Frequently Asked Questions about YouTube Downloader

This page is designed to help you solve your problems as quickly as possible. Here we have collected the most common questions and solutions to the most common problems. However, the number one solution is to simply download and install the latest version.

If it doesn't help you to resolve your problem feel free to contact us


Questions:

  1. Error: Forbidden when downloading videos
  2. Sign in to confirm you age. I already did that in my browser.
  3. The app is constantly crashing when pasting a link
  4. Can't login to YouTube: This browser or app is probably not safe. Please use another browser.
  5. This video may be inappropriate for some users
  6. Can't download YouTube videos, 404 error
  7. If I buy a license now, will updates be included?
  8. No suitable streams found during parsing [0 / 0 / 0]
  9. I am going to upgrade my Mac to the one with an M1 CPU, will the app work there?
  10. I've lost my registration code, should I buy a new license?
  11. I downloaded the app on my iPad or Chromebook and it won't start.
  12. Does the app have a playlist/channel parsing limit?
  13. SyntaxError: JSON.parse: Parse error
  14. You release updates quite often, should I buy a new license for each one?
  15. 429: Error transferring
  16. UNPLAYABLE: This video is unavailable
  17. "Error: Forbidden" when trying to download playlist.
  18. Source: Stream connection: Connection closed
  19. Error: Read-only file system
  20. Error: all streams protected in this video
  21. How to turn on iTunes import?
  22. "Failed to query info. Check connection and try again." error
  23. "No such file or directory" error
  24. Is it possible to backup the download history and file list?
  25. How to locate my downloaded files?
  26. Where can I download the previous/old version?

Answers:

  • Error transferring... server replied: Forbidden

    YouTube has started blocking user's IP for heavy downloads. As a workaround, try authorizing in Preferences -> Authorization or get a new IP by rebooting your router, or use VPN.

  • Sign in to confirm your age

    Some YouTube videos have age restrictions and can only be accessed by adult users. Most of the time we avoid this, but sometimes YouTube updates something in the backend and it stops working. The easiest workaround is to authorize in Preferences -> Authorization.

  • Crash after inserting a link

    This issue has been fixed in version 3.9.9.75+, so please update to it using the built-in updater or by downloading it manually from this page Downloads

  • This browser or app may not be secure

    Try running the app while holding the Shift key and select Clear YouTube cookies from the appeared Recovery dialog.

  • This video may be inappropriate / age-restricted videos

    We avoided YouTube age verification for most videos in the latest 3.9.9.57 version, but some videos still require to sign-in. You can authorize in the app Preferences -> Authorization

  • 404: error transferring

    YouTube removed the alternate method of getting video information and we fixed it in the 3.9.9.57 version

  • Lifetime updates purchase option

    Only minor updates are included by default, and major updates will be available at a discount. But if you purchase the "lifetime updates" option, absolutely all updates will be included for free.

  • Can't download YouTube videos, get No suitable streams found error

    Please update to 3.9.9.54+ version, you can download a build for your operating system on that page

  • Will it work on Apple M1 processor?

    Yes, it will. We haven't created a native application yet, but it will work using Rosetta 2, you can read more on Apple website.

  • I've lost my code, do I need to buy it again?

    Absolutely not, just contact us and we'll issue you a new one.

  • I can't run it on iPad or Chromebook

    The app supports only Windows, macOS and Linux.

  • My playlist contains 400 videos, but the app only downloads 200. Is there a limit?

    There is no limit. YouTube shows the number of videos in the playlist, some have been deleted/removed/banned, some are duplicates, and so it's not an accurate number.

  • SyntaxError: JSON.parse: Parse error [parseVideoPageData:xxxx]

    Please update to 3.9.9.49+ version, you can download a build for your operating system on that page

  • Should I buy a new license for each update?

    No, your code is valid for all minor updates.

  • Can't download YouTube videos, get Failed to query info Error 429

    YouTube has started blocking user's IP for heavy downloads. As a workaround, try entering your credentials in Preferences -> Authorization

  • Can't download most of YouTube videos, get UNPLAYABLE error

    If you get this error on almost all YouTube videos, please, update to 3.9.9.42+ version, you can download a build for your operating system on that page

  • Error: Forbidden

    Your playlist is private, so make it public before downloading or setup YouTube Authorization in the application Preferences

  • Error: Connection closed

    Try to enable safe download mode option in the Preferences->Network. It will reduce amount of connections to YouTube and prevent its ban.

  • Error: Read-only file system

    Probably you have set your output folder to the folder located on external drive/usb stick with NTFS file system. macOS includes only read-only support for NTFS-formatted partitions. You can read more about NTFS on Wikipedia

  • Error: all streams protected in this video

    This means that all streams in this video are DRM protected and cannot be downloaded. You can read more about RTMP protocol and protected streams on Wikipedia.

  • How to turn on iTunes/Music.app import?

    Open the app Preferences, it's located under the small gear icon at the bottom-left corner of application window. Next open the Audio or Audio tab, depending on what are you downloading, and choose desired iTunes/Music options.

  • "Failed to query info. Check connection and try again." error

    Check connection to YouTube.com in the application Preferences. Open Preferences and switch to the Network tab. There is a small indicator which displays connection status to YouTube server. It is located at the bottom left corner. If it's red then something is blocking an internet coonection. Check your firewall and antivirus or specify correct proxy settings.

  • "No such file or directory" error

    Check the Output folder setting specified in the Preferences. To do it open up the app Preferences and switch to the Audio or Video tab, depending on what are you downloading. Next, specify a different output folder with a write access.

  • Download history and file list backup

    Yes, you can backup the following folders AppData\Local\MediaHuman\YouTube Downloader\ on Windows and ~/Library/Application Support/MediaHuman/YouTube Downloader/ on Mac

  • How to locate my downloaded files?

    By default all music files are saved to Downloaded by MediaHuman subfolder of your Music folder and videos go to Downloaded by MediaHuman folder in your Movies system folder. You can also open it by pressing + J on Mac or Ctrl + J on Windows/Linux. To quickly open the location of a downloaded file, right-click on it and select Locate saved file

  • The previous/old versions

    We don't recommend using the previous/old versions at all, however you can get some of them on this page


Download YouTubeDownloader.dmg
size: 112.97 Mb
Download YouTubeDownloader-old.dmg
size: 87.85 Mb
Download YouTubeDownloader.exe
size: 64.88 Mb
Install from
MediaHuman repository

Download for other platforms