How to Download YouTube Videos - Complete Beginner's Guide

import argparse
import sys
import yt_dlp

def download_4k_video(url, output_dir="downloads", browser=None):
    ydl_opts = {
        'format': 'bestvideo+bestaudio/best',
        'merge_output_format': 'mp4',
        'outtmpl': f'{output_dir}/%(title)s.%(ext)s',
        'noplaylist': True,
        'quiet': False,
        'prefer_ffmpeg': True,
        'keepvideo': False,
        'postprocessors': [{
            'key': 'FFmpegVideoRemuxer',
            'preferedformat': 'mp4',
        }],
        'postprocessor_args': ['-c', 'copy'],
        'progress_hooks': [lambda d: print(d['status']) if 'status' in d else None],
    }

    if browser:
        ydl_opts['cookiesfrombrowser'] = (browser,)
        print(f"[INFO] Using cookies from {browser} browser")
        print(f"[WARNING] Make sure you're logged into a BURNER account!")

    with yt_dlp.YoutubeDL(ydl_opts) as ydl:
        info = ydl.extract_info(url, download=True)
        print(f"\n✓ Downloaded: {info.get('title', 'Unknown')}")
        print(f"✓ Resolution: {info.get('width')}x{info.get('height')}")

if __name__ == "__main__":
    parser = argparse.ArgumentParser(
        description="Download YouTube video in high quality."
    )
    parser.add_argument("url", help="The YouTube video URL")
    parser.add_argument("--output_dir", default="downloads", help="Output directory")
    parser.add_argument(
        "--browser",
        choices=["chrome", "firefox", "safari", "edge", "brave"],
        help="Browser to extract cookies from (REQUIRED)"
    )
    args = parser.parse_args()

    if not args.browser:
        print("[ERROR] Please specify --browser option")
        print("Example: python ytdownload.py 'URL' --browser chrome")
        sys.exit(1)

    download_4k_video(args.url, output_dir=args.output_dir, browser=args.browser)