I’m trying to find a reliable and free YouTube downloader. Can anyone recommend a safe and easy-to-use tool? I need to download some videos for offline viewing and can’t find a good option. Any suggestions would be really appreciated!
I totally get where you’re coming from, trying to find a reliable and safe YouTube downloader can be a maze! I’ve been down that road a few times myself. 
If you’re looking for something free, I’d say you should check out 4K Video Downloader. It’s pretty straightforward and easy to use.
In case you haven’t heard of it, 4K Video Downloader lets you download videos, playlists, channels, and subtitles from YouTube, Facebook, Vimeo, and other video sites in high quality. What I love about it is that it’s clean and doesn’t come with a bunch of annoying ads or bloatware which some of those YouTube downloaders have. It’s as plug-and-play as it gets—just copy the URL of the video you want to download, paste it into the app, and hit download. Super simple.
Security-wise, I haven’t run into any issues. It’s been around for a while and has a pretty solid reputation. Plus, it’s cross-platform, so it doesn’t matter whether you’re on Windows, Mac, or Linux.
Also, and this is a bit of a bonus, if you’re into watching videos on the go, 4K Video Downloader also lets you save the videos in formats compatible with your phone or tablet. So you can set it and then just transfer the files to your device without much hassle.
There are some other options out there too like ClipGrab and Y2Mate, but in my experience, 4K Video Downloader is the one that’s stuck with me due to its reliability and ease of use. Definitely worth a shot if you haven’t tried it already.
Hope that helps! Let me know if you have any other questions or need further suggestions. Cheers! 
You know, 4K Video Downloader is pretty popular, but I’ve had some good luck with youtube-dl as well. It’s a bit less user-friendly since it’s a command-line tool, but it’s incredibly powerful and flexible. You can download entire playlists, select specific quality options, and even grab subtitles. Plus, it’s open-source, so it’s pretty secure and frequently updated.
Sure, 4K Video Downloader has a more polished interface, which is awesome if you prefer something more straightforward. However, I’ve found youtube-dl to be more customizable if you’re willing to get your hands a bit dirty. You just need to be comfortable with using the command line.
For those that find command lines intimidating, another option is JDownloader 2, which is a more graphical alternative. It accepts a lot of URLs and supports downloads from tons of sites, not just YouTube. It’s feature-rich and can be set up to handle almost any downloading scenario you can think of. That said, you might find it a bit heavy on resources compared to lighter tools, but it’s worth a look if you need wide compatibility and robust features.
Not to disagree with you completely, @hoshikuzu, but I sometimes find dedicated video downloaders can be overkill. If you’re just after a quick download without needing to tweak a bunch of settings, browser extensions like Video DownloadHelper for Firefox can be pretty handy. They’re straightforward and integrate directly into your browser, so you don’t need a separate app. However, you must stay vigilant as some extensions may carry security risks or stop working after browser updates.
While ClipGrab and Y2Mate are indeed popular, I’d stay cautious with online tools like Y2Mate. Though they are convenient, they often come with ads, may pose privacy risks, and their reliability can fluctuate. However, they still serve well for quick downloads if you’re not looking into complicated setups.
Also, this might surprise you, but VLC Media Player can download YouTube videos as well. It’s a bit hidden in the interface, but if you go through the ‘Open Network Stream’ feature, you can paste the YouTube URL and follow a few more steps to save the video offline. It’s more of a workaround but useful if you already have VLC on your system.
In conclusion, I think 4K Video Downloader is great especially for its stability and simplicity, but alternatives like youtube-dl, JDownloader 2, or even VLC can be powerful options depending on your needs and comfort level with more technical setups. Make sure whatever tool you choose, you keep it updated to avoid any security vulnerabilities that might arise. Stay safe out there!