How do I install the Yt Dlp skill?

Run npx skillmds add modbender/yt-dlp in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Yt Dlp safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. Capability flags: executes scripts, makes network calls. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Yt Dlp?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Yt Dlp free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Yt Dlp?

modbender (@modbender) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Yt Dlp by modbender — Agent Skill

Name: Yt Dlp
Rating: 4.5 (4 reviews)
Author: modbender

Yt Dlp

A robust CLI wrapper for yt-dlp to download videos, playlists, and audio from YouTube and thousands of other sites. Supports format selection, quality control, metadata embedding, and cookie authentication.

modbender e0e1966 4 files · 16.7 KB Updated Sep 9, 2026 12 repo stars

File contents

yt-dlp Skill

Overview

This skill provides a convenient interface to yt-dlp, a powerful command-line media downloader. It simplifies the process of downloading videos, extracting audio, and managing playlists with optimal quality settings and metadata handling.

Usage

Role: Media Archivist.
Trigger: "Download this video", "Get MP3 from YouTube", "Archive this channel".
Output: Downloaded media files in the current directory or specified output path.

Dependencies

yt-dlp: The core downloader (must be installed in PATH).
ffmpeg: Required for merging video+audio streams and format conversion.

Commands

`scripts/download.sh`

The primary entry point. It wraps yt-dlp with sensible defaults for high-quality archiving.

Syntax:

./scripts/download.sh <URL> [OPTIONS]

Defaults:

Best video + best audio merged (bv+ba/b)
Embeds metadata, thumbnail, and subtitles (--embed-metadata, --embed-thumbnail, --embed-subs)
Output format: Title [ID].mp4 (%(title)s [%(id)s].%(ext)s)

Examples:

Download a single video (best quality):

scripts/download.sh "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ"

Download a playlist:

scripts/download.sh "https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL..."

Extract Audio (MP3):

scripts/download.sh "URL" -x --audio-format mp3

Download specific resolution (e.g., 1080p):

scripts/download.sh "URL" -f "bv*[height<=1080]+ba/b[height<=1080]"

Use Cookies (for age-restricted/premium content): Note: Requires browser cookies exported to a file or accessed directly.
```
scripts/download.sh "URL" --cookies-from-browser chrome
```

Installation & Security

This skill relies on yt-dlp and ffmpeg being installed on the host system.

Official Sources Only: Install via pip install yt-dlp or your system package manager (apt, brew). Avoid running curl scripts from untrusted sources.
Cookies: Use --cookies-from-browser with caution. For autonomous agents, prefer exporting a cookies.txt file manually to limit access to your active browser session.

Reference Guide

For advanced usage, see the comprehensive Usage Guide.

---name: yt-dlpdescription: A robust CLI wrapper for yt-dlp to download videos, playlists, and audio from YouTube and thousands of other sites. Supports format selection, quality control, metadata embedding, and cookie authentication.--- # yt-dlp Skill ## Overview This skill provides a convenient interface to `yt-dlp`, a powerful command-line media downloader. It simplifies the process of downloading videos, extracting audio, and managing playlists with optimal quality settings and metadata handling. ## Usage - **Role**: Media Archivist. - **Trigger**: "Download this video", "Get MP3 from YouTube", "Archive this channel". - **Output**: Downloaded media files in the current directory or specified output path. ## Dependencies - `yt-dlp`: The core downloader (must be installed in PATH). - `ffmpeg`: Required for merging video+audio streams and format conversion. ## Commands ### `scripts/download.sh` The primary entry point. It wraps `yt-dlp` with sensible defaults for high-quality archiving. **Syntax:** ```bash ./scripts/download.sh <URL> [OPTIONS] ``` **Defaults:** - Best video + best audio merged (`bv+ba/b`) - Embeds metadata, thumbnail, and subtitles (`--embed-metadata`, `--embed-thumbnail`, `--embed-subs`) - Output format: `Title [ID].mp4` (`%(title)s [%(id)s].%(ext)s`) **Examples:** 1. **Download a single video (best quality):** ```bash scripts/download.sh "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ" ``` 2. **Download a playlist:** ```bash scripts/download.sh "https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL..." ``` 3. **Extract Audio (MP3):** ```bash scripts/download.sh "URL" -x --audio-format mp3 ``` 4. **Download specific resolution (e.g., 1080p):** ```bash scripts/download.sh "URL" -f "bv*[height<=1080]+ba/b[height<=1080]" ``` 5. **Use Cookies (for age-restricted/premium content):** *Note: Requires browser cookies exported to a file or accessed directly.* ```bash scripts/download.sh "URL" --cookies-from-browser chrome ``` ## Installation & Security This skill relies on `yt-dlp` and `ffmpeg` being installed on the host system. - **Official Sources Only**: Install via `pip install yt-dlp` or your system package manager (`apt`, `brew`). Avoid running curl scripts from untrusted sources. - **Cookies**: Use `--cookies-from-browser` with caution. For autonomous agents, prefer exporting a `cookies.txt` file manually to limit access to your active browser session. ## Reference Guide For advanced usage, see the comprehensive [Usage Guide](references/guide.md).

Frequently asked questions