How to download YouTube videos for free to watch offline
It’s very easy to have a collection of downloaded YouTube videos to play whenever you want to. While YouTube Premium allows the user to download a video for offline viewing, free methods are also available that let you watch or listen to them without using the official application.
Downloading YouTube videos is ideal for keeping yourself entertained on planes, trains, and work commutes when there’s no internet access available nearby. It’s a great solution if you have a mobile plan with a limited data allowance, letting you enjoy your favorite content on the move without risking going over your data allowance.
Using third-party apps to download YouTube videos is against YouTube’s terms of service – which state that you are only able to stream videos directly from its servers. Downloading YouTube videos also opens you up to potential copyright infringement unless you have permission from the copyright holder, it’s in the public domain, or you own the video yourself.
That said, YouTube does offer some ways to download videos through its web service and its own apps. In this guide we’ll explain how to do this, and take you through the other options available for iPhone, Android, Mac and PC.
WinX HD Video Converter Deluxe
Of all the YouTube downloaders we’ve tried, WinX HD Video Converter Deluxe is the most impressive. It doesn’t just grab videos – it can also convert them into virtually any format, rips content from DVDs and Blu-ray discs, and lets you burn your own. It handles 4K content with ease, too. It’s not free, unlike the software below, but you won’t find a more powerful tool.
1. Get 4K Video Downloader
To download YouTube videos to a Windows PC, start by downloading and installing 4K Video Downloader. This versatile software is completely free, and can download whole playlists, as well as 360-degree and 3D videos. When it’s done, check the box marked ‘Launch’ and click ‘Finish’.
2. Copy and paste the video URL
Open your web browser, find the video you want to download from YouTube and copy its URL from the address bar. Then return to 4K Video Downloader and click the green ‘Paste Link’ button at the top left.
The software will retrieve information about the video and give you a choice of quality options. These will vary depending on the quality of the original video, but the software can download YouTube videos in 4K if it’s available.
3. Choose the quality and format
4K Video Downloader will allow you to download whole YouTube videos, or just rip the audio. Choose your preferred selection using the drop-down menu on the left, then choose a format using the menu on the right. We prefer MP4 for our videos, because it gives a good balance of quality and file size – and will play on basically every device.
Then, choose your quality. For playing back video on your TV or PC, we recommend picking the highest resolution, but bear in mind that this will take longer and will take up more space. Luckily, you can check the estimated file size on the left to see how much space it will take.
You can also choose where the downloaded video should be saved using the ‘Browse’ button at the bottom. Once you’re happy, click ‘Download’.
4. Download the YouTube video
The YouTube video will now be downloaded for you. If there are other videos in the creator’s channel, 4K Video Downloader will ask whether you want to download those as well. It can download up to 24 videos at once.
Once the video has finished downloading, you can find it in the destination folder, or right-click it in 4K Video Downloader and select ‘Play’. Unless you adjust the settings, the video will stay in this list until you choose to remove it – even if you close and restart the software.
5. Try Smart Mode
If you often download videos in the same format, check out Smart Mode. This saves your download preferences and loads them automatically. Click the lightbulb icon at the top right and next time you paste a URL into 4K Video Downloader, it will be downloaded instantly with the last settings you used.
Source: TechRadar
