ytdl-cli

ytdl-cli is a cli tool used for downloading videos from YouTube.

Usage

ytdl [command] [options]

Options:
  -l, --link <char>    Video url
  -o, --output <char>  Output folder
  --mp3                Download as audio in mp3 format
  --thumbnail          Download video thumbnail
  --begin <char>       Video beginning in HH:MM:SS format
  --end <char>         Video ending in HH:MM:SS format
  -h, --help           display help for command

Commands:
  auth
  playlist [options]

Modules

ytdl-cli uses two main components which make it's functionality possible:

• ffmpeg - A complete, cross-platform solution to record, convert and stream audio and video.
• node-ytdl-core - A YouTube video downloader in javascript.

Installation

Install ytdl-cli as a global npm dependency.

npm i -g @zeverotti/ytdl-cli

Usage

ytdl-cli can be used by calling ytdl from your terminal:

ytdl -l https://youtu.be/d1VR2MMUVO0

Building from source

Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/Zeverotti/ytdl-cli

Install dependencies:

npm i

Build TypeScript source code:

npm run build

Run:

node build -l youtubelink # check options for more information on usage

Install globally:

npm i -g .

File input

You can pass a file instead of a YouTube link, the program will read it line by line and download the videos located on those lines.

videos.txt

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1VR2MMUVO0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqz-KE-bpKQ

ytdl -l videos.txt, will download the videos contained in videos.txt.

You can pass parameters to each video as you normally would when using the cli.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1VR2MMUVO0 --mp3
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aqz-KE-bpKQ --thumbnail

YouTube API

Some features can't be directly provided by ytdl-core, for example extracting videos from a playlist or channel. Instead of opting for an unofficial solution like scraping, which in time will eventually break and require maintenance, ytdl-cli uses the official Google API for those features (API key required).

Obtaining the API key

Follow step 1 in "Node.js Quickstart". Remember where client_secret.json is located.

Setting up the API key

Run the following command: ytdl auth set -i client_secret.json and follow the instructions.

Deleting credentials

You can delete the credentials stored locally on your device by using ytdl auth wipe.

Supported commands

Retrieve all videos in a playlist

ytdl playlist -i playlist_url, will download all videos in a playlist with default options.

ytdl playlist -i playlist_url -f videos.txt, will save all videos in a playlist inside a text file.

ytdl playlist -i playlist_url -- -o videos --mp3, you can pass options as you normally would when using the CLI.

License

MIT