4 Top free websites to download YouTube videos to MP4

Recently updated on October 31st, 2023 at 03:52 pm

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You might want to learn how to download YouTube videos to MP4 files so that you can watch the videos at a later time. There are a lot of tools that let you download YouTube videos. In this article, we are looking at the top free websites to download YouTube to MP4 files. 

YouTube takes the first spot when it comes to on-demand video content. According to an estimate, there are currently over 37 million YouTube channels. 

Whether you are into unboxing videos, tech reviews, music videos, short films, makeup tutorials, or sports highlights, YouTube has just the right content for everyone.

download YouTube videos to MP4

How to download Youtube videos to Mp4?

You can download videos in different formats starting with MPEG, AVI, and of course, the MP4 file format.  

There are a lot of converter tools that let you download YouTube videos and convert YouTube videos to MP4 and other file formats. 

YouTube comes with a native feature that lets you share any video on the platform with friends. You can directly share a YouTube video as your Facebook status or Instagram story. 

Before proceeding, know that YouTube videos are in 13 different video formats. These formats are -, MPEG4, MOV, AVI, MP4, MPEG-PS, MP3 file, 3GPP, WMV, FLV, DNxHR, WebM, ProRes, HEVC (h265), and CineForm. 

Before you download online videos from YouTube, know that this is outright against the policies of YouTube. 

You are not doing anything illegal if you download YouTube videos for your watching purposes. 

However, you violate YouTube’s copyright policy by distributing or selling downloaded videos for commercial gain. If found guilty, you can be sued by YouTube. 

Related : How to convert YouTube to MP3?

Convert Youtube to Mp3

How to download Youtube videos to a computer?

As mentioned above, you can download YouTube videos in as many as 13 different formats. You need to know about the practical tools that let you download YouTube videos. 

There are many such tools, but here are the top 4 – Savieo, Addoncrop, 4KDownload, VLC, and Tubemate. All of these applications help with converting YouTube to MP4 file formats.  

Who hasn’t heard about VLC Player? It is a popular media player for both Windows and iOS users (Android devices & iOS devices). 

This multimedia player helps users play online videos, listen to music, and open other multimedia files. 

1. Using VLC to download Youtube to Mp4

download YouTube videos to MP4

Follow the below steps to download YouTube videos using VLC Player. 

  • Open your web browser, and visit YouTube.
  • Now search for the video you want to download.
  • Copy the YouTube link of the video, copy the web link from your web browser’s address bar.
  • After copying the video link, launch the VLC player on your browser.
  • From the top bar menu, select Media.
  • From there, navigate to Open Network Stream. You can also use the shortcut “CTL+N” to open this feature.
  • Now paste the copied video address.
  • Now hit the Play button.
  • Once buffering is over, the VLC player will start playing the video right inside the player window. 
  • Again, from the top menu bar, navigate to Tools >> Media Information.
  • In the next window, you will see the option Location. Copy this location.
  • Now again, launch your web browser, and paste the link you just copied inside the address bar of your browser. 
  • After you paste the link, hit the Enter button.
  • You will be taken to a webpage where the video will be playing but inside a different player than YouTube’s native one.
  • From the bottom corner of the video, hit the three dots icon. 
  • From there, select the “Download” option. 
  • The video will now be downloaded in MP4 files format on your Windows or MAC computers. 

So, now you know VLC player can be used as an effective YouTube to MP4 converter.

Using VLC Player, you can also download YouTube videos on your smartphone. You can download the VLC app from Google play store or Apple iTunes. 

You can also use IDM (Internet Download Manager). This tool also helps to download HD videos from video streams and offers a fast download speed. IDM comes with a free browser extension. 

How to download Youtube videos directly?

There are many free websites that let you download YouTube to MP4 without having to download the software in the first place. 

Let’s go through the top free websites you can use to convert Youtube videos to MP4.

2. YoutubeMp4

download YouTube videos to MP4

This is a SAAS tool. It lets users download YouTube videos without any hassle. Before hitting the Download button, users can also take a small preview of the video. 

It is a simple MP4 converter. It is available for both Android phones & iOS devices.

Follow the below easy steps to download videos using YouTubeMP4.

  • Open your web browser and look for the YouTube video that you want to download. 
  • Once you have the video, copy the URL of the page.
  • Now visit the YouTubeMP4 website, and paste the URL. 
  • Hit the green Convert button at the bottom. 
  • When the conversion is complete from YouTube to MP4, you will see a green Download button appear at the bottom. 
  • Hit the Download button, and the YouTube video will now be downloaded on your desktop. 

3. SaveTube

This YouTube to MP4 converter site is a popular online video downloader tool.

SaveTube is a beginner-friendly online tool that lets users download videos in seconds. Furthermore, it is also available for both Android devices & iOS devices. 

Here is how to download YouTube videos using the SaveTube online tool.

  • Open your browser, search for the YouTube video you want to download, and copy its URL.
  • After the “www.” Prefix, add the word string “SS.” You can also add “Kiss” instead of the word “SS.”
  • After you hit the Enter button, you will be redirected to SaveTube.
  • Once there, select the resolution for your video (240p to Full HD format), and hit the download button.

This YouTube to MP4 converter offers the fastest way to download YouTube videos. 

4. CatchVideo

download YouTube videos to MP4

CatchVideo is another tool that lets users download YouTube videos in MP4 video format. 

  • In the first step, copy the link to the video you want to download.
  • Paste the link inside the link field of the website CatchVideo.
  • From there, set the video quality option.
  • After you select the resolution for your video, go ahead and hit the green Download button. 

Check the downloaded videos folded after the videos have been downloaded successfully. 

How to use a virtual desktop to download Youtube videos?

Recently, Virtual Desktop got a fresh update. After installing the new update, you will see a new download tab beside every video. 

The download tab will appear on both your PC and your Oculus Quest.

When using Virtual Desktop on your PC, you can directly download video from YouTube and other video-sharing platforms. After the download is complete, you can now stream the video on your Oculus.

With the new Virtual Desktop update, you can download regular videos and 180-degrees and 360-degrees videos. You can also encode the videos on the fly to make them play directly on quest. 

If you haven’t yet installed the Virtual Desktop utility for your Quest, now might be the perfect time for it. After installing the latest Virtual Desktop version, you can seamlessly stream PC games at 120 FPS. 

Here is how to download videos from YouTube using Virtual Desktop.

  • Find the YouTube video you want to download and copy its URL.
  • Hit the Play button so that the video starts playing.
  • Go to the browser address bar, and add the word string “VD” right after “www.”. The “VD” word string should come right before the word “YouTube.”
  • After you edit the URL and hit the Enter button, you will be redirected to the download website. 
  • From the next window, specify the high quality of your video and its format. 
  • After you have selected the format, and the quality, hit the Download button.

You can download YouTube videos in MP4 format and audio formats using this method. This YouTube to MP4 converter is also a free YouTube downloader and an online clip converter. 

How to download Youtube videos to a mobile phone?

As internet price has become highly affordable, we no longer feel the need to download popular videos on our devices since we can stream them on the go. 

However, at times, especially when traveling, we might not have stable internet access. In such scenarios, you could still enjoy your favorite YouTube videos only if you had downloaded the videos beforehand. 

Here is how you can download YouTube videos using the YouTube mobile app.

  • Open the YouTube app, and using the search box, look for the video you want to watch. 
  • Type in the name of the video. 
  • Pause the video, and you will see a small share icon at the bottom part of the video.
  • When you click on the Share option, you will see an option to download the video. 
  • From there, copy the YouTube video link.
  • Now from your mobile device, open Chrome or any other internet browser. 
  • Open Google Search, and paste the YouTube video link inside the search bar.
  • This will open the YouTube video file on your web browser.
  • Now click on the address bar, and place your cursor right behind the letter “Y”. 
  • Now remove every word after the word YouTube.
  • Replace “http://m.” with the letter “ss”.
  • After editing the YouTube video URL, click on search. 
  • Now open the new link.
  • From the next window, you will be able to download the YouTube video. 

Before you hit the Download button, make sure you select a video format, and a resolution for your video. This easy method will also work on your PC. 

It is a popular YouTube video downloader alternative. 

How to download many videos from Youtube?

So far, we have seen how to download individual YouTube videos.

But you can also download multiple YouTube videos in bulk.

Certain apps let you download many videos from YouTube at once. One such tool is the 4K Video Downloader

.

download YouTube videos to MP4

This tool has two versions – free & paid. If you do not want to spend money on this app yet enjoy all the features of this tool, you can do that too. But if you opt to use the paid version, you will not be bombarded with on-screen ads. 

Follow the below steps to download YouTube videos in bulk for Windows PC and Mac devices.

  • Download and install the app 4K Video Downloader, or visit its official website.  
  • Now open any YouTube entire playlist, and navigate to Playlists > right-click any playlist and click Copy Link.
  • Now switch back to the 4K Video Downloader app.
  • Paste the link of the YouTube video you want to download inside the app.
  • After you paste YouTube URL, hit the Download Playlist button. 
  • The multiple files will be downloaded and saved in the Downloads folder. 

Before you download videos using the 4K Video MP4 Downloader app, make sure you set a video format and a video resolution for your video. 

Along with YouTube, this app also allows you to download videos from other video sites such as Vimeo, Facebook video, Instagram, Google Drive, etc. 

FAQ: 

1. Is it legal to download Youtube videos?

No, it is not. If you download YouTube videos, it is in direct violation of YouTube’s Terms of Services. Also, downloading copyrighted YouTube videos is considered a criminal offense. 

2. Can you download Youtube videos for free?

YouTube is free. However, it does not permit users to download YouTube videos for commercial use. Even if you do not have a YouTube Premium subscription, you can watch as many videos as you want on the platform. 

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