MCP YouTube-DLP

A Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that provides tools for downloading YouTube videos and audio using yt-dlp.

Features

• Download YouTube videos in MP4 format

• Download YouTube audio in MP3 format

• Integration with MCP for AI assistant integration

Related MCP server: YouTube Search & Download MCP Server

Prerequisites

• Python 3.13 or higher

• yt-dlp installed on your system

Installation

1. Clone this repository

2. Install dependencies:

pip install -e .

Or using uv:

uv pip install -e .

Usage

Running the Server

Start the MCP server:

python main.py

The server will start in stdio mode with debug enabled.

Environment Variables

• YT_DLP_PATH: Path to the yt-dlp executable (default: /usr/local/bin/yt-dlp)

• DEFAULT_DOWNLOAD_DIR: Directory where videos will be downloaded (default: ~/Downloads/youtube_downloads)

MCP Configuration

Add this configuration to your MCP setup:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "mcp_youtube_dlp": {
      "command": "uvx",
      "args": [
        "mcp[cli]",
        "run",
        "<install path>/mcp_youtube_dlp/main.py"
      ],
      "env": {
        "YT_DLP_PATH": "/usr/local/bin/yt-dlp",
        "DEFAULT_DOWNLOAD_DIR": "~/Downloads/youtube_downloads"
      }
    }
  }
}

Replace <install path> with the actual path where you installed this package.

Available Tools

download_youtube_video

Downloads a YouTube video in MP4 format.

Parameters:

• url: The YouTube video URL

Returns:

• A success or error message

download_youtube_audio

Downloads a YouTube video's audio in MP3 format.

Parameters:

• url: The YouTube video URL

Returns:

• A success or error message

MCP Integration

This server implements the Model Context Protocol, allowing AI assistants to access tools for downloading YouTube content. The server can be connected to any MCP-compatible client.

License

This project is licensed under the GNU General Public License, version 2 (GPL-2.0) - see the GNU website for details.