InTheTab Files stay on your device

YouTube downloader (MP4 & MP3)

Save YouTube videos as MP4 or MP3. The download happens on your own computer, through the free InTheTab Helper app for Mac and Windows, so your links and videos never pass through InTheTab.

Looking for InTheTab Helper on this computer…

How to download a YouTube video

  1. Start InTheTab Helper. Install it once (see below) and open it. It runs in the background and this page connects to it by itself.
  2. Paste the link. Copy the video’s address from YouTube and paste it above. Choose Best quality, 1080p, 720p or Audio only (MP3).
  3. Click Download. The helper fetches the video and joins the picture and sound. Your browser then saves the file in your usual Downloads folder.

Why there’s an app: your browser can’t fetch YouTube videos by itself

  1. The page sends the link and format to the helper on your computer, at 127.0.0.1. It never goes out to the internet.
  2. The helper asks YouTube for the video, just as a browser would.
  3. YouTube sends the picture and sound separately, and ffmpeg joins them into one file.
  4. The helper hands the finished file to your browser, which saves it in your Downloads folder.
  • Browsers aren’t allowed to fetch YouTube’s video files. YouTube’s servers refuse requests from other websites, so no web page can download a video on its own.
  • Sites that skip the app download on their own servers. They fetch the video for you and send it on, which means they see every link you save.
  • The helper does it on your computer. The video goes straight from YouTube to you. Nothing passes through InTheTab or anyone else.

How to install InTheTab Helper

The app isn’t signed with an Apple or Microsoft developer certificate yet, so your computer asks you to confirm it the first time. You only do this once.

On a Mac

  1. Drag it to Applications. Download InTheTab-Helper.dmg, open it, and drag InTheTab Helper into Applications.
  2. Open it. macOS says it “could not verify” the app. Click Done, not Move to Bin.
  3. Allow it. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security, scroll down to the message about InTheTab Helper and click Open Anyway. Confirm with your password or Touch ID.
  4. Wait for setup. This page opens in your browser. On first run the helper downloads yt-dlp, ffmpeg and Node.js (about 200 MB), which takes a minute or two.

On Windows

  1. Run it. Download InTheTab-Helper.exe and double-click it.
  2. Allow it. If Windows says “Windows protected your PC”, click More info, then Run anyway.
  3. Wait for setup. This page opens in your browser. On first run the helper downloads yt-dlp, ffmpeg and Node.js (about 140 MB), which takes a minute or two.

The helper runs in the background with no window or Dock icon. To stop it, click Quit helper above. Full instructions and troubleshooting are in the helper’s README.

We never get your links or your videos

The page talks only to the helper on your own computer. The helper listens on 127.0.0.1:47213, so other computers on your network can’t reach it, and it refuses requests from any website other than inthetab.com.

The video goes straight from YouTube to your computer and into your Downloads folder. On first run the helper fetches yt-dlp and ffmpeg from their official sources and checks every file against its published SHA-256 checksum. Privacy and security details

You’ll also see a few small requests to Google Analytics. That’s our visit counter, and it never receives your links. Privacy policy

Only download videos you have the right to save, such as your own uploads or videos with a Creative Commons licence.

Questions

Is it free?

Yes. The page and InTheTab Helper are free, with no sign-up and no watermark on your files.

Does it work on iPhone or Android?

No. This tool doesn’t work on phones or tablets. It needs the free InTheTab Helper app, which runs on Mac and Windows computers only, because a web page can’t fetch YouTube’s video files by itself and phones don’t let apps run a helper like this in the background. Open this page on your computer to use it.

Why does macOS or Windows warn me about the app?

The helper isn’t signed with an Apple or Microsoft developer certificate yet, so both systems ask you to confirm the first time. On a Mac, click Done, then Open Anyway in System Settings → Privacy & Security. On Windows, click More info, then Run anyway.

Does InTheTab see what I download?

No. The page sends your link only to the helper on your own computer (127.0.0.1). The helper fetches the video from YouTube and your browser saves the file. Nothing passes through InTheTab’s servers.

Which formats and qualities can I choose?

MP4 video at the best quality available, 1080p or 720p, or the audio only as an MP3. Videos are saved as H.264 with AAC sound when YouTube offers it, so they play everywhere: QuickTime, Windows Media Player, TVs and phones.

Does it work in Safari?

Safari may block the page from talking to the helper. Use Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Brave for the downloader.

How do I uninstall InTheTab Helper?

Click Quit helper on this page first. On a Mac, move InTheTab Helper from Applications to the Bin, then delete ~/Library/Application Support/InTheTab Helper and ~/Library/Logs/InTheTab Helper.log. On Windows, delete InTheTab-Helper.exe, then delete the folder %LOCALAPPDATA%\InTheTab Helper.