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yt-dlp: Download Audio Only (and Convert to MP3)

Download just the audio from YouTube with yt-dlp and convert it to MP3. Copy-paste commands for best-quality audio, MP3 conversion, playlists, and embedding metadata.

Dalvo · Updated July 17, 2026

To grab just the audio from a YouTube video with yt-dlp, use the -x (extract audio) flag. Converting to MP3 needs ffmpeg installed — see the install guide if you don't have it.

Download audio and convert to MP3

yt-dlp -x --audio-format mp3 --audio-quality 0 "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID"
  • -x extracts audio and discards the video stream
  • --audio-format mp3 converts to MP3 (needs ffmpeg)
  • --audio-quality 0 is the best VBR quality (0 = best, 9 = worst)

Keep the original audio (no re-encoding)

Converting always loses a little quality. To keep YouTube's original audio (usually Opus/M4A) with no re-encode:

yt-dlp -f bestaudio "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID"

Common variations

yt-dlp -x --audio-format mp3 "https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAYLIST_ID"

MP3 isn't always best

If you just want the highest-quality audio and don't specifically need MP3, skip the conversion and use -f bestaudio — you keep YouTube's original quality.

If the download gets blocked

Audio downloads hit the same bot detection as video. If you see "Sign in to confirm you're not a bot" or a 403, it's not your audio flags — see the bot-detection fix.

Just need the MP3?

Paste a URL, choose MP3, and download it here — ffmpeg and bot checks handled for you.

Paste a link. See it work.

Paste a YouTube link, pick a format, and hit download.

More formats (720p, 1080p, trimming, language) are available through the API.

Audio downloads without the setup.

Request MP3 from our API and get a direct link — no ffmpeg install, no flags, no bot blocks.

Start free

Frequently asked questions

Why is my yt-dlp MP3 conversion failing?+

Almost always because ffmpeg isn't installed or isn't on your PATH — the --audio-format mp3 conversion depends on it. Install ffmpeg and retry.

How do I get the best audio quality?+

Use -f bestaudio to keep YouTube's original stream with no re-encoding. If you specifically need MP3, use --audio-quality 0 for the best VBR conversion.