Introduction #
YouTube Scraper allows you to download videos directly from YouTube. You can download all imported videos or choose specific videos individually.
The application uses your configured video quality, codec preferences and output format to determine the download settings.
Starting a Video Download #
Switch to the Grab Video and Audio tab and click Download Video.
YouTube Scraper supports two download modes:
- Download All Videos: If no videos are selected in the list, all imported videos are included in the download queue.
- Download Selected Videos: If one or more videos are selected, only those videos are included in the download queue.
Downloads start immediately after clicking the button. No additional confirmation is required.
Automatic Video Information Retrieval #
You don’t need to retrieve video information manually before downloading videos.
If video information has not yet been retrieved for a video, YouTube Scraper automatically retrieves it before starting the download.
If the information cannot be retrieved, the video is skipped and the application continues with the next video.
Simultaneous Downloads #
YouTube Scraper can download multiple videos simultaneously.
The maximum number of concurrent processes is controlled by the Max. Concurrent Processes setting in File → Configuration.
You can configure between 1 and 8 concurrent processes:
- 1 process: Downloads one video at a time.
- Multiple processes: Downloads several videos simultaneously, up to the configured limit of 8.
This allows you to download several videos at the same time and reduce the time required to process larger video collections.
Download Status #
The Status column in the main video grid displays the current processing state of each video.
The following statuses are particularly relevant:
- Downloading video file – The video is currently being downloaded.
- Video processed – The video download and processing have been completed.
- Error getting video info – YouTube Scraper could not retrieve the required video information. The video is skipped, and processing continues with the next video.
- Error downloading – The video download failed. The application records the error status and continues processing the remaining videos.
This allows you to monitor individual downloads and identify videos that could not be processed successfully.
Downloaded Videos #
As soon as a video has been downloaded successfully, it is automatically added to the Video tab.
You don’t have to wait for all downloads to finish before accessing completed videos. You can already find and play completed downloads while other videos are still being processed.
Video Quality and Format #
YouTube Scraper provides configuration options to control the quality and format of downloaded videos.
Open File → Configuration to review the available settings:
- Resolution Priority – Defines the preferred video resolutions, such as 2160p, 1440p, 1080p, 720p and 480p.
- Codec Preference – Defines the preferred video codec.
- Container Format – Specifies the desired output container format, such as MP4.
These preferences are used when YouTube Scraper selects an available download format.
Download Location #
Downloaded videos are stored in the configured video output folder.
You can review or change this location in File → Configuration.
Practical Walkthrough: Downloading Videos #
Follow these steps to download videos using YouTube Scraper.
Step 1 – Load YouTube URLs #
Open the Grab Video and Audio tab and import your YouTube URLs using one of the available methods:
- Load from file
- Paste from clipboard
- Load from channel
For this example, we assume that you have already imported several video URLs.
Step 2 – Choose Which Videos to Download #
YouTube Scraper determines which videos to download based on the current selection in the video list.
Download All Videos
If no video entries are selected, clicking Download Video starts downloading all videos in the list.
Download Selected Videos
If one or more video entries are selected, only those selected videos are downloaded. All other entries are ignored.
You can select multiple videos using the standard Windows selection methods:
- Click – Selects an individual video entry.
- Ctrl + Click – Adds or removes individual entries from the current selection.
- Shift + Click – Selects a continuous range of entries.
Practical Selection Example
Imagine your video list contains ten videos, but you only want to download videos 2, 5 and 8.
- Click video 2 to select it.
- Hold down Ctrl and click video 5.
- Continue holding Ctrl and click video 8.
- Release Ctrl. You should now have three videos selected.
- Click Download Video.
YouTube Scraper will download only these three videos.
Important: If you want to download all videos, make sure that no entries are selected before clicking Download Video.
Step 3 – Start the Download #
Click Download Video.
YouTube Scraper immediately starts processing the videos.
If video information has not yet been retrieved, the application automatically retrieves it before downloading.
Step 4 – Monitor the Download #
Watch the Status column in the video grid to follow the processing of each video.
You may see the following statuses:
- Downloading video file – A video is currently being downloaded.
- Video processed – The download has completed successfully.
- Error getting video info – The required video information could not be retrieved.
- Error downloading – The video could not be downloaded.
If an error occurs, YouTube Scraper continues processing the remaining videos.
Depending on the configured number of concurrent processes, several videos may be downloading at the same time.
Step 5 – Access Your Downloaded Videos #
Successfully downloaded videos are automatically added to the Video tab as soon as they are ready.
Switch to the Video tab to view, play and manage your downloaded files.
You can access completed videos even while other downloads are still running.
What’s Next? #
Continue with the next chapter to learn how to manage audio files and use the audio-related functions of YouTube Scraper.
