# 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. Each pick was chosen by hand for its job from apps whose own description or topics match it, and is shown with GitHub data from October 2026. ## Key facts | Fact | Value | |---|---| | Question | What is the best open source YouTube downloader? | | Picks | 11 | | Top pick | MeTube (14,927 stars) | | Data as of | Oct 7, 2026 | | Canonical URL | https://appsgit.com/best/youtube-downloaders | 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). ## Download videos from a web UI - [MeTube](https://appsgit.com/apps/metube) (14,927 stars, AGPL-3.0, Python, Docker): MeTube has 14,927 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 309 commits in the last year; it replaces YouTube. - [yt-dlp Web UI](https://appsgit.com/apps/yt-dlp-web-ui) (2,603 stars, GPL-3.0, Go, Docker): yt-dlp Web UI has 2,603 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 7 commits in the last year. - [HomeTube](https://appsgit.com/apps/hometube) (1,503 stars, AGPL-3.0, Python, Docker): HomeTube has 1,503 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 59 commits in the last year. - [MyTube](https://appsgit.com/apps/mytube) (1,243 stars, MIT, TypeScript, Docker): MyTube has 1,243 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 1,383 commits in the last year. - [youtube-dl-nas](https://appsgit.com/apps/youtube-dl-nas) (200 stars, MIT, Python, Docker): youtube-dl-nas has 200 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 55 commits in the last year. - [YoutubeDL-Server](https://appsgit.com/apps/youtubedl-server) (318 stars, MIT, Python, Docker): YoutubeDL-Server has 318 GitHub stars, uses the MIT license, ships a Docker image and had 72 commits in the last year. ## Subscribe to channels and archive - [Tube Archivist](https://appsgit.com/apps/tube-archivist) (8,499 stars, GPL-3.0, Python, Docker): Tube Archivist has 8,499 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 204 commits in the last year; it replaces YouTube. - [Pinchflat](https://appsgit.com/apps/pinchflat) (5,395 stars, AGPL-3.0, Elixir, Docker): Pinchflat has 5,395 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 3 commits in the last year. - [tubesync](https://appsgit.com/apps/tubesync) (2,800 stars, AGPL-3.0, Python, Docker): tubesync has 2,800 GitHub stars, uses the AGPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 794 commits in the last year. - [Youtarr](https://appsgit.com/apps/youtarr) (1,718 stars, ISC, JavaScript, Docker): Youtarr has 1,718 GitHub stars, uses the ISC license, ships a Docker image and had 879 commits in the last year. - [ChannelTube](https://appsgit.com/apps/channeltube) (328 stars, GPL-3.0, Python, Docker): ChannelTube has 328 GitHub stars, uses the GPL-3.0 license, ships a Docker image and had 32 commits in the last year. ## How this list was made - Apps were picked by hand from the appsgit catalog for each job, then checked against the snapshot: unknown or archived projects and projects with no commit in two years are dropped automatically. - Inside each section the curated order is kept, most broadly useful first; an app appears only once on the page. - Stars, license, Docker and activity facts come from the GitHub API as of October 2026. ## FAQ ### 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 11 apps here publish Docker images, including MeTube, yt-dlp Web UI and HomeTube, 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. ## Related questions - [What is the best free, open source invoice generator?](https://appsgit.com/best/invoice-generators) - [What is the best open source alternative to AnyDesk and TeamViewer?](https://appsgit.com/best/remote-desktop) - [What is the best open source alternative to Microsoft Visio?](https://appsgit.com/best/diagram-and-flowchart-tools) - [What is the best open source alternative to Excel and Access?](https://appsgit.com/best/spreadsheet-and-database-apps) - [What is the best open source OCR software?](https://appsgit.com/best/ocr-tools) - [What is the best open source software?](https://appsgit.com/best/open-source-software) - [What are the most popular self-hosted apps on GitHub?](https://appsgit.com/best/most-starred-self-hosted-apps) - [Which open source self-hosted projects are growing the fastest?](https://appsgit.com/best/fastest-growing-open-source-projects) ## See also - [All media management apps](https://appsgit.com/categories/media-management) - [All media servers apps](https://appsgit.com/categories/media-servers) - [Open-source alternatives to YouTube](https://appsgit.com/alternatives/youtube) --- Canonical page: https://appsgit.com/best/youtube-downloaders Source: appsgit (https://appsgit.com), the app store for github. Data from the GitHub API, refreshed nightly. Machine access: JSON API https://appsgit.com/api/v1/apps (OpenAPI: https://appsgit.com/openapi.json), MCP server https://mcp.appsgit.com/mcp, full index https://appsgit.com/llms-full.txt.