How to Convert YouTube Videos to MP4 using Python and youtube-dl
youtube-dl is a popular command-line tool for downloading videos from YouTube and other video platforms. In this article, we will explore how to use youtube-dl in combination with Python to download and convert YouTube videos to MP4 format.
Installation
Before we can begin using youtube-dl in our Python script, we need to install it on our system. You can install youtube-dl using pip:
pip install youtube_dl
Using youtube-dl in Python
Once youtube-dl is installed, we can use it in our Python script to download and convert YouTube videos. Here is an example script that demonstrates how to do this:
import subprocess
def download_video(url):
subprocess.call(['youtube-dl', '--format', 'mp4', url])
url = 'https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID'
download_video(url)
In the above script, we define a function download_video that takes a YouTube video URL as input and uses subprocess to call youtube-dl with the specified format (in this case, mp4). You can replace 'VIDEO_ID' with the actual ID of the YouTube video you want to download.
Converting Videos in Different Languages
We can also use other programming languages such as JavaScript or Ruby to achieve the same result. Here are examples of how you can convert YouTube videos to MP4 using different languages:
JavaScript:
const { exec } = require('child_process');
function downloadVideo(url) {
exec(`youtube-dl --format mp4 ${url}`);
}
const url = 'https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID';
downloadVideo(url);
Ruby:
def download_video(url)
system("youtube-dl --format mp4 #{url}")
end
url = 'https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID'
download_video(url)
In both examples above, we are using similar approaches as the Python script by calling the youtube-dl command with the appropriate parameters.
Conclusion
In this article, we have explored how to use python youtube dl convert to mp4 format for downloading and converting YouTube videos. We have provided examples in Python, JavaScript, and Ruby on how you can achieve this task using different programming languages. Feel free to experiment with these examples and adapt them based on your specific requirements.