MeTube vs youtube-dl
MeTube
github.comyoutube-dl
ytdl-org.github.ioSide by side
| Figure | MeTube | youtube-dl |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | — |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | — |
| Android | Yes | — |
| Self-hosted | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Video Downloaders | 9.1 (#4) | 8.5 (#27) |
| Batch downloads | Yes | Yes |
| Device platforms | web,Android,iOS,Chrome extension | Windows,macOS,Linux |
| Download controls | Users can select quality, format, and folder per download, and configure server-wide yt-dlp options and presets. | Options include rate limits, retries, fragment handling, and external downloaders such as aria2c, ffmpeg, wget, and curl. |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| License | The repository lists the AGPL-3.0 license. | The project says it is released to the public domain and may be modified, redistributed, or used freely. |
| Output formats | MP4,M4A,MP3,Opus,WAV,FLAC,SRT,TXT,VTT,TTML,SBV,SCC,DFXP,JPG | 3gp,aac,flv,m4a,mp3,mp4,ogg,wav,webm |
| Playlist downloads | Yes | Yes |
| Purpose | MeTube is a self-hosted web UI for yt-dlp that downloads videos from YouTube and hundreds of other sites to your server. | youtube-dl is a command-line program for downloading videos from YouTube and other supported sites. |
| Subtitle downloads | Yes | Yes |
| Support | The README directs users to the troubleshooting FAQ and GitHub Discussions for questions, and Issues for MeTube bugs. | The project homepage directs users to its support page and lists an IRC channel for contact. |
| Supported sources | YouTube; dozens of other sites supported through yt-dlp | YouTube,Vimeo,Dailymotion,Facebook,SoundCloud,and many other listed sites |
Plans
In their own words
MeTube
MeTube is a free, self-hosted web interface for yt-dlp that downloads media from YouTube and hundreds of other sites to a user's server. It handles video, audio, subtitles, and thumbnails from individual videos, playlists, or entire channels, with video quality up to 4K. Each download can use a selected quality, format, and folder; server-wide yt-dlp options and presets are also available. Channel and playlist subscriptions can queue new uploads. Output options include MP4, M4A, MP3, Opus, WAV, FLAC, SRT, TXT, VTT, TTML, SBV, SCC, DFXP, and JPG. Docker and Docker Compose quick starts are provided, with images for amd64 and arm64. Integrations include browser extensions, bookmarklets, an iOS Shortcut, Android share-menu apps, and a Raycast extension. MeTube has no authentication by design and is intended for a trusted network or placement behind an authenticating reverse proxy. Private and internal addresses are blocked by default. The default concurrency setting allows three downloads at once; others wait. The project is AGPL-3.0, and its scope ends after a download is written, leaving tagging and library organization to other tools.
youtube-dl
youtube-dl has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.