Downloading

yt-dlp Download MP3: Quick Command

The quick yt-dlp command to download MP3 audio from any video, with a one-line config tweak to make MP3 your default and the ffmpeg requirement covered.

Updated 2026-06-13

Want the one-liner? Here it is. For the full walkthrough (quality, tags, playlists) see download as MP3.

The command

yt-dlp -x --audio-format mp3 "<URL>"

Highest quality

yt-dlp -x --audio-format mp3 --audio-quality 0 "<URL>"

Make MP3 your permanent default

Add these lines to your config file and a plain yt-dlp <URL> will produce an MP3:

-x
--audio-format mp3
--audio-quality 0

Requirements

ffmpeg must be installed (it does the MP3 conversion).
On Windows: winget install Gyan.FFmpeg. On macOS: brew install ffmpeg.

Prefer a button over a command? Use the YouTube or SoundCloud downloader and pick the MP3 format.

Frequently asked questions

What's the exact command to download MP3?+

yt-dlp -x --audio-format mp3 "<URL>". Add --audio-quality 0 for the best quality.

It says ffmpeg is not installed — now what?+

Install ffmpeg (winget install Gyan.FFmpeg on Windows, brew install ffmpeg on macOS), reopen your terminal, and run the command again.

How do I make every download an MP3 by default?+

Put -x, --audio-format mp3 and --audio-quality 0 in your config file.