Convert YouTube Videos to MP3 Files using youtube-dl

How to Download Audio from YouTube Videos with youtube-dl

YouTube is one of the most popular platforms for watching and listening to online videos. However, sometimes you may want to download the audio only from a YouTube video, either for offline listening, personal use, or creative projects. In this article, we will show you how to use a command-line tool called youtube-dl to download audio from YouTube videos and playlists.

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What is youtube-dl and why use it?

youtube-dl is a command-line tool for downloading videos and audio from YouTube and other websites

youtube-dl is a free and open-source program that allows you to download videos and audio from YouTube and hundreds of other websites. You can use it on Windows, Mac, Linux, and other operating systems. You can also use it on Android devices with Termux or other terminal emulators.

youtube-dl is very easy to use. All you need is the URL of the video or playlist you want to download, and youtube-dl will do the rest. You can also customize various aspects of the download process, such as the output format, quality, file name, location, metadata, subtitles, thumbnails, and more.

youtube-dl has many features and options for extracting audio from YouTube videos

One of the main features of youtube-dl is that it can extract audio from YouTube videos and convert it to various formats, such as MP3, M4A, OGG, WAV, FLAC, etc. You can also specify the bitrate, sample rate, channels, codec, and other parameters of the audio file.

youtube-dl can also download audio from entire YouTube playlists, channels, or categories. You can also filter the videos by title, duration, date, views, likes, dislikes, comments, etc. You can also download audio with metadata and cover art embedded in the file.

How to install youtube-dl on your system?

youtube-dl can be installed from various sources depending on your operating system

There are different ways to install youtube-dl on your system depending on your operating system. Here are some of the most common methods:

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• On Windows, you can download the latest executable file from and run it in a command prompt window.

• On Mac, you can install youtube-dl with Homebrew by running brew install youtube-dl in a terminal window.

• On Linux, you can install youtube-dl with your package manager by running sudo apt install youtube-dl or sudo pacman -S youtube-dl or sudo yum install youtube-dl or sudo dnf install youtube-dl in a terminal window.

• On Android, you can install Termux from the Google Play Store and then run pkg install youtube-dl in a Termux window.

You can also install youtube-dl with pip by running pip install youtube-dl or pip3 install youtube-dl in a terminal window. However, this method may not work on some systems or may require additional dependencies.

youtube-dl requires ffmpeg or avconv to convert audio formats

In order to convert audio formats, youtube-dl requires ffmpeg or avconv to be installed on your system. These are programs that can encode and decode various audio and video formats. You can check if you have ffmpeg or avconv installed by running ffmpeg -version or avconv -version in a terminal window.

If you don't have ffmpeg or avconv installed, you can download them from their respective websites or install them with your package manager. For example, on Windows, you can download ffmpeg from and extract it to a folder of your choice. On Mac, you can install ffmpeg with Homebrew by running brew install ffmpeg. On Linux, you can install ffmpeg or avconv with your package manager by running sudo apt install ffmpeg or sudo apt install libav-tools or similar commands.

How to download audio only from YouTube videos with youtube-dl?

Use the -x option to extract audio from YouTube videos

The simplest way to download audio only from YouTube videos with youtube-dl is to use the -x option. This option tells youtube-dl to extract the audio from the video and discard the video. For example, to download the audio from this video: you can run the following command:

youtube-dl -x

This will download the audio in the default format, which is usually M4A. You can find the downloaded file in your current working directory.

Use the --audio-format option to specify the desired audio format

If you want to download the audio in a different format, such as MP3, OGG, WAV, FLAC, etc., you can use the --audio-format option. This option tells youtube-dl to convert the audio to the specified format after extracting it from the video. For example, to download the audio from the same video as before in MP3 format, you can run the following command:

youtube-dl -x --audio-format mp3

This will download and convert the audio to MP3 format. You can find the downloaded file in your current working directory.

Use the -o option to customize the output file name and location

If you want to change the name or location of the downloaded file, you can use the -o option. This option tells youtube-dl to use a custom output template for the file name and location. You can use various variables in the output template, such as %(title)s, %(id)s, %(ext)s, %(uploader)s, %(playlist)s, etc. For example, to download the audio from the same video as before in MP3 format and save it as "Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up.mp3" in your Music folder, you can run the following command:

youtube-dl -x --audio-format mp3 -o "/Music/%(title)s.%(ext)s"

This will download and convert the audio to MP3 format and save it as "Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up.mp3" in your Music folder.

How to download audio from entire YouTube playlists with youtube-dl?

Use the playlist URL as the input for youtube-dl

If you want to download audio from an entire YouTube playlist with youtube-dl, you can simply use the playlist URL as the input for youtube-dl instead of a single video URL. For example, to download audio from this playlist: you can run the following command:

youtube-dl -x

This will download audio from all the videos in the playlist in the default format, which is usually M4A. You can find the downloaded files in your current working directory.

Use the same options as before to extract and convert audio from playlist videos

If you want to extract and convert audio from playlist videos to a different format, such as MP3, OGG, WAV, FLAC, etc., you can use the same options as before with the -x and --audio-format options. For example, to download audio from the same playlist as before in MP3 format, you can run the following command:

youtube-dl -x --audio-format mp3

This will download and convert audio from all the videos in the playlist to MP3 format. You can find the downloaded files in your current working directory.

Conclusion

youtube-dl is a powerful and versatile tool for downloading audio from YouTube videos and playlists

In this article, we have shown you how to use youtube-dl to download audio from YouTube videos and playlists. youtube-dl is a command-line tool that can extract audio from YouTube videos and convert it to various formats, such as MP3, M4A, OGG, WAV, FLAC, etc. You can also customize the output file name and location, as well as the quality and metadata of the audio files.

youtube-dl has many options and features to customize the output and quality of the audio files

youtube-dl has many options and features that allow you to customize the output and quality of the audio files. You can use various variables in the output template, such as %(title)s, %(id)s, %(ext)s, %(uploader)s, %(playlist)s, etc. You can also specify the bitrate, sample rate, channels, codec, and other parameters of the audio file. You can also download audio with metadata and cover art embedded in the file.

FAQs

Is downloading audio from YouTube legal?

Downloading audio from YouTube may not be legal in some countries or regions. It may also violate YouTube's terms of service or the copyright of the content creators. Therefore, you should only download audio from YouTube for personal use and not for commercial or illegal purposes. You should also respect the rights and wishes of the original authors and owners of the videos and audio.

How to update youtube-dl to the latest version?

youtube-dl is constantly updated to fix bugs and add new features and support for new websites. Therefore, it is recommended to update youtube-dl regularly to ensure its proper functioning. You can update youtube-dl by running the following command:

youtube-dl -U

This will check for the latest version of youtube-dl and download it if available. You may need to run this command with administrator privileges or sudo on some systems.

How to download audio from other websites with youtube-dl?

youtube-dl can download audio from hundreds of other websites besides YouTube. You can find the list of supported websites by running the following command:

youtube-dl --list-extractors

This will display the names of all the websites that youtube-dl can handle. You can also visit for more information about each website. To download audio from other websites with youtube-dl, you can use the same options and methods as before with the URL of the video or playlist from that website.

How to download audio in the best quality with youtube-dl?

youtube-dl can download audio in the best quality available on YouTube or other websites. To do this, you can use the -f option with the bestaudio format code. For example, to download audio in the best quality from this video: you can run the following command:

youtube-dl -f bestaudio

This will download audio in the highest bitrate and sample rate possible. However, this may not always be compatible with your desired output format or device. Therefore, you may need to convert the audio file afterwards with ffmpeg or another program.

How to download audio with metadata and cover art with youtube-dl?

youtube-dl can download audio with metadata and cover art embedded in the file. Metadata is information about the audio file, such as title, artist, album, genre, year, etc. Cover art is an image that represents the audio file, such as a thumbnail or a poster. To download audio with metadata and cover art with youtube-dl, you can use the --add-metadata and --embed-thumbnail options. For example, to download audio with metadata and cover art from this video: you can run the following command:

youtube-dl -x --audio-format mp3 --add-metadata --embed-thumbnail

This will download and convert audio to MP3 format and add metadata and cover art to the file. You can find the downloaded file in your current working directory. 44f88ac181