YouTube streams audio and video separately to ensure high-quality playback. That’s why most only YouTube video downloaders can only download YouTube videos in 720P or lower quality. In this article, we will show you 5 different approaches to downloading YouTube videos in 1080p or higher quality with audio.
Disclaimer
Before we continue, we must discuss a few essential facts.
First, downloading YouTube videos may violate YouTube’s terms of service and the video owners’ intellectual property rights. You should thus only download videos for which you have permission or that are in the public domain.
Second, downloading YouTube videos can require a significant amount of bandwidth and storage space, so you should consider your Internet plan and device storage capacity.
Thirdly, we neither endorse nor guarantee the security or functioning of any of the tools or websites included in this post. Use them at your own risk.
Local YouTube Downloader Script
I have tried many YouTube Downloader extensions, but none of them can download YouTube videos in 1080p or higher quality. Instead, you can use a userscript called Local YouTube Downloader to download 4K videos, which works like a Chrome extension.
To use Local YouTube Downloader, you should install a script manager extension like Tampermonkey. It is available for different browsers, such as Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari, etc. To use it, follow these steps:
- Install one script manager extension like Tampermonkey, Violentmonkey, or Stay for Safari on iOS.
- Add the Local YouTube Downloader script and make sure it is enabled.
- Go to the YouTube video page. Click the link “Download High-resolution mp4 in one click”. You can also click the link “Show/Hide Links” to show a list of available formats and resolutions.
- It will download the video and audio in highest quality available. Then combine them.
I recommend this way as the first one because it is completely free and has no ads. You can also use this method to download private YouTube videos. What’s more, you can use Tampermonkey scripts on Android or iPhone.
Free Online YouTube Video Downloader
If you only need to download a YouTube video once in a while, I recommend using an online video downloader. I have tried many websites that offer this service, but some of them may not support high-quality downloads or may have annoying pop-ups or ads. Therefore, you should always check the reputation and reliability of the websites before using them.
One example of an online video downloader website that works well is loader.to. This website allows you to download videos from YouTube and other websites in various formats and resolutions.
After pasting the YouTube video link, you can select the format. From there, you can choose to download YouTube videos to MP3 or MP4. If you choose to download 4K or 8K YouTube videos, the available format will be WEBM.
You can also paste a link to a YouTube playlist, this online tool allows you to download 20 videos from a YouTube playlist.
YouTube 4K Video Downloader for Windows and Mac
4K Video Downloader is desktop app for Windows and Mac that allows you to download videos from YouTube and other websites in various formats and resolutions. To use it, follow these steps:
- Download and install the software from its official website.
- Go to the YouTube video that you want to download and copy its URL from the address bar.
- Open 4K Video Downloader and click on Paste Link.
- A list of available formats and resolutions will appear. Choose the one that suits your needs and click on Download.
- The video will be saved to your chosen folder.
In General Preferences, you can also log in to YouTube to download YouTube age-restricted videos and private videos.
Download 4K YouTube Video on iPhone
yt-dlp is a command-line tool that allows users to download YouTube videos in various formats and qualities. It is a powerful alternative to the standard YouTube downloader, offering a range of features such as support for downloading entire playlists, downloading only the audio track of a video, and downloading videos in high-quality formats like 4K.
One way to use yt-dlp on iOS devices is by installing the A-Shell app, which is a terminal emulator that enables users to run command-line tools like yt-dlp. Once the A-Shell app is installed, users can navigate to the directory where the yt-dlp command is located and run it with the appropriate options to download YouTube videos directly to their device.
To make it easier to use for those who don’t want to type the command, I have made a custom shortcut yt-dlp. You just need to install A-Shell app on your iPhone and this shortcut. Once installed, you can copy the YouTube URL and run the shortcut. It will automatically download the video in the highest quality and save to Camera Roll.
ByClick Downloader for Windows
ByClick Downloader is a powerful and user-friendly software that allows you to download YouTube videos in various formats, including MP4, MP3, and more. With ByClick Downloader, you can download multiple videos simultaneously for offline viewing.
One of the key features of ByClick Downloader is its ability to download private YouTube videos and age-restricted videos. To download private videos, you need to authenticate with your YouTube account in settings. Then, you can download private YouTube videos like other videos.
ByClick Downloader also offers a range of other features that make it an ideal tool for downloading YouTube videos. For example, the software supports downloading subtitles, adding ID3 tags, cutting audio files for making ringtones.
Conclusion
In this article, we have shown you how to download YouTube videos in 1080p or higher quality using 5 different methods. Each method has its own advantages and disadvantages, so you can choose the one that works best for you.
However, remember to always respect the rights of the video owners and follow the terms of service of YouTube when downloading videos. I hope this article was helpful to you. Happy downloading!