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YouTube Download and Transcode in Google Colab

Summary: 

Create a new notebook with 2 simple commands in a code block:

!pip install yt-dlp

!yt-dlp {youtube-link}

The downloaded file will appear in the /content folder on your Google Colab VM.

The 'bestvideo+bestaudio' format will be used by default.

Example yt-dlp commands:

#List formats 

!yt-dlp -F {youtube-link}

#download audio-only mp3

!yt-dlp bestaudio -x --audio-format mp3 {youtube-link}

Notes

yt-dlp project page.

Let's say you want to:

  1. Download a YouTube video, 
  2. In a particular format, e.g. H.264 video with AAC audio or audio-only MP3.

Option 1 - Video Downloader sites

  • Full of spam and ads. Don't install their malware, BTW.
  • Don't always work.

Option 2 - yt-dlp in Windows Subsystem for Linux

  • Works extremely well...
  • ... until it doesn't. YouTube blocks you eventually and starts thowing 403 Forbidden errors.
  • Oh, and transcoding is slow if you have a potato PC like I do.

Option 3 - Use Google Colab.

Use a Google VM to download from Google. 


  • Even the most basic Python environment runs with more compute and bandwidth than your home setup. 
  • You'll note the '!' executes shell commands in what is basically Linux.
  • You don't have to install ffmpeg (or pip, or python) because it's already installed.
  • You can discard the VM after use, making it harder to block.

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Location: Tokyo, Japan

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