Beginner's Guide to Installing and Using yt-dlp with Winget on Windows 10/11

Table of Contents

Installing Winget (If Not Already Installed)

First: Check if Winget is Available
  1. Press Win + R to open the Run dialog
  2. Type cmd and press Enter to open Command Prompt
  3. Type winget --version and press Enter
  4. If you see a version number, winget is installed
    • If you get an error, continue with the installation methods below
  1. Open the Microsoft Store app on your Windows computer
  2. In the search bar, type "App Installer"
  3. Look for "App Installer" published by Microsoft Corporation
  4. Click "Get" or "Install" to download and install it
  5. Wait for the installation to complete
  6. Close the Microsoft Store
  7. Open a new Command Prompt and try winget --version again

If the Microsoft Store method doesn't work:

  1. Open your web browser and go to: https://github.com/microsoft/winget-cli/releases
  2. Look for the latest release (it will be at the top right)
  3. Under "Assets," find the file beginning with Microsoft.DesktopAppInstaller and ending in .msixbundle
  4. Click to download this file
  5. Once downloaded, double-click the .msixbundle file
  6. Windows will ask if you want to install it - click "Install"
  7. Wait for the installation to complete
  8. Open a new Command Prompt and try winget --version
Windows Version Requirements: Winget requires Windows 10 version 1809 or later, or Windows 11. To check your Windows version, press Win + R, type winver and press Enter.

Installing yt-dlp Using Winget

Step 1: Install yt-dlp
  1. Press Win + R to open the Run dialog
  2. Type cmd and press Enter to open Command Prompt
  3. Type the following command: winget install yt-dlp
  4. Press Enter, agree to the terms by typing Y and pressing Enter again, and wait for the installation to complete
  5. You might see some text scrolling by - this is normal
  6. When it finishes, you should see a success message.
Step 2: Verify the Installation
  1. Close the current Command Prompt window
  2. Open a new Command Prompt (this refreshes the system PATH)
  3. Type yt-dlp --version and press Enter
  4. You should see the version number displayed.

Basic Usage Examples

Download a Single Video

  1. Press Win + R to open the Run dialog
  2. Type cmd and press Enter to open Command Prompt
  3. Navigate to where you want to save the video: cd %homedrive%%homepath%\Downloads
  4. Download a video: yt-dlp -S res,ext:mp4:m4a --recode mp4 "YOUTUBE_URL"
    (Replace YOUTUBE_URL with the actual video URL, i.e. yt-dlp -S res,ext:mp4:m4a --recode mp4 "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfELJU1mRMg")
If you get a failed download, remove all of the text between yt-dlp and the YouTube URL and try again.

Download Audio Only

yt-dlp -x --audio-format mp3 "YOUTUBE_URL"

Useful Tips for Beginners

Creating a Downloads Folder

  1. Create a dedicated folder in your Downloads folder: mkdir %homedrive%%homepath%\Downloads\yt-dlp-downloads
  2. Navigate there before downloading: cd %homedrive%%homepath%\Downloads\yt-dlp-downloads

Updating yt-dlp

You should occasionally check for updates to yt-dlp, especially if a video fails to download. It won't automatically update.

winget upgrade yt-dlp

Troubleshooting Common Issues

"Command not found" error: Close and reopen Command Prompt, or restart your computer to refresh the system PATH.
Download fails: The video might be private, deleted, or geo-restricted. Try a different video to test.
Slow downloads: This is normal for high-quality videos or slower internet connections.