Video Downloader
Download YouTube and platform videos (or audio) at chosen quality for editing, archives, and offline reference without manual tooling.
Overview
Video Downloader is an agent skill most often used in Grow (also Build integrations, Idea research) that downloads YouTube and other platform videos with quality, format, and playlist batch options.
Install
npx skills add https://github.com/davila7/claude-code-templates --skill video-downloaderWhat is this skill?
- YouTube and multi-platform fetch with resolution selection (480p through 4K)
- MP4, WebM, and audio-only (e.g. MP3) format paths
- Playlist and multi-URL batch download flows
- Preserves title, description, and thumbnail metadata
- Natural-language invocation examples for single video, audio-only, and playlist jobs
- Documented quality ladder includes 480p, 720p, 1080p, and 4K
- Five core capabilities listed in skill overview (download, quality, format, batch, metadata)
Adoption & trust: 853 installs on skills.sh; 27.8k GitHub stars; 2/3 security scanners passed (skills.sh audits).
What problem does it solve?
You have URLs for talks, tutorials, or playlists but need local MP4, WebM, or MP3 files with consistent quality for editing or archive—not browser extensions one tab at a time.
Who is it for?
Indie creators and solo founders curating reference libraries, repurposing long-form video into clips, or archiving their own published talks.
Skip if: Bulk piracy, circumventing platform DRM, or production pipelines that require licensed stock APIs instead of direct platform downloads.
When should I use this skill?
Downloading YouTube or other platform videos for offline viewing, editing, archival, or audio-only extraction.
What do I get? / Deliverables
You receive downloaded media files plus preserved metadata so you can edit, repurpose, or store content offline.
- Local video or audio files
- Preserved title/description/thumbnail metadata
- Batch download set for playlists or URL lists
Recommended Skills
Journey fit
Spans multiple journey phases - primary shelf plus alternate fits below.
Grow → content is the primary shelf because the skill optimizes repurposing, archiving talks, and saving reference media for distribution workflows. Subphase content covers playlists, batch URLs, metadata preservation, and format choice for creators—not core app backend implementation.
Where it fits
Pull a conference playlist in 720p MP4 to cut short clips for launch week.
Archive competitor product walkthrough videos for offline teardown notes.
Prototype a local folder ingest step before wiring a proper transcoding service.
Save onboarding webinar recordings your team owns for customer email attachments.
How it compares
Conversational download workflow skill—not a hosted CDN, media CMS, or rights-managed stock asset service.
Common Questions / FAQ
Who is video-downloader for?
Solo builders and creators who need offline copies of YouTube or platform videos for legal personal use, editing, or archiving.
When should I use video-downloader?
During Grow content when saving playlists for repurposing, during Idea research when archiving competitor demos, or during Build integrations when prototyping a media ingest step.
Is video-downloader safe to install?
Review the Security Audits panel on this page; downloads may invoke shell/network tools and should only target content you have rights to save.
SKILL.md
READMESKILL.md - Video Downloader
# Video Downloader This skill downloads videos from YouTube and other platforms directly to your computer. ## When to Use This Skill - Downloading YouTube videos for offline viewing - Saving educational content for reference - Archiving important videos - Getting video files for editing or repurposing - Downloading your own content from platforms - Saving conference talks or webinars ## What This Skill Does 1. **Downloads Videos**: Fetches videos from YouTube and other platforms 2. **Quality Selection**: Lets you choose resolution (480p, 720p, 1080p, 4K) 3. **Format Options**: Downloads in various formats (MP4, WebM, audio-only) 4. **Batch Downloads**: Can download multiple videos or playlists 5. **Metadata Preservation**: Saves title, description, and thumbnail ## How to Use ### Basic Download ``` Download this YouTube video: https://youtube.com/watch?v=... ``` ``` Download this video in 1080p quality ``` ### Audio Only ``` Download the audio from this YouTube video as MP3 ``` ### Playlist Download ``` Download all videos from this YouTube playlist: [URL] ``` ### Batch Download ``` Download these 5 YouTube videos: 1. [URL] 2. [URL] ... ``` ## Example **User**: "Download this YouTube video: https://youtube.com/watch?v=abc123" **Output**: ``` Downloading from YouTube... Video: "How to Build Products Users Love" Channel: Lenny's Podcast Duration: 45:32 Quality: 1080p Progress: ████████████████████ 100% ✓ Downloaded: how-to-build-products-users-love.mp4 ✓ Saved thumbnail: how-to-build-products-users-love.jpg ✓ Size: 342 MB Saved to: ~/Downloads/ ``` **Inspired by:** Lenny's workflow from his newsletter ## Important Notes ⚠️ **Copyright & Fair Use** - Only download videos you have permission to download - Respect copyright laws and platform terms of service - Use for personal, educational, or fair use purposes - Don't redistribute copyrighted content ## Tips - Specify quality if you need lower file size (720p vs 1080p) - Use audio-only for podcasts or music to save space - Download to a dedicated folder to stay organized - Check file size before downloading on slow connections ## Common Use Cases - **Education**: Save tutorials and courses for offline learning - **Research**: Archive videos for reference - **Content Creation**: Download your own content from platforms - **Backup**: Save important videos before they're removed - **Offline Viewing**: Watch videos without internet access