yt-dlp Video Downloader

Download videos from thousands of websites using yt-dlp.

Routing Rule

1. If URL matches https://www.instagram.com/p/{code}/, route to instagram-gallery-download skill.
2. If URL matches https://www.instagram.com/reel/{code}/ or https://www.instagram.com/reels/<code>/, continue with this yt-dlp skill.
3. For non-Instagram supported sites, continue with this yt-dlp skill.

Quick Start

Basic Download (Best Quality)

yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" "VIDEO_URL"

YouTube Download (Recommended - with cookies)

YouTube often blocks direct downloads with 403 errors. Always use browser cookies for YouTube:

yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" --cookies-from-browser chrome "YOUTUBE_URL"

Supported browsers: chrome, firefox, safari, edge, brave, opera

Download with Custom Output Path

yt-dlp -P "/path/to/save" -o "%(title)s.%(ext)s" "VIDEO_URL"

Common Tasks

1. Download Video (Default - Best Quality)

yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" "VIDEO_URL"

2. Extract Audio Only (MP3)

yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" -x --audio-format mp3 "VIDEO_URL"

3. Download with Subtitles

yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" --write-subs --sub-langs all "VIDEO_URL"

4. Download Specific Quality

720p:

yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" -f "bestvideo[height<=720]+bestaudio/best[height<=720]" "VIDEO_URL"

1080p:

yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" -f "bestvideo[height<=1080]+bestaudio/best[height<=1080]" "VIDEO_URL"

Best available:

yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" -f "bestvideo+bestaudio/best" "VIDEO_URL"

5. List Available Formats (Before Download)

yt-dlp -F "VIDEO_URL"

Then download specific format by ID:

yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" -f FORMAT_ID "VIDEO_URL"

6. Download Playlist

# Download entire playlist
yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" -o "%(playlist)s/%(playlist_index)s - %(title)s.%(ext)s" "PLAYLIST_URL"

# Download specific range (e.g., items 1-5)
yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" -I 1:5 "PLAYLIST_URL"

7. Download with Thumbnail

yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" --write-thumbnail "VIDEO_URL"

Workflow

When user provides a video URL:

1. Identify the platform and route first:

- Instagram post/gallery URL (/p/) → Use instagram-gallery-download skill - Instagram reel/reels URL (/reel/, /reels/) → Continue with yt-dlp - YouTube/YouTube Music → Always use --cookies-from-browser chrome - Other sites → Try without cookies first

1. Ask what they want (if not specified):

- Just download the video? - Extract audio only? - Need subtitles? - Specific quality?

1. Construct the command based on requirements

1. Execute the download using Shell tool with required_permissions: ["all", "network"]

1. Handle errors:

- 403 Forbidden → Retry with --cookies-from-browser - Connection issues → yt-dlp auto-resumes, just retry - Format unavailable → Use -F to list formats, then select

1. Report the result - file location and any errors

Execution Context

Always run this skill in escalation permission mode.

Example Interaction

User: "Download https://www.instagram.com/p/ABC123xyz/";

Response: Route to instagram-gallery-download skill (do not use yt-dlp for /p/ URLs).

User: "Download https://www.instagram.com/reel/DVAl1aaDVTn/?igsh=NjZiM2M3MzIxNA==";

Response:

# Instagram reel - use yt-dlp
yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" --cookies-from-browser chrome "https://www.instagram.com/reel/DVAl1aaDVTn/?igsh=NjZiM2M3MzIxNA=="

User: "Help me download this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxx";

Response:

# YouTube - use cookies to avoid 403 errors
yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" --cookies-from-browser chrome "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxx"

User: "Download the audio of this video https://www.bilibili.com/video/xxx";

Response:

# Bilibili - extracting audio as MP3
yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" -x --audio-format mp3 "https://www.bilibili.com/video/xxx"

User: "Download this Twitter video https://twitter.com/xxx/status/123";

Response:

# Twitter/X - direct download usually works
yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" "https://twitter.com/xxx/status/123"

Supported Sites

yt-dlp supports thousands of sites including:

• Instagram
• YouTube, YouTube Music
• Twitter/X
• TikTok
• Vimeo
• Twitch
• And many more...

Full list: https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp/blob/master/supportedsites.md

Troubleshooting

Common Errors and Solutions

Error: "yt-dlp: command not found"

pip install yt-dlp

Error: "ffmpeg not found" (for audio extraction)

brew install ffmpeg  # macOS

Error: HTTP 403 Forbidden (YouTube)

This is the most common YouTube error. Always use cookies for YouTube:

# Recommended approach for YouTube
yt-dlp -P "~/Downloads/yt-dlp" --cookies-from-browser chrome "YOUTUBE_URL"

Supported browsers: chrome, firefox, safari, edge, brave, opera

Error: Video unavailable or geo-restricted

# Try with cookies from browser
yt-dlp --cookies-from-browser chrome "VIDEO_URL"

# Or use a specific format
yt-dlp -F "VIDEO_URL"  # List formats first
yt-dlp -f FORMAT_ID "VIDEO_URL"

Error: Download keeps failing

# Update yt-dlp to latest version
pip install -U yt-dlp

# Force IPv4 (sometimes helps with connection issues)
yt-dlp -4 "VIDEO_URL"

Full list if CLI options

yt-dlp --help

Best Practices

1. YouTube downloads: Always use --cookies-from-browser chrome
2. Large files: yt-dlp auto-resumes, just retry if interrupted
3. Keep yt-dlp updated: pip install -U yt-dlp
4. Check formats first: Use -F before downloading if unsure