YouTube Video Downloader

YouTube Video Downloader lets you download publicly accessible YouTube videos from direct video URLs, playlists, and channel URLs. Choose a target resolution and receive downloadable video links along with useful video metadata. The Actor supports 8K, 4K, 2K, 1080p, 720p, 480p, and 360p resolution requests. It can also upload downloaded videos to Apify Storage when enabled, making the files easier to use in automated workflows. Use it for YouTube video download, video archiving, content research, media analysis, dataset creation, and bulk video processing. You can provide individual video URLs or process videos discovered from playlists and channels.

What does YouTube Video Downloader do?

YouTube Video Downloader extracts downloadable video formats from publicly accessible YouTube video URLs. It accepts individual videos, YouTube Shorts, playlists, and channel URLs, then returns available video and audio download links with useful metadata.

You can select a preferred resolution from 360p, 480p, 720p, 1080p, 2K, 4K, or 8K. If the requested resolution is unavailable, the Actor returns the closest available format instead.

The Actor works as a YouTube video download tool, YouTube video downloader API, and YouTube video extraction tool for automated workflows. It can process multiple URLs in one run and expand playlist or channel sources.

The output includes the original URL, selected resolution, actual resolution, video title, author, channel, duration, thumbnail, download type, and downloadable links. You can also optionally upload the selected progressive video to Apify storage.

What can I extract with YouTube Video Downloader?

Data	Description
Original URL	YouTube video URL processed by the Actor
Download URL	Direct downloadable link for the selected format
Audio URL	Direct audio-only download link when available
Requested resolution	Resolution selected in the input
Provided resolution	Actual resolution returned by YouTube
Download type	Progressive video+audio or video-only
Video title	Title of the YouTube video
Author	Name of the uploader
Channel	YouTube channel name
Thumbnail	Thumbnail URL
Duration	Human-readable video duration
Video type	Video or Shorts
Source	YouTube
Progressive format	Best single-file video format
Progressive resolution	Resolution of the progressive format
Format	Available container such as MP4
Bitrate	Bitrate information when available
Playlist/channel source	Source URL when a video came from a playlist or channel
Storage URL	Apify storage URL when upload is enabled
Status	Processing result such as SUCCEEDED or FAILED
Error message	Processing or input error details

This makes the Actor useful for YouTube video data extraction, YouTube video metadata extraction, YouTube video URL extraction, and automated video processing workflows.

Key Features of YouTube Video Downloader Scraper

• 📥 YouTube video download: Process individual public YouTube videos from their URLs.

• 🔗 YouTube video URL downloader: Submit one or multiple YouTube URLs in a single run.

• 🎞️ Multiple resolutions: Request 360p, 480p, 720p, 1080p, 2K, 4K, or 8K.

• 🎧 Audio extraction: Return an audio-only downloadable link when an appropriate format exists.

• 📋 Playlist support: Process videos discovered from YouTube playlist URLs.

• 📺 Channel support: Expand channel URLs and process available videos.

• ⚡ Bulk processing: Process multiple video URLs, playlists, or channels automatically.

• 🧩 API-ready: Use the Actor in automated applications and data pipelines.

• ☁️ Optional storage: Upload the selected progressive video to Apify Key-Value Store.

• 🖼️ Metadata extraction: Collect title, thumbnail, duration, author, and channel information.

• 📊 Format information: Identify actual resolution, format, bitrate, and download type.

• 🔄 Closest-resolution matching: Receive the closest available format when the requested resolution does not exist.

• 🛠️ Diagnostic status: Failed inputs and processing failures include status and error information.

• 🌐 Proxy support: Residential or own proxy configuration can be supplied when required.

• 🔢 Per-source limits: Control the number of videos processed from each playlist or channel.

It works as a YouTube video downloader scraper, YouTube video scraper, YouTube video extraction automation, and YouTube video processing tool for repeatable workflows.

How does YouTube Video Downloader work?

The YouTube Video Downloader works by accepting individual YouTube video URLs or playlist and channel URLs, extracting available media formats, and returning downloadable video information.

You can select a target resolution from 8K, 4K, 2K, 1080p, 720p, 480p, or 360p. If the requested resolution is unavailable, the Actor can return the closest available format and explain the selection in the note field.

1. Add YouTube video URLs

Provide one or more video URLs through the video_urls input:

{

"video_urls": [

{

  "url": "https://youtu.be/YZ84iQrbYjw"

},

{

  "url": "https://youtu.be/aoBrCkinq88"

}

],

"desired_resolution": "2k"

}

This supports multiple YouTube videos in one run, making it useful for batch processing and automated video workflows.

2. Set the desired resolution

Choose the resolution you want the Actor to search for:

• 8K

• 4K

• 2K

• 1080p

• 720p

• 480p

• 360p

For example, if you request 2k but only 360p is available, the output can identify 360p as the provided resolution and explain that the requested 1440p format was unavailable.

3. Process playlists or channels

You can also provide playlist or channel URLs through playlistOrChannelUrls.

The Actor expands the source and processes individual videos using the same extraction workflow. maxVideosPerSource controls how many videos can be processed from each playlist or channel.

4. Select the available format

The Actor identifies suitable formats and reports information such as:

• Requested resolution

• Provided resolution

• Download type

• Video format

• Bitrate

• Progressive video availability

• Downloadable video link

• Downloadable audio link

A progressive format contains video and audio in one file. The output identifies it as Video+Audio when available.

5. Get video metadata

Along with the media information, the output can contain:

• Video title

• Author

• Channel

• Thumbnail URL

• Duration

• Original YouTube URL

• Source platform

• Video type

• Source playlist or channel URL

This makes the Actor useful beyond basic video downloading, including YouTube video data collection, content archiving, media research, and video analysis.

6. Upload the video to storage

Set:

"upload_video_to_apify": true

when you want the Actor to upload the processed video to Apify storage.

When the upload succeeds, the output can contain an apify_storage_url. Uploading large or long videos can take additional time.

7. Receive structured output

Each processed video produces a structured result containing the source URL, resolution information, download links, metadata, processing status, and optional storage information.

This structured output makes the Actor suitable for automated YouTube video download workflows, data pipelines, batch processing, research projects, and content archives.

How to use YouTube Video Downloader

Using the Actor requires only a few steps.

1. Log in or sign up

First, log in to Apify or sign up for an account if you do not already have one.

2. Add YouTube video URLs

Enter the YouTube URLs you want to process.

For example:

{

"video_urls": [

{

  "url": "https://youtu.be/YZ84iQrbYjw"

},

{

  "url": "https://youtu.be/aoBrCkinq88"

}

]

}

You can provide standard YouTube URLs, shortened youtu.be links, and YouTube Shorts URLs.

3. Select the resolution

Choose the preferred output resolution:

• 360p

• 480p

• 720p

• 1080p

• 2K

• 4K

• 8K

The Actor checks the available formats and returns the requested resolution when available.

4. Add playlist or channel URLs

You can also provide playlist or channel URLs.

The Actor expands those sources and processes the discovered videos according to the configured maximum video count.

5. Set the maximum videos per source

Use maxVideosPerSource to limit how many videos the Actor processes from each playlist or channel.

The default is 50, with a maximum of 500.

6. Enable storage upload if required

Set upload_video_to_apify to true if you want the Actor to upload the selected progressive video to Apify Key-Value Store.

When enabled and successful, the output includes an apify_storage_url.

7. Start the Actor

Click Start to begin processing.

The Actor extracts the available formats, selects the appropriate resolution, and returns the result dataset.

YouTube Video Downloader output format

The Actor returns structured JSON records for each processed video. Each record contains download information and video metadata.

⬇️ Input

For individual YouTube videos:

{

  "upload\_video\_to\_apify": false,

  "video\_urls": \[

    {

      "url": "https://youtu.be/YZ84iQrbYjw?si=\_8-Y64fWSGA82dOz"

    },

    {

      "url": "https://youtu.be/aoBrCkinq88?si=WAzndltEQm531aAO"

    },

    {

      "url": "https://youtube.com/shorts/s9YG00vZ09c?si=fMtwzCARAHbcuJQu"

    }

  \],

  "desired\_resolution": "2k",

  "playlistOrChannelUrls": \[\],

  "maxVideosPerSource": 50

}

For playlist or channel processing, add the URLs under playlistOrChannelUrls.

{

  "video\_urls": \[\],

  "desired\_resolution": "1080p",

  "playlistOrChannelUrls": \[

    {

      "url": "https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxyz"

    }

  \],

  "maxVideosPerSource": 50

}

⬆️ Output

A successful result can look like this:

{

  "original\_url": "https://youtu.be/YZ84iQrbYjw",

  "requested\_resolution": "2k",

  "provided\_resolution": 360,

  "download\_type": "progressive",

  "title": "Fantastic Places in 4K 60FPS HDR Dolby Vision (4K Video)",

  "author": "4K Video ULTRA HD",

  "thumbnail": "https://i.ytimg.com/vi\_webp/YZ84iQrbYjw/sddefault.webp",

  "duration": "10m 21s",

  "channel": "4K Video ULTRA HD",

  "source": "youtube",

  "video\_type": "Video",

  "prog\_video\_type": "Video+Audio",

  "prog\_resolution": "360p",

  "prog\_video\_format": "mp4",

  "status": "SUCCEEDED"

}

The output also includes downloadable video and audio links when suitable formats are available.

If the requested resolution is unavailable, the note field explains the selected alternative. For example, a 2K request can return 360p when that is the closest available progressive format.

Direct media URLs can be temporary and may expire. Treat them as retrieval links for the current Actor result rather than permanent storage URLs.

🎯 Use Cases of YouTube Video Downloader

Video archiving

Use the Actor as a YouTube video archive tool, YouTube video archiving tool, or YouTube video backup tool for content that you are authorized to preserve.

Research and analysis

Researchers can use it as a YouTube video downloader for research, YouTube video research tool, or YouTube video downloader for academic research.

It can support YouTube video data collection, YouTube video content analysis, YouTube video metadata extraction, and YouTube video datasets.

Content research

Marketing and content teams can collect publicly accessible videos for authorized research, classification, and analysis.

The workflow can support a YouTube content research tool, YouTube content data extraction, and YouTube content scraper workflow.

Playlist processing

Process multiple videos from a playlist without entering every video URL manually.

This supports YouTube playlist downloader, YouTube playlist video downloader, YouTube playlist scraper, and YouTube playlist extractor workflows.

Channel processing

Provide a channel URL to expand and process videos automatically.

This makes the Actor useful for YouTube channel downloader, YouTube channel video scraper, YouTube channel video extractor, and YouTube channel videos downloader workflows.

Data pipelines

Developers can integrate the Actor into a YouTube video download pipeline, YouTube video extraction pipeline, YouTube video processing pipeline, or broader YouTube video data pipeline.

AI and machine learning research

Authorized datasets can use downloaded media as source material for YouTube video downloader for machine learning, YouTube video downloader for AI datasets, YouTube video downloader for computer vision datasets, or YouTube video downloader for NLP research workflows.

Media monitoring

Organizations can use the Actor for authorized YouTube video downloader for media monitoring, YouTube video downloader for content monitoring, and YouTube video downloader for video analysis projects.

How much does YouTube Video Downloader cost?

The Actor starts at $4.99 per 1,000 results.

Your actual usage can depend on the number of videos processed and the resources required by each run. Longer videos can take more time and resources, especially when video upload to Apify storage is enabled.

For large workloads, use maxVideosPerSource to control playlist and channel processing.

The Actor can therefore function as a YouTube video download service, YouTube video extraction service, or YouTube video downloader for bulk downloads without manually processing every URL.

Is it legal to scrape YouTube?

Scraping publicly accessible YouTube information can be lawful, but legality depends on what you collect, how you collect it, and how you use it. YouTube’s Terms of Service, copyright rules, privacy laws, and applicable local regulations can affect whether downloading or extracting specific content is permitted.

For this YouTube Video Downloader, use it only with videos you have permission to download or content that is legally available for your intended use. Avoid bypassing access controls, downloading copyrighted material without authorization, or redistributing downloaded videos without the required rights.

Use downloaded videos responsibly

• Download content you own or have permission to use.

• Respect the creator’s copyright and licensing terms.

• Check whether a video has restrictions on downloading or reuse.

• Do not use extracted media to infringe intellectual property rights.

• Follow YouTube’s current Terms of Service and applicable laws.

Note: This Actor provides technical extraction and download functionality. It does not grant you ownership or redistribution rights for downloaded content.

YouTube Video Downloader input parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
video_urls	array	Optional	YouTube video URLs to process
desired_resolution	string	Optional	Target resolution such as 360p, 720p, 1080p, 2K, 4K, or 8K
proxyConfigurations	object	Optional	Residential or own proxy configuration
upload_video_to_apify	boolean	Optional	Upload the selected progressive video to Apify storage
playlistOrChannelUrls	array	Optional	Playlist or channel URLs to expand
maxVideosPerSource	integer	Optional	Maximum videos processed from each playlist or channel

video_urls

Provide individual YouTube URLs as an array.

The Actor can process multiple URLs in one run, making it suitable for multiple YouTube video downloader, batch YouTube video downloader, and bulk YouTube video download workflows.

desired_resolution

Choose from:

8K, 4K, 2K, 1080p, 720p, 480p, or 360p.

The requested value is not guaranteed if YouTube does not expose a matching format. The Actor returns the closest available format.

proxyConfigurations

Proxy configuration is optional.

If no proxy is selected, the Actor automatically uses a residential proxy according to its current configuration. This can help with YouTube request handling and bot-detection challenges.

upload_video_to_apify

Set this value to true to upload the selected progressive video to Apify storage.

Keep it false when you only require downloadable links and metadata.

playlistOrChannelUrls

Add playlist or channel URLs to discover videos automatically.

This supports YouTube playlist URL extractor, YouTube channel video download tool, YouTube playlist video scraper, and YouTube channel videos extractor workflows.

maxVideosPerSource

Set the maximum number of videos processed from each playlist or channel.

The default is 50, while the maximum is 500.

⏳ During the Actor run

During an Actor run, the YouTube Video Downloader processes each supplied video, playlist, or channel URL and attempts to identify an available video format at the requested resolution.

The Actor first validates the input, resolves playlist or channel URLs when provided, and then processes each video individually. It identifies available formats and returns the closest suitable resolution when the exact requested resolution is unavailable.

What happens during processing?

1. Input validation — The Actor checks the supplied YouTube URLs and configuration.

2. Source expansion — Playlist or channel URLs are expanded into individual video URLs.

3. Video extraction — The Actor retrieves available video and audio format information.

4. Resolution matching — It searches for the requested resolution, such as 2K, 1080p, 720p, or 360p.

5. Format selection — It selects a suitable progressive or video-only format.

6. Metadata extraction — Title, author, channel, thumbnail, duration, and source information are collected.

7. Download link generation — A direct downloadable link is returned when a suitable format is available.

8. Optional storage upload — If enabled, the Actor uploads the processed video to Apify storage.

9. Status reporting — Each result includes a status such as SUCCEEDED, FAILED_INPUT, FAILED_PROCESSING, or NO_RESULTS.

Long videos can take more time, especially when Upload Video to Storage is enabled. A failed URL can be submitted again in a separate run.

Final Note

YouTube Video Downloader is designed for automated retrieval of publicly accessible YouTube videos and related metadata.

It supports individual URLs, Shorts, playlists, and channels while providing resolution selection and structured output. Developers can use it for YouTube video downloader automation, YouTube video download automation, YouTube video extraction automation, and data-processing workflows.

For larger projects, combine multiple video URLs with playlist or channel expansion and set an appropriate maxVideosPerSource value.

Always download and use content according to applicable copyright laws, permissions, licenses, and platform rules.

FAQ

Can I download a YouTube video by URL?

Yes. Add the YouTube video URL to the video_urls input and select the desired resolution.

Can I download multiple YouTube videos?

Yes. Add multiple objects to video_urls. This supports bulk YouTube video downloader, batch YouTube video download, and multiple-URL workflows.

Can I download YouTube playlists?

Yes. Add a playlist URL to playlistOrChannelUrls. The Actor expands the playlist and processes its videos.

Can I download YouTube channel videos?

Yes. Provide a channel URL in playlistOrChannelUrls. The Actor discovers and processes videos up to the configured limit.

Does it support YouTube Shorts?

Yes. YouTube Shorts URLs can be supplied through video_urls.

What resolutions are supported?

The Actor supports 360p, 480p, 720p, 1080p, 2K, 4K, and 8K as requested resolutions.

What happens if my requested resolution is unavailable?

The Actor selects the closest available format and explains the selection through the note field.

Does the Actor return MP4 videos?

When an appropriate progressive MP4 format is available, the output includes the corresponding downloadable MP4 link and format information.

Does it extract audio?

The Actor can return an audio-only downloadable link when a suitable audio format is available.

Can I upload downloaded videos to storage?

Yes. Set upload_video_to_apify to true. The Actor can upload the selected progressive video to Apify Key-Value Store.

Can developers use the Actor through an API?

Yes. The Actor can be integrated into automated applications and workflows, making it suitable as a YouTube downloader API, YouTube video extraction API, YouTube video scraper API, or YouTube video processing API.

Can I use it for a YouTube video dataset?

Yes, where the underlying video use and storage are legally authorized. The structured metadata can support YouTube video dataset creation, YouTube video dataset builder, and research data pipelines.

Can I use it for machine learning datasets?

It can technically support authorized YouTube video downloader for machine learning datasets, AI datasets, and computer vision datasets workflows. Make sure your dataset collection complies with applicable licenses and usage rights.

Can direct download links be stored permanently?

Not necessarily. Direct media URLs can be temporary. Use the optional Apify storage upload when persistent storage of authorized content is required.

Why did my Actor run fail?

Check the returned status and error fields. Invalid URLs, unavailable content, extraction failures, and temporary YouTube-side issues can cause a result to fail.

Does the Actor process long videos?

Yes, but longer videos can require more processing time. Uploading the video to storage can also increase the total run time.

Can I rerun a failed video?

Yes. If a particular URL fails, rerunning the failed URL can help when the failure is temporary.

Is this a YouTube video scraper?

Yes. In addition to downloading available media, the Actor extracts video metadata and format information, making it suitable for YouTube video scraping, YouTube video data scraper, and YouTube video information extractor workflows.

Can I use it for video archiving?

Yes, provided you have the necessary rights or authorization. It can support YouTube video archiving, YouTube video archive downloader, and YouTube video library builder workflows.

Can I use it for competitive research?

Yes, for lawful and authorized research. The extracted metadata can support YouTube video downloader for competitive research, content analysis, and market research workflows.