Youtube-DL GUI

Youtube-DL GUI is not your usual downloader. The name also gives out the app's inspiration, that being Youtube-DL — a CMD-based utility designed that permits a greater level of customization regarding the downloaded content. Build an interface around a CMD program and Youtube-DL GUI will be the result.

Because it is also capable to convert snagged clips, some users might be met with the prompt of having to install FFmpeg. The app is very good at guiding the user, so there is no guessing involved with what is required.

Use the Tools menu to quickly install the FFmpeg component. The same menu host a Webdriver installation if you would like to make use of the Detect URLs feature. Choose a WebDriver based on your browser and architecture type. The app supports Chrome, Firefox, Opera, Edge, Safari, and Internet Explorer.

Start by providing a download destination, then deal with the format choices. The quality of the video can be set from 360p to 1080, while the output format can take the form of MPO4, MKV, WAV, FLV, AVI, and more. For whatever reason, moving from the format settings to Options requires the first set of tweaks to be locked, thus rendered inaccessible.

The Options section provides three groups of features. The first group offers a variety of options that let you decide what to do with various elements forming the output item. For example, you can write video descriptions to JSON or XML files, and save the thumbnail image to a file or all thumbnail formats. If the clip has subtitles, those can be as well written to a separate file, be they automatically generated or user-created. The other two groups let you access download and authentication settings, as well as restriction-based parameters.

In short, Youtube-DL GUI is a rather complex app when it comes to YouTube downloaders. The plethora of tweaks and features is slightly weighed down by a somewhat janky UI. Users with high demands for output customization should get the most out of this utility.