about browser extensions or background-running software, 4K Video Downloader is a good choice.

VLC Media Player

Free; Windows, macOS, Linux

VLC Media Player is a free YouTube downloader, open-source, cross-platform multimedia player and framework that plays most multimedia files as well as DVDs, Audio CDs, VCDs, and various streaming protocols.

To download YouTube videos using VLC Media Player, follow these steps:

1. Open VLC Media Player.
2. Click on Media on the top navigation menu and select Open Network Stream.
3. In the Open Media dialog box, paste the URL of the YouTube video you want to download.
4. Click Play to start the video.
5. Click on View and select Advanced Controls.
6. Locate the Record button on the new Advanced Controls panel and click it to start recording the video.
7. When the video is finished, click the Stop button on the Advanced Controls panel to stop recording.
8. The recorded video will be saved in the specified location in your VLC Media Player preferences.

Note: While there are some decent free tools, the paid versions provide much higher quality, are easier to use, and offer many additional features.

YT5s.io – Online YouTube video downloader

Free; Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iPhone

Another free YouTube downloader option is YT5s.io. WARNING: When I visited the — yt5s video download — site the annoyance level was high. This site has a lot of sneaky popups. Click with caution! YT5s.io is a website that provides users with a platform to access and download YouTube videos.

yt5s video download — YouTube: The site allows users to download videos in a variety of formats, including MP4, MP3, and others, making it easy to save videos to their devices for offline viewing. The website is user-friendly and has a simple interface, making it easy for anyone to use, regardless of their technical skills. The site is free to use, and users can access it from anywhere with an internet connection.

MacX and WinX 

Free; Windows, macOS

MacX YouTube Downloader is a software application for Mac computers that allows users to download video from YouTube and other video-sharing websites.

MacX YouTube Downloader is a program that lets you grab YouTube video Mac or PC version available and save all the YouTube videos you want in a matter of seconds. With this simple tool, you can instantly have all your favorite videos saved to your computer and ready to be played offline.

To use it to download a YouTube video, follow these steps:

1. Install MacX YouTube Downloader on your Mac computer.
2. Open the software and go to YouTube.com and find the video you want to download.
3. Copy the URL of the video from the address bar of your web browser.
4. Go back to MacX YouTube Downloader and click on the “Paste URL” button. The software will analyze the URL and show the available video formats.
5. Select the desired video format and resolution, then click the “Download” button. The video will start downloading automatically.
6. Once the download is complete, you can find the video in the output folder that you specified in the software’s preferences.

WinX Video Downloader is a free video downloader software for Windows users to videos directly from YouTube. With WinXdownloader, you can also use it to download multimedia elements from other web platforms like Facebook, DailyMotion, Vimeo, Yahoo, and other options.

To download a YouTube video with WinX Video Downloader:

1. Download and install WinX Video Downloader.
2. Open the software and paste the video link from YouTube into the download bar.
3. Click “Analyze” and select the video quality and format you want to download.
4. Click “Download” to start downloading the video.
5. After the download is complete, you can find the video in the default download folder or the folder you specified.

Pro tip: If you have the paid “Pro” version of WinX or MacX, once the video’s been downloaded, you can also click the Convert to MP3 option to get just the audio.

Conclusion

Now that you’ve heard about some of the best YouTube video download solutions for Mac and Windows, downloading and saving videos to your laptop for offline watching will be a breeze. 

1. 4K Video Downloader  
2. MacX and WinX          
3. VLC Media Player       
4. YT5s.io     

All of the options we’ve listed in the article are great for downloading and some even offer additional features like converting to additional formats, bulk downloads and more. Review the features each app offers and choose the one that best suits your needs.

Important: Before you download anything, check if it’s legal to download. Downloading videos is a potential copyright infringement unless you are the owner of the video, have permission from the copyright holder, or it’s in the public domain.