Free Youtube Movie Converter For Mac
If you are a Windows user, choosing a YouTube video downloader is easy, but it is a different story for Mac users. And therefore, we will present 15 best YouTube video downloader for Mac that are compatible with all Mac platforms, such as Catalina, Mojave, High Sierra, Sierra, EI Capitan & Yosemite etc., and there are more than 15 of them in the market.
Part 1: 15 Best YouTube Video Downloader for Mac in 2020
Tipard YouTube Video Converter for Mac is another free solution for downloading of YouTube videos and converting them to various formats. It supports MP4, WebM, 3GP, FLV, F4V formats. YouTube SD, HD, HTML5 videos can be downloaded in batches with this software. Aneesoft YouTube Converter for Mac. Mac Video Converter is a powerful video converter for Mac users which convert between AVI, MPEG, MOV, WMV, DivX, FLV, YouTube video on Mac OS X. Extract audio from video, movies and TV to play on MP3 players.
Here is the list of 15 best YouTube video downloader that work on all Mac platforms (Mac OS X / OS X / macOS) and all Mac devices (MacBook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac & Mac mini). Click a section below to be taken right to one of the apps.
- 1. Gihosoft TubeGet for Mac
- 2. MacX YouTube Downloader
- 3. Airy
- 4. ClipGrab
- 5. MediaHuman YouTube Downloader
- 6. 5KPlayer
- 7. Apowersoft
- 8. Wondershare AllMyTube
- 9. iTube Studio for Mac
- 10. Total Video Downloader
- 11. YTD
- 12. Downie
- 13. SConverter.com
- 14. Softorino YouTube Converter 2
- 15. 4K Video Downloader for Mac
1. Gihosoft TubeGet for Mac
How many Youtube videos do you watch a day? A lot, right? There are hundreds and hundreds of YouTube videos we want to repeatedly watch. But the sad news is that most companies just won’t create software and applications which are compatible with Mac. So if you are looking the best way to download YouTube videos on a MacBook, then you can resort to Gihosoft TubeGet, a YouTube video downloader for Mac & Windows.
Gihosoft TubeGet is one of the safest YouTube video downloader for Apple computer out there and provides robust YouTube downloading features. It allows users to download multiple videos or a whole playlist from YouTube at once even if the clips are lengthy. The tool has no trouble saving HD & UHD quality videos and it doesn’t hog much system resources. The usage is quite simple, all it requires is the video’s URL, and from there on out, you can download the video with only a single click if you toggle on the one-click mode.
To satisfy the needs of all kinds of people, especially those from restricted regions where YouTube are blocked, Gihosoft TubeGet provides the feature of proxy server, and it covers the HTTP, HTTPS & SOCKS5 modes. And it also offers the capability to download 48/60fps videos from YouTube, which is a boon for the game and sports lover. Well, to the language learner, Gihosoft TubeGet develops the feature to grab the closed caption, local subtitle, auto-generated subtitle & auto-translated subtitle are all supported.
2. MacX YouTube Downloader
If you are a Mac user, no matter MacBook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac, Mac mini, no matter Mac OS X, OS X, macOS 10.12, 10.13, 10.14, 10.15, and have a strong desire to download YouTube videos, MacX YouTube downloader for Mac is a nice choice. MacX helps to save videos from Facebook, Dailymotion, Vevo, Vimeo and multiple popular video hosting websites.
One thing that might be a challenge is that this app may take longer download time if your Internet connection is slow. Which is pretty much understandable because you are downloading a video, and it’s big in size. Besides, this MacX free full version also supports to download YouTube videos in whatever resolution that YouTube provides, such as 720P, 1080P, 2K, 4K & 8K etc., and keep them in MP4 or WebM format. Integrated with an easy-to-use interface and advanced technology, MacX YouTube Downloader makes it the ultimate choice for you to download popular videos & musics at a fast speed with minimal quality loss.
3. Airy
Do you have a hard time choosing the best YouTube downloader on your Mac computer? Airy YouTube downloader for Mac can help you. Unlike other video downloader that listed in this article, Airy only works with YouTube, perhaps the developers know that concentration is the key to success. Another part which catches my eyes is the simplicity, as you can see from its main interface. It only has the buttons a software needs without any bells and whistles you don’t want.
Airy offers the feature to download full HD 1080P, 4K & 8K Ultra HD videos from YouTube conveniently. You also get options on video formats, e.g. MP4, WebM, FLV, OGG & 3GP etc. If you want to save soundtracks in MP3 format, and not keep the whole music video, Airy can perfectly finish this work, and it can even download the album art for you. Airy also has the capability to save the entire playlist or channel from YouTube.
Another big advantage about Airy is that it even lets you pause a download, and resume download the YouTube video right from where you suspended it, which is a perfect design if you are not on your computer all the time.
4. ClipGrab
Another Mac version YouTube video downloader added to this list is ClipGrab. ClipGrab is a completely free software which makes a living by donations, free as it’s, its video downloading feature doesn’t lose out to any competitor. This tool provides 2 version, ClipGrab for Mac & ClipGrab Legacy for Mac. ClipGrab for Mac requires at least macOS 10.10, including Catalina, Mojave, High Sierra, Sierra, EI Capitan & Yosemite; while The legacy version supports for older systems and 32-bit or PPC processors, such as Mavericks, Mountain Lion, Lion and Snow Leopard etc.
When you open this software, you will see a Search section, yes, this Mac software allows you to search your videos directly through the address bar by keywords without opening YouTube. But it only shows 4 videos that match the keywords, which makes this wonderful feature become a little useless. When it comes to downloading YouTube videos, ClipGrab provides a super easy way to do that. Just copy and paste the link into the address box, it will show all the possible resolutions. You just click the “Grab this clip!” button, it will save the videos offline on the desktop of your MacBook or iMac.
The disadvantage of this software is that it doesn’t support download videos of 2K, 4K & 8K, which means that even if you put a 8K video link in this tool, it will only download a 1080P video. And it doesn’t support download YouTube subtitle also. It’s a freeware, and it does good as a freeware, we can’t expect more.
5. MediaHuman YouTube Downloader
This Mac software can help you download videos from YouTube and many other similar video sharing websites like VKontakte, SoundCloud & Vevo etc. What we love about this YouTube download app for Mac desktop is that it has so many practical features, such as simultaneous download, downloading HD & UHD videos such as 1080P, 2K, 4K & 8K, and the ability to download entire YouTube playlist & channel at a time. It can also monitor the clipboard, whenever you copy a link from its supported sites, it will detect it and then add it to the download queue. When it finishes downloading, you will get notification even if you are doing other things.
Just like other YouTube downloader for Mac, MediaHuman also gives you options if you want to download the video or extract the audio track alone. This is a boon for people who enjoy music, it also can provide the original audio without quality loss. MediaHuman has many advanced features, you can find it in the preference setting, such as preventing from sleep while downloading, ignoring 30+ fps videos, using format priority list etc.
6. 5KPlayer
How can we download YouTube videos on MacBook in resolution up to 1080P, 2K, 4K or even 8K? Well, desktop packages can help you with that. Although these desktop software are not cross-platform, but they are more powerful in functions than online downloader on Safari. Downloading HD & UDH videos for those tools is just easy as pie. The best part of these software is that they can batch download all the videos on a playlist at one time, and grab the subtitles as well.
For YouTube download software on Mac, 5KPlayer is one of the best. 5KPlayer is free, we repeat, this app is for free. And we can vouch that this app is one of the few apps that you would not regret downloading. This app works flawlessly on Mac system to download videos and movies in MP4, WebM, MKV, 3GP depending on your preferences. It also supports video resolutions from 360P, 720P, 1080P to 4K & 8K, which means it will allow you to download really high-resolution videos. This is perfect for those who want to download clear long videos, such as full feature films and documentaries.
7. Apowersoft
Perhaps what is great about this app is that it lets you convert videos to other file formats suitable for devices like iPad, iPod Touch, iPhone, Samsung Galaxy, PSP, Kindle Fire, and other mobile devices. This Mac video downloader understands that some of us do not just watch videos on our computers, but also on other portable devices. But not just that, it also helps you download high-resolution videos outside of YouTube. You can also use this app to download videos from Twitter, Vimeo, Dailymotion, Facebook.
As a bonus feature, this easy-to-use app will even allow you to download YouTube playlist to your Mac. Not satisfied with the only downloading function, Apowersoft also integrates itself with screen record and video conversion section, now it becomes an one-stop tool. With Apowersoft in hand, one can easily download online videos from YouTube, record game videos, and convert videos taken by camera to more popular formats so that users can easily edit and upload them to YouTube. All aspects considered, Apowersoft is a Mac YouTube video downloader with intuitive settings, speedy operations and clean interface.
8. Wondershare AllMyTube
Wondershare AllMyTube is a pretty popular app, probably one of the most used YouTube video downloader for Mac. Supporting many popular sites, AllMyTube can also convert videos to other formats or to music files, grab whole playlists and handle batch downloads all at once. It’s a shareware so you get limited functions, the free version can only allow users to download 2 videos, and there’s a 30-day money-back guarantee.
The design of AllMyTube is very intuitive, it has 4 parts: downloading, downloaded, converted & WiFi transfer. When you finish downloading your YouTube videos, you can convert them to other formats which are compatible with Android & iPhone smartphones, and send them to your phones directly by scanning the QR code. As a senior specialist for YouTube, AllMyTube supports download age-restricted YouTube videos, just input the login password, you can unblock the restriction. It is also one of the most simple YouTube downloader out there, so if you are looking for an effective yet easy-to-use software, this one is a good choice.
9.iTube Studio for Mac
Playing YouTube videos offline could not be discussed without mentioning YouTube Red. Youtube, now has a paid subscription plan. The greatest feature of YouTube Red is that it allows you to save videos on your own devices so you can watch them offline. You can select the quality of video you want to download, and YouTube Red allows you to watch it without the Internet connection. But not forever, it limits the availability of the video to 30 days. Downloading is not the only advantage, it also includes other features like original shows, high-quality music streaming and ad-less viewing. Currently, this offer is available only in the United States, New Zealand, Australia, Korea and Mexico. Has it reached your country yet? If no, we have another alternative for you – iTube Studio for Mac.
The best thing about this app is that it’s integrated with many useful functions, such as video downloading, recording, converting & transferring, totally an all-in-one tool. Equipped with a private mode, now you can use it to download videos in secret. As a professional video recorder, iTube allows you to record videos from Netflix, Hulu, iTunes & BBC iPlayer etc. So if a video site is prohibited from downloading, you can just record them, nice design. We tried to download a hot video on YouTube, and it worked fast.
10. Total Video Downloader
Some geniuses got tired of watching YouTube video with ads, and wanted to have peace of mind by having their favorite videos sit on their hard drive waiting to be replayed anytime, so they created YouTube downloaders. Luckily, there are multiple applications which you can utilize to save YouTube videos on your MacBook Air or Pro successfully, and Total Video Downloader is one of the best and fastest.
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This app is designed to download any video uploaded on the Internet, and it works exactly well for what it’s designed for. This app offers an interface that looks like a web browser, so users can have easy access to many hot videos on YouTube, Dailymotion, Vimeo and Lynda. However, if this app is in running for one of the top apps to use when downloading videos, it will fall behind when it comes to format conversion. But that’s not a big deal, you can use other apps to convert videos instead. However, when it comes to downloading videos, this app is highly recommended.
11. YTD
When you are searching for the best YouTube video downloader for Mac on Google, YouTube, Quora, Reddit or other related sites, you many often hear the name – youtube-dl. According to its official site, youtube-dl is a command-line program to download videos from YouTube, Vimeo, YouKu, Twitter and many more sites. It requires the Python interpreter (2.6, 2.7, or 3.2+), and it is not platform specific, which means you can use it on any operating system, such as Unix box, Linux, Windows or Mac.
Frankly speaking, youtube-dl is absolutely the best video downloader on the world. However, it’s very nice to a computer savvy, but not that friendly to people with little computer skills. Compared with youtube-dl, desktop package is relatively more suitable for a novice. Although we have talked about many desktop software that work smoothly on MacBook, I’d like to add another one to this list – YTD.
YTD is also a popular app which we hear a lot. Users can easily navigate through this app and get on with their download without the challenge of getting familiar with the interface. This Mac YouTube downloader has only three buttons with the main features! YTD also lets you download videos just like other YouTube downloaders, but with an added bonus feature of allowing you to convert videos to different formats & cut the videos to your preferred length. What we love about this downloader is that it’s one of the most handy apps. It is very simple, and thus very easy to use.
12. Downie
Sure, we are living in an Internet age where almost everything has an Internet connection, and we can stream any video in a matter of seconds. However, there are still occasions that we have to go offline. For people who like to watch YouTube videos to entertain themselves, downloading videos offline on their phones and computers have always been a reliable option. If you have an Apple computer, and want to keep a YouTube video offline, you can rely on Downie.
Downie is video downloader for YouTube & many other video sites that works only on Mac operating system, and it requires macOS 10.11+, including Mojave, High Sierra, Sierra, EI Capitan. Like many other competitors, Downie supports many video hosting sites, including YouTube, Youku, Bilibili, Vimeo & SoundCloud etc., and the number is rapidly growing. It can grab HD videos up to 4K, and convert videos into MP4 or MP3 so you can play them on your iTunes.
Downie is multilingual, and it updates about once a week with new features, bug fixes, and new sites supported. What it attracts me is that the software can group the video file by site and playlist, so that all the downloads can be sorted into folders based on where you downloaded them from or from which playlist they are.
13. SConverter.com
When the topic of downloading YouTube videos on a MacBook comes up, usually there are 2 ways to do this. One is to install a full version program, just like the software I have mentioned above, or you can use an online video downloader. The upside of these sites is that you don’t have to install any app, only a Safari browser can get your work done. These tools all live on the browser, so they are compatible with all Mac platforms, such as Mojave, High Sierra, Sierra, EI Capitan, Yosemite, Mavericks, Mountain Lion, Lion and Snow Leopard etc.
SConverter.com is a good recommendation for Mac that can finish the downloading task at a fast speed for free, and it supports downloading videos with all formats without limitations 24/7. To make downloading YouTube videos as simple as possible, SConverter.com requires you to do nothing more than paste a link and hit ‘Download’ button. Once the video has been identified, choose the video/audio format you want to download, then click “Download” button, the video will soon be saved on your computer.
The downside of these sites is that they can only download videos from YouTube with the resolution up to 720P, while can’t do anything for the 1080P & higher resolution videos, such as 2K, 4K & 8K, let alone 60fps videos. But if you just want to download a single clip & save time, then an online YouTube downloader is ideal. More online YouTube video downloader sites, just refer to this article: 12 Best Online YouTube Downloader–Download HD Video Online.
14. Softorino YouTube Converter 2
YouTube itself has no passage in downloading videos directly, on both desktop and mobile. However, sometimes you have your reasons to do this, especially when you are on trains, subways, buses, or trips to places without reliable 4G or WiFi. That being said, with a right YouTube video downloader in hand, grabbing videos from YouTube is a surprisingly easy thing, and it doesn’t require a high configuration laptop.
Softorino YouTube Converter 2 is a fast video download for Mac which can fully satisfy your needs without any complications. This tool allows you to download video from YouTube, SoundCloud, Vimeo, BandCamp, VK, LiveLeak, and many more. Apart from that, you can also download the content as video, audio, or even create them as ringtone. Integrated with an automatic Wi-Fi feature, now you can transfer downloaded media to other devices such as iPhone, iPod or iTunes at a fast speed without USB cable.
15. 4K Video Downloader for Mac
YouTube is full of important contents that we want to hit the replay button, and so do other video sharing sites. Usually we can watch them on the Internet, and simply do not need to download them offline most of the time. But there are still occasions where online viewing is difficult, such as go traveling, bad Internet speed, need to watch a tutorial second by second or you will have problems in understanding the key point…… For those who want to download & keep videos from YouTube on their Apple computer, 4K Video Downloader for Mac has always been a good and reliable option.
This desktop app for Mac covers many popular sites, such as YouTube, Facebook, Vimeo, Dailymotion and Metacafe, and it doesn’t have any snag in saving videos offline. The developers of this tool pay great attention to simplicity and usability, you can download your favorite videos in the precise format or resolution you need, and has no hassle in downloading multiple videos in batch simultaneously. All in all, 4K Video Downloader for Mac is a good video downloading solution and it does what is promises without any complications.
Part 2: How to Download YouTube Videos on Mac
Whichever YouTube video downloader you have used on Mac, you can download most of the valuable contents from YouTube, because they are worth watching over and over. No software is prefect, they all have their own disadvantages, but there are always some tools that can make you ignore their downsides. As all these top 15 YouTube downloader for Mac work in the same way, here I will describe how to use them on your MacBook using Gihosoft TubeGet as an example.
4 Simple Steps to Download YouTube Videos a MacBook Pro/Air
- Navigate to YouTube, search for the video you’d like to save, then copy the URL of the video in the address line.
- Fire up Gihosoft TubeGet and then click “+Paste URL” button, the link will be pasted immediately, and be identified by the software.
- You’ll then have a new dialogue box, where you can set video download quality and saving directory.
- Finally, hit “Download” button and grab the video offline on your MacBook.
Tips: If a video is in a playlist, when you click the “+ Paste URL” button, it will show you two options, to download the single video or download the whole playlist.
In Conclusion
When you finish reading this article, you will have clear thought about how to download YouTube videos on a Mac computer. The tools in this list include the ability to choose the desired format, download individual video/audio & playlist in bulk. Most of these Mac software work not just for YouTube, but also for other video sharing websites. For Windows YouTube downloader, you can refer to this article: 15 Best YouTube Video Downloader for PC 2010.
Now It’s Your Turn
And now I’d like to hear from you: What’s your #1 YouTube video downloader for MacBook? If you have personally been using any app that is powerful, don’t be shy and type in your suggestions. Or maybe you have a question. As always, you can leave your tips, recommendations, and opinions in the comments section below.