v0.2.0 — Batch downloads & full channel support

✨ New

Batch processing

Paste multiple YouTube URLs (one per line, or comma-separated). The app fetches metadata for all of them in parallel, shows a compact batch list, and queues them under a single set of options. Submit with ⌘/Ctrl+Enter or the Fetch all button.

Full channel download

Channel URLs (@user, /c/, /channel/, /user/) are now classified as channels and fetched with --flat-playlist — info loads quickly even on channels with thousands of videos. The UI shows a Channel · 1,245 videos badge so you know what you're about to download.

"Limit to first N"

Whenever a playlist or channel is in the queue, a numeric Limit to first N control appears. Defaults to 25 so a stray paste of youtube.com/@MrBeast won't queue 800 downloads. Leave it blank to download everything.

Concurrency limiter

The app now downloads at most 2 videos in parallel by default. You can queue dozens; the rest wait their turn. Canceling a queued job removes it cleanly without spawning yt-dlp.

🐛 Fixes (carried from 0.1.0 hotfixes)

• Fixed black-screen on packaged builds (preload was bundled as ESM but Electron expects CommonJS for preload scripts in this config — now compiled to preload.cjs).
• Relaxed CSP to allow scripts/styles loaded from file:// in packaged Electron apps.
• Removed an unused renderer Node-API polyfill plugin that crashed silently in the sandboxed renderer.

📦 Downloads

Platform	File
macOS · Apple Silicon (M1/M2/M3/M4)	Free YT Downloader-0.2.0-arm64.dmg
macOS · Intel	Free YT Downloader-0.2.0.dmg

⚠️ First-launch on macOS: these builds are not code-signed (no Apple Developer cert). When you first open the app, macOS will block it. Right-click the app in Applications → Open → confirm. After that it launches normally.

Windows .exe and Linux .AppImage / .deb builds are still on the roadmap. You can build them yourself with npm run dist:win or :linux after running npm run fetch-binaries -- --platform <target>.

What's still the same

• No telemetry, no login, no cookie reading
• 4K · 1080p60 · HDR · MP3 / M4A / Opus · subtitles · thumbnails · chapters · SponsorBlock
• MIT-licensed source on GitHub

Source: https://github.com/revolutionarybukhari/free-yt-downloader

v0.1.0 — Initial release

First public build. macOS only for now — Windows and Linux installers coming next.

Features

• 4K · 1080p60 · HDR video (when source supports it)
• Audio-only export — MP3, M4A, Opus
• Subtitle, thumbnail, and chapter embedding
• SponsorBlock — mark sponsor segments as chapters or cut them out
• Playlist and Shorts support
• Download queue with progress, ETA, cancel, reveal-in-folder

Privacy

• No telemetry, no analytics, no update beacons
• No login, no Google account linked
• Browser cookies are not read

Downloads

Platform	File
macOS · Apple Silicon (M1/M2/M3/M4)	Free YT Downloader-0.1.0-arm64.dmg
macOS · Intel	Free YT Downloader-0.1.0.dmg

⚠️ First-launch on macOS: these builds are not code-signed or notarized (this project doesn't have an Apple Developer account). When you first open the app, macOS will block it. Right-click the app in Applications → Open → confirm. After that it launches normally.

Windows .exe and Linux .AppImage / .deb builds are on the roadmap — for now you can build them yourself with `npm run dist:win` or `:linux` after running `npm run fetch-binaries -- --platform `.

Under the hood

Electron + React + TypeScript GUI on top of yt-dlp and ffmpeg. Both binaries are bundled inside the app so no separate install is required.

MIT licensed. Source: https://github.com/revolutionarybukhari/free-yt-downloader