YouTube to MP3 Downloader

Convert authorized YouTube videos and playlists into clean, tagged MP3 files — or M4A, Opus, WAV, and FLAC — at the bitrate you choose. Every track is transcoded with yt-dlp + ffmpeg, tagged with ID3 metadata and embedded thumbnail cover art, saved to Apify key-value storage, and returned as MCP-ready JSON for AI agents and automation.

What it does

Give it one or more YouTube URLs (single videos, Shorts, or playlists). For each track it:

1. Downloads the best available audio stream.
2. Transcodes to your chosen format and bitrate.
3. Embeds ID3 tags (title, artist, upload date) and the video thumbnail as cover art.
4. Saves the file to the key-value store and returns a structured row with a direct download key.

When to use it

• Build an audio archive of talks, lectures, podcasts, or interviews you have rights to.
• Turn a playlist you own into a set of tagged MP3s in one run.
• Feed audio into transcription, diarization, or music-analysis pipelines.
• Let an AI agent fetch YouTube audio as a structured tool call (MCP-ready).

Do not use it to download content you do not own or have permission to use. See the legal note below.

Output

One dataset row per track, plus the audio file in the key-value store.

Field	Description
title	Video / track title
artist	Uploader / channel (written to the ID3 artist tag)
videoId	YouTube video ID
durationSeconds	Track length
audioFormat	mp3, m4a, opus, wav, or flac
bitrateKbps	Target bitrate for lossy formats (null for VBR / lossless)
fileKey	Key-value store key to download the audio file
fileSizeBytes	Saved file size
thumbnail	Cover-art image URL
uploadDate	YYYYMMDD when available
status	success, skipped, or failed
error	Actionable message when a track could not be produced
scrapedAt	ISO 8601 timestamp

Audio files are stored under keys like audio-{videoId}-{slug}.mp3. Each row's fileKey points to its file.

Pricing

Pay per result (PPE):

• Actor start — $0.00005 per run
• Audio file saved — $0.02 per track successfully saved

Failed, skipped, and invalid URLs are not charged the per-track fee. A typical single-track run costs about $0.02. You also pay Apify platform compute + proxy usage.

Input

Field	Type	Default	Notes
videoUrls	array	—	YouTube video / playlist URLs (required)
authorizationConfirmed	boolean	false	Must be true to download
audioFormat	enum	mp3	mp3, m4a, opus, wav, flac
audioBitrate	enum	192	best, 320, 256, 192, 128 (lossy only)
embedMetadata	boolean	true	ID3 tags + thumbnail cover art
includePlaylist	boolean	false	Expand playlist URLs
maxResults	integer	20	Total track cap per run (1–200)
maxDurationMinutes	integer	120	Skip longer videos
maxFileSizeMb	integer	100	Skip larger files
includeMetadataJson	boolean	false	Save raw yt-dlp metadata JSON
cookiesTxt	string (secret)	—	Netscape cookies.txt for restricted videos
proxyConfiguration	object	Residential	Apify proxy settings

Example input

{
  "videoUrls": [{ "url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ" }],
  "authorizationConfirmed": true,
  "audioFormat": "mp3",
  "audioBitrate": "192",
  "embedMetadata": true
}

Playlist example

{
  "videoUrls": [{ "url": "https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxxxxxxxx" }],
  "authorizationConfirmed": true,
  "includePlaylist": true,
  "maxResults": 25,
  "audioFormat": "mp3",
  "audioBitrate": "320"
}

Use with the Apify API

from apify_client import ApifyClient

client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")
run = client.actor("khadinakbar/youtube-to-mp3-downloader").call(run_input={
    "videoUrls": [{"url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ"}],
    "authorizationConfirmed": True,
    "audioFormat": "mp3",
    "audioBitrate": "192",
})

for row in client.dataset(run["defaultDatasetId"]).iterate_items():
    print(row["title"], row["fileKey"], row["status"])

import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

const client = new ApifyClient({ token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' });
const run = await client.actor('khadinakbar/youtube-to-mp3-downloader').call({
    videoUrls: [{ url: 'https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ' }],
    authorizationConfirmed: true,
    audioFormat: 'mp3',
    audioBitrate: '192',
});
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
console.log(items);

Download a saved file from the key-value store using its fileKey:

https://api.apify.com/v2/key-value-stores/{storeId}/records/{fileKey}

MCP and AI agents

This actor is MCP-ready. It returns compact, flat JSON with stable keys and a direct fileKey for each track, so agents can request YouTube audio as a single tool call and hand the file to a downstream transcription or analysis step. Expose it via https://mcp.apify.com?tools=khadinakbar/youtube-to-mp3-downloader.

FAQ

Which format should I pick? MP3 for maximum compatibility, M4A/Opus for smaller high-quality files, WAV/FLAC when you need lossless audio for editing.

Does it embed cover art? Yes, when embedMetadata is on (default). The video thumbnail is embedded and ID3 tags are written.

Can it download a whole playlist? Yes — set includePlaylist: true and raise maxResults. The cap applies to the whole run to keep cost predictable.

Why residential proxy? YouTube heavily rate-limits datacenter IPs. Residential proxy is the default for reliability.

Age-restricted or members-only videos? Provide your own cookiesTxt (Netscape format). Only use cookies you are allowed to use.

A video returned "restricted_media"? Some premium/VEVO music and age-restricted videos are DRM-gated by YouTube and cannot be downloaded without a logged-in session. The run still succeeds and marks that track skipped with a clear message. To download it, supply cookiesTxt from an account allowed to view it. The vast majority of YouTube content (regular videos, talks, lectures, Shorts, most music, Creative Commons) downloads without cookies.

Legal

This actor is a technical tool for downloading audio you own or are legally permitted to download. You are solely responsible for how you use it and for complying with YouTube's Terms of Service and all applicable copyright laws. Downloading copyrighted content without permission may be illegal in your jurisdiction. The authorizationConfirmed checkbox must be set to true to confirm you have the necessary rights. This actor does not bypass paywalls, DRM, or access controls.