Installation

Overview

yt-dlp can be installed using binaries, pip, or third-party package managers. Choose the method that works best for your platform and use case.

Python versions 3.10+ (CPython) and 3.11+ (PyPy) are supported. For the best experience, we recommend using Python 3.10 or later.

Install with pip (recommended)

The easiest way to install yt-dlp is using pip. This method works on all platforms and keeps the tool updated.

Install or upgrade yt-dlp

python -m pip install -U yt-dlp

On some systems, you may need to use python3 or py instead of python.

Verify installation

Check that yt-dlp is installed correctly:

yt-dlp --version

You should see the version number printed to the console.

Platform-specific binaries

Standalone executables are available for Windows, macOS, and Linux. These don’t require Python to be installed.

Windows
macOS
Linux/BSD

Windows (x64)

Download the standalone executable for Windows:

Download the executable

Download yt-dlp.exe (Windows 8+ x64)Alternative downloads:

yt-dlp_x86.exe - 32-bit version
yt-dlp_arm64.exe - Windows 10+ ARM64

Place in your PATH (optional)

For easier access, place the executable in a directory that’s in your PATH, such as C:\Windows\System32 or add a custom directory to your PATH.

Run from command prompt

Open Command Prompt or PowerShell and run:

yt-dlp --version

The PyInstaller-bundled executables include GPLv3+ licensed code. The combined work is licensed under GPLv3+.

macOS (Universal)

Download the standalone executable for macOS:

Download the executable

Download yt-dlp_macos (macOS 10.15+, Universal binary)

Make executable and move to PATH

chmod +x yt-dlp_macos
sudo mv yt-dlp_macos /usr/local/bin/yt-dlp

Verify installation

yt-dlp --version

Install with Homebrew

If you use Homebrew, you can install yt-dlp with:

brew install yt-dlp

Linux/BSD

Download the platform-independent zipimport binary:

Download the binary

wget https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp/releases/latest/download/yt-dlp

This requires Python 3.10+ to be installed on your system.

Make executable and move to PATH

chmod +x yt-dlp
sudo mv yt-dlp /usr/local/bin/

Verify installation

yt-dlp --version

Standalone Linux binaries

For systems without Python or with older Python versions:

wget https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp/releases/latest/download/yt-dlp_linux
chmod +x yt-dlp_linux
sudo mv yt-dlp_linux /usr/local/bin/yt-dlp

Standalone Linux binaries require glibc 2.17+ or musl 1.2+ depending on the variant.

Package managers

yt-dlp is available in several third-party package managers:

Linux distributions

sudo pacman -S yt-dlp

Distribution packages may be outdated. For the latest version, use pip or binaries.

macOS package managers

brew install yt-dlp

Windows package managers

choco install yt-dlp

Other package managers

nix-env -i yt-dlp

Third-party package managers may not have the latest version. For critical bug fixes or new features, consider using pip or downloading the latest binary.

Updating yt-dlp

yt-dlp has a built-in update mechanism for binaries and supports multiple release channels.

Update release binaries

If you installed using the release binaries:

yt-dlp -U

This updates to the latest version of your current channel (stable by default).

Update pip installations

If you installed with pip, re-run the installation command:

python -m pip install -U yt-dlp

For nightly releases:

python -m pip install -U --pre "yt-dlp[default]"

Release channels

yt-dlp has three release channels:

Stable
Nightly
Master

Stable (default) - Tested releases with many changes validated by nightly users.

# Binaries update to stable by default
yt-dlp -U

Nightly (recommended) - Daily builds with latest patches. Recommended for regular users.

yt-dlp --update-to nightly

Nightly releases are available from yt-dlp/yt-dlp-nightly-builds.

Master - Built after each push to master. Latest fixes but may have regressions.

yt-dlp --update-to master

Master releases are available from yt-dlp/yt-dlp-master-builds.

Switch channels or downgrade

You can switch channels or downgrade to specific versions:

yt-dlp --update-to nightly

When running a yt-dlp version older than 90 days, you’ll see a warning suggesting to update. Use --no-update to suppress this warning.

Dependencies

While most dependencies are optional, some are highly recommended for full functionality.

Strongly recommended

ffmpeg and ffprobe

Required for merging video and audio files, format conversion, and post-processing.Installation:

sudo apt install ffmpeg

yt-dlp also provides custom FFmpeg builds with patches for known issues.

You need the ffmpeg binary, not the Python package of the same name.

yt-dlp-ejs and JavaScript runtime

Required for full YouTube support. Install a JavaScript runtime:

deno (recommended)
node.js
bun
QuickJS

Then install yt-dlp-ejs:

# yt-dlp-ejs is bundled in release binaries
# For pip installations, it's installed with default extras
python -m pip install -U "yt-dlp[default]"

Optional dependencies

For specific features, you may want to install:

certifi - Mozilla’s root certificate bundle
brotli or brotlicffi - Brotli compression support
websockets - WebSocket downloads
requests - HTTPS proxy and persistent connections
curl_cffi - Browser impersonation (included in most binaries)
mutagen - Embed thumbnails in audio files
AtomicParsley - Embed thumbnails in MP4/M4A
pycryptodomex - Decrypt AES-128 HLS streams

Most optional dependencies are included in the [default] extras:

python -m pip install -U "yt-dlp[default]"

Verify dependencies

To see all currently available dependencies:

yt-dlp --verbose

This displays loaded dependencies at the top of the output.

Next steps

Quick start

Download your first video with yt-dlp

Configuration

Set up configuration files for default options

Getting Started

Core Concepts

Guides

Advanced

Reference

Overview

Install with pip (recommended)

Platform-specific binaries

Windows (x64)

macOS (Universal)

Install with Homebrew

Linux/BSD

Standalone Linux binaries

Package managers

Updating yt-dlp

Update release binaries

Update pip installations

Release channels

Switch channels or downgrade

Dependencies

Strongly recommended

Optional dependencies

Verify dependencies

Next steps

Quick start

Configuration

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Getting Started

Core Concepts

Guides

Advanced

Reference

​Overview

​Install with pip (recommended)

​Platform-specific binaries

​Windows (x64)

​macOS (Universal)

​Install with Homebrew

​Linux/BSD

​Standalone Linux binaries

​Package managers

​Updating yt-dlp

​Update release binaries

​Update pip installations

​Release channels

​Switch channels or downgrade

​Dependencies

​Strongly recommended

​Optional dependencies

​Verify dependencies

​Next steps

Quick start

Configuration

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Overview

Install with pip (recommended)

Platform-specific binaries

Windows (x64)

macOS (Universal)

Install with Homebrew

Linux/BSD

Standalone Linux binaries

Package managers

Updating yt-dlp

Update release binaries

Update pip installations

Release channels

Switch channels or downgrade

Dependencies

Strongly recommended

Optional dependencies

Verify dependencies

Next steps