Youtarr

Youtarr is a self-hosted web application for automatically downloading videos from YouTube channels and organizing them into a media-server-friendly library. It uses yt-dlp for fetching content and can generate metadata so downloaded videos appear cleanly in common media servers.

Key Features

• Subscribe to YouTube channels to automatically download new videos, shorts, and streams
• Manual URL downloads with pre-validation and metadata preview
• Media-server-ready organization with NFO files, thumbnails/posters, and embedded MP4 metadata
• Channel grouping and multi-library folder support for separating collections (for example kids, music, news)
• Cron-based scheduling for automated download runs
• Download history and duplicate prevention
• Optional integrations such as Plex library refresh, SponsorBlock segment skipping, and Discord webhook notifications
• Responsive web UI plus a REST API with OpenAPI/Swagger support
• Built-in authentication with admin controls

Use Cases

• Build an offline, ad-free YouTube library for home media servers
• Archive channel content to protect against deletions or videos being made private
• Curate separate libraries for different audiences (family/kids vs. general content)

Limitations and Considerations

• Designed to run via Docker; direct Node/npm deployments are not supported
• Downloading content may be subject to platform terms and copyright restrictions

Youtarr fits homelab and media-library workflows where you want automated ingestion, consistent naming/metadata, and optional media server integrations. It can run standalone without requiring Plex, Jellyfin, Emby, or Kodi, while still producing files structured for them.