| name | youtube-downloader |
| description | Download videos from YouTube URLs. Use when user wants to download a YouTube video for processing, editing, or transcription. Supports different quality options, audio-only extraction, and playlist downloads. |
| allowed-tools | Bash(yt-dlp:*) |
| compatibility | Requires yt-dlp and FFmpeg |
| metadata | {"version":"1.0","platforms":"YouTube"} |
YouTube Downloader
This skill enables AI agents to download videos from YouTube URLs for further processing, editing, or transcription.
When to Use
- User wants to download a YouTube video
- User provides a YouTube URL that needs to be processed
- User wants to extract audio from a YouTube video
- User wants to download a YouTube playlist
Setup
Ensure yt-dlp is installed:
pip install yt-dlp
Available Scripts
scripts/download.py
Download a video from YouTube URL.
Usage:
python skills/youtube-downloader/scripts/download.py <url> [options]
Options:
--output, -o: Output path (default: ./downloads/%(title)s.%(ext)s)--format, -f: Video format (default: best[ext=mp4])--audio-only: Extract audio only--audio-format: Audio format when using --audio-only (default: mp3)--quality: Quality preset (best, 1080, 720, 480, 360)--playlist: Download entire playlist--subtitle: Download subtitles--write-description: Write video description--write-info-json: Write video metadata as JSON
Examples:
Download video in best quality:
python skills/youtube-downloader/scripts/download.py "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID"
Download with custom output path:
python skills/youtube-downloader/scripts/download.py "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID" --output "./my_video.mp4"
Extract audio only:
python skills/youtube-downloader/scripts/download.py "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID" --audio-only --audio-format wav
Download 720p video:
python skills/youtube-downloader/scripts/download.py "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID" --quality 720
Download with subtitles:
python skills/youtube-downloader/scripts/download.py "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID" --subtitle --write-info-json
scripts/download_playlist.py
Download entire YouTube playlist.
Usage:
python skills/youtube-downloader/scripts/download_playlist.py <playlist_url> [options]
Options:
--output, -o: Output directory (default: ./downloads/%(playlist_title)s/%(title)s.%(ext)s)--start: Start downloading from this video number--end: End downloading at this video number--format: Video format- All other options from
download.py
Example:
python skills/youtube-downloader/scripts/download_playlist.py "https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAYLIST_ID"
Output
Video Download
Returns a JSON with download information:
{
"success": true,
"video_path": "/path/to/video.mp4",
"title": "Video Title",
"duration": 1234.5,
"uploader": "Channel Name",
"upload_date": "20240101",
"view_count": 1000000,
"thumbnail": "/path/to/thumbnail.jpg"
}
Audio Download
Returns:
{
"success": true,
"audio_path": "/path/to/audio.mp3",
"title": "Video Title",
"duration": 1234.5
}
Quality Presets
| Preset | Resolution | Description |
|---|
best | Best available | Highest quality |
1080 | 1920x1080 | Full HD |
720 | 1280x720 | HD |
480 | 854x480 | SD |
360 | 640x360 | Low quality |
Integration with Other Skills
After downloading, you can use these skills:
video-transcriber: Transcribe the downloaded videoscene-detector: Detect scene changesportrait-resizer: Convert to 9:16 portrait formatautocut-shorts: Full workflow for creating short clips
Common Workflow
- User provides YouTube URL
- Download video using this skill
- Transcribe using
video-transcriber
- Create short clips using
autocut-shorts
Error Handling
- Network errors: Retry up to 3 times
- Invalid URL: Return clear error message
- Video not available: Return video status
- Age-restricted: May require authentication
Tips
- Use
--audio-only when you only need the transcript (saves bandwidth)
- Use
--write-info-json to get video metadata for analysis
- For long videos, consider downloading in segments
- Use
--subtitle if available video has captions
References
