2 jobs · 10 apps
Best open source YouTube downloaders you can self-host
To download YouTube videos on your own server, the best self-hosted picks are MeTube for one-off downloads from a web UI and Tube Archivist for archiving channels on a schedule.
Most of these are web front ends for yt-dlp or youtube-dl that run on a home server or NAS: paste a link, or subscribe to a channel, and files land in your own library (often next to Plex or Jellyfin).
Updated · data from GitHub, refreshed daily
Top picks
- Rank 1:
MeTube
alexta69/metube
Web GUI for youtube-dl, with playlist support. Allows downloading videos from dozens of websites.
Active · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Media ManagementPythonDockerStands out for the most GitHub stars. MeTube has 15,121 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 364 commits in the last year.
- Rank 2:
HomeTube
EgalitarianMonkey/hometube
Web UI to download videos and playlists from 1700+ sites into a Plex or Jellyfin library, with quality selection, SponsorBlock sponsor removal, subtitles, clip cutting and resilient playlist sync.
Active · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Media ManagementPythonDockerStands out for the newest codebase (created September 2025). HomeTube has 1,542 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 101 commits in the last year.
- Rank 3:
MyTube
franklioxygen/MyTube
Downloader and player for yt-dlp-supported sites with channel subscriptions, cloud upload support, and local library organization.
Active · last commit Oct 22, 2026
Media ManagementTypeScriptDockerStands out for the most commits in the last 12 months (2,539). MyTube has 1,271 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 2,539 commits in the last year.
At a glance
Open source YouTube downloaders you can self-host compared
Picked by hand for each job from apps whose own description or topics match it, in curated order inside each section, with GitHub data from October 2026; an app appears only once.
| App | Stands out for | License | GitHub stars | Commits (12 mo) | Last commit | Docker image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MeTube | the most GitHub stars | AGPL-3.0 | 15,121 | 364 | Oct 27, 2026 | Yes |
| HomeTube | the newest codebase (created September 2025) | AGPL-3.0 | 1,542 | 101 | Oct 27, 2026 | Yes |
| MyTube | the most commits in the last 12 months (2,539) | MIT | 1,271 | 2,539 | Oct 22, 2026 | Yes |
| youtube-dl-nas | a permissive MIT license | MIT | 201 | 72 | Oct 26, 2026 | Yes |
| YoutubeDL-Server | – | MIT | 319 | 79 | Oct 27, 2026 | Yes |
| Tube Archivist | – | GPL-3.0 | 8,548 | 246 | Oct 25, 2026 | Yes |
| Pinchflat | – | AGPL-3.0 | 5,425 | 3 | Dec 16, 2025 | Yes |
| tubesync | – | AGPL-3.0 | 2,809 | 830 | Oct 27, 2026 | Yes |
| Youtarr | – | ISC | 1,784 | 1,356 | Oct 27, 2026 | Yes |
| ChannelTube | – | GPL-3.0 | 333 | 34 | Oct 27, 2026 | Yes |
1 of 2 · 5 picks
Download videos from a web UI
- 1
MeTube
Web GUI for youtube-dl, with playlist support. Allows downloading videos from dozens of websites.
Media ManagementDockerStands out for the most GitHub stars. MeTube has 15,121 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 364 commits in the last year.
- 2
HomeTube
Web UI to download videos and playlists from 1700+ sites into a Plex or Jellyfin library, with quality selection, SponsorBlock sponsor removal, subtitles, clip cutting and resilient playlist sync.
Media ManagementDockerStands out for the newest codebase (created September 2025). HomeTube has 1,542 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 101 commits in the last year.
- 3
MyTube
Downloader and player for yt-dlp-supported sites with channel subscriptions, cloud upload support, and local library organization.
Media ManagementDockerStands out for the most commits in the last 12 months (2,539). MyTube has 1,271 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 2,539 commits in the last year.
- 4
youtube-dl-nas
Authenticated yt-dlp download queue for video, audio and subtitles, with history, mobile sharing and NAS file management (fork of youtube-dl-server).
Media ManagementDockerStands out for a permissive MIT license. youtube-dl-nas has 201 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 72 commits in the last year.
- 5
YoutubeDL-Server
Web and REST interface to Youtube-DL for downloading videos onto a server.
Media ManagementDockerYoutubeDL-Server has 319 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 79 commits in the last year.
2 of 2 · 5 picks
Subscribe to channels and archive
- 1
Tube Archivist
Organize, search, and enjoy your YouTube collection. Subscribe, download, and track viewed content with metadata indexing and a user-friendly interface.
Media ServersDockerTube Archivist has 8,548 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 246 commits in the last year; it replaces YouTube.
- 2
Pinchflat
Download YouTube content built using yt-dlp.
Media ManagementDockerPinchflat has 5,425 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 3 commits in the last year.
- 3
tubesync
Syncs YouTube channels and playlists to a locally hosted media server.
Media ManagementDockertubesync has 2,809 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 830 commits in the last year.
- 4
Youtarr
Download videos from YouTube channels on a schedule via yt-dlp, with a web UI to browse and selectively download videos. Integrates with Plex Media Server and generates NFO metadata for Jellyfin…
Media ManagementDockerYoutarr has 1,784 GitHub stars, uses the ISC license, ships a Docker image and had 1,356 commits in the last year.
- 5
ChannelTube
Download video or audio from YouTube channels on a schedule via yt-dlp.
Media ManagementDockerChannelTube has 333 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 34 commits in the last year.
Is it legal to download YouTube videos?
It depends on the video and where you live. Respect copyright and the platform's terms of service: download only content you own, content with a license that allows it, or content you have permission to save. This is not legal advice.
Can these tools save audio only (MP3)?
YouTube-DL NAS and ChannelTube mention audio downloads in their own descriptions, and yt-dlp itself can extract audio. Check each front end's settings for audio-only and format options.
Is MeTube free?
Yes. MeTube is open-source software released under the AGPL-3.0 license, so you can self-host it at no cost. You only pay for the server it runs on, and some projects also offer an optional paid cloud plan.
Can I run this stack with Docker?
All 10 apps here publish Docker images, including MeTube, HomeTube and MyTube, so most of the stack can run side by side with Docker Compose on one server. Size the server for the heaviest app and add off-site backups.
How is this list ranked?
Picked by hand for each job from apps whose own description or topics match it, in curated order inside each section, with GitHub data from October 2026; an app appears only once.
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