Go to and click Free Download. ClipGrab is a free Mac app that lets you save YouTube videos to your computer. ClipGrab is a good alternative to QuickTime because you won't have to sit through the video while it records—you'll just enter the URL and the app does the work. A download is pretty much useless if you can't find it on your Mac. But that won't be a problem for you, because we're about to discuss multiple quick and easy ways to locate files on your. Web Video Cast™ is a browser, which allows you to stream videos of movies, TV shows, and other media from the internet to a streaming device or smart tv. Web Video Caster grabs the video URL inside the web page, sends it to the streaming device (i.e. Chromecast or DLNA device), and then plays the video directly from the content provider.
With the rise of 4K and UHD video technology, both storing and sharing your videos is becoming more difficult. Large video clips can be hard to manage, and they’re more difficult to transfer if your Mac runs out of space.
If you often have a problem with storing or sending large videos, you should learn how to compress your video files on your Mac. There are plenty of apps and tools that can help you do that.
How to Compress a Video on Mac
Your Mac comes with built-in tools that you can use to compress a video. For example, iMovie or QuickTime Player. While they might be somewhat limited in functionality, there’s an obvious advantage here since you don’t need to download or pay for them.
If you’re looking for more functionality, try one of the third-party options from our list. Some of them you’ll need to download, like Handbrake or Movavi, while others you can use online via your browser.
iMovie
iMovie is a popular built-in tool on Mac that you can use not just for video compression but for video editing in general. This software makes the process of compressing a video free and easy. To shrink a video using iMovie, follow the steps below.
- Open the iMovie app on Mac.
- Select the Create New icon to create a new project.
- Use the File menu to Import Media or drag and drop your files right into the app.
- To compress the video, go to the File menu and select Share.
- Depending on your goal, select one of the available options. You can choose to compress the video specifically for sending it via email or select the File option to set the desired quality and resolution yourself. In the same window you’ll also see the size of your exported video.
- Once you’re happy with your video settings, select Next… to save the clip. Select the location for your file on your Mac and select Save.
QuickTime Player
QuickTime Player is considered one of the top media players and one of the best apps for Mac overall. It’s also an excellent built-in option for shrinking your videos on Mac. To compress a video using QuickTime Player, follow the steps.
- Open the QuickTimePlayer app on your Mac.
- Navigate to the video that you want to compress and open it.
- From the app’s ribbon menu, select File > Export As. Here you’ll get a variety of options to choose from, like exporting your file in 4K, 1080p, 720p, 480p, or exporting audio only.
- Once you’ve selected the desired quality, type in the name for your video under Export As, select the destination, and select Save.
You can then compare the sizes of both your imported and exported videos via right click and Get Info option to see how much your original video shrank.
HandBrake
HandBrake is an open source video converter that you can use to convert your video clips from pretty much any format to widely supported codecs. On top of that, you can use the app to shrink your video files. All you need to get started is to download the software for free. Then, to compress a video using HandBrake follow the steps below.
- After you download and install the app, launch HandBrake on your Mac.
- In the upper-left corner of the app, select Open Source to open your video.
- In the upper-right corner of the app, select Presets. Then select the desired quality of your output video.
- Make sure to select a new name under Save As and destination under Browse for your output video.
- Select the Start button on top of the window to begin the compression.
When this is complete, you’ll see the Encode Finished message appear in the app. You’ll find your compressed video in the destination you selected earlier.
Movavi
How To Download Web Videos On Mac Os
Movavi is another useful video editor that you can use for free to compress a video on Mac. It’s beginner-friendly and has an intuitive interface. So if you don’t have any video editing experience, this is a great tool to use.
The biggest downside here is that the free version of the app will add watermark to your compressed video. If you want to remove that, you’ll have to pay for the full version of Movavi which costs $39.95.
Follow the steps below to compress a video using Movavi.
- Download, install, and open the app on your Mac.
- Drag your video clip into the app or click the Plus icon to add it.
- Click Video and select the preferred video quality for your output file. Here you’ll see the size of the output video as well.
- You can save your video in the same folder as the original, or select a different location under Save to.
- When you’re happy with all the settings, click Convert to compress your video.
Clipchamp Video Compressor
If you don’t want to waste time downloading and installing new software, you can use one of the online video editors to shrink your video files. Clipchamp offers a video compressor that you can use to compress videos of up to 20GB in size for free. To compress a video using Clipchamp, follow the steps below.
- Open Clipchamp Video Compressor in your web browser.
- Select Compress a video now.
- Sign in with Google, Facebook, or your email.
- Drag and drop the video that you want to shrink or click Convert my video to add it.
- Select the desired Resolution, Format, and Quality.
- Click Start to begin the compression.
- When your video’s ready, you can select to Save or Upload & Share it straight away.
YouCompress
YouCompress is a free online file compressor for anyone looking to compress videos on Mac hassle-free. Here you don’t need to set any configurations, as the app will choose the suitable parameters itself for the best result. So if you’re looking to quickly compress one or two videos without quality loss, here’s how to do it using YouCompress.
- Open YouCompress in your browser.
- Click Select file to add your video.
- Click Upload File & Compress.
- All that’s left is to Download your compressed video file.
On the same screen, you can select to Delete your file from the server after you download it.
Free Up Space On Your Mac By Compressing Your Videos
If you notice that your Mac often runs out of space, it might be because of the large video files that you’re storing on it. Compressing your videos will help you make some space on your Mac for other important files and apps.
Have you ever had to shrink your videos? What software do you use to compress videos on your Mac? Share your experience with video compression in the comments below.
It is likely that you have heard and used VLC media player for playing streaming videos. But it is more likely that you are fooled by its name — VLC media player is by no means a one-trick pony. Instead, it is a feature-packed powerful tool which is not only capable of playing streaming videos but also able to download videos from all the popular websites, like YouTube.
Today, you are going to learn about how to download video with VLC on Mac/Windows and solve a series of problems involved when using it all in one passage.
# VLC's Hidden Feature — Download Video from Internet
In fact, there are two methods to download videos with VLC. Here I will introduce the easier one. Please follow the steps below with VLC downloading a YouTube video as an example.
# Step 1. Fire up VLC
After installing VLC media player to your Windows or Mac, fire it up.
Any Video Downloader For Mac
# Step 2. Copy the Video URL from YouTube
Go for the video on YouTube and copy the link from the browser’s address bar above the page.
# Step 3. Paste the Video URL into VLC and Start Playing
On Windows:
Click on 'Media' > 'Open Network Stream' in VLC main interface.
Then under the Network tab on the pop-up window, you should then enter the YouTube video URL that you have copied from YouTube. Press the 'Play' button to start playing the video.
On Mac:
Click on 'File' > 'Open Network', enter the YouTube video URL and click 'Open'.
# Step 4. Get and Copy Codec Information of the YouTube Video
On Windows:
Hit 'Tools' > 'Codec Information' to copy the full URL besides the 'Location' title. This is the direct URL of the YouTube video.
On Mac:
Select the YouTube video in VLC, hit 'Window' > 'Media Information'. You are looking for the 'Location' input box.
# Step 5. Enter the URL into Address Bar and Download the YouTube Video
Open a web browser page and paste the copied Location URL into the address bar before hitting 'Enter' on your keyboard. More clicks of 'Save' button might be needed after that, which depends on the video link and the setting of your browser.
# Problems Tackled in YouTube Downloading Using VLC
Now, have you learned about how to download YouTube videos using VLC yet? Don't worry if you encounter some problems when in practice. The first thing you need to do is to repeat the above steps more carefully in order to rule out the possibility of not following the right procedures. If that problem does continue to exist, you might need to read the second part of the passage. We have listed some common problems involved in saving video from websites with VLC and given out our solutions.
# Problem 1:
'Sadly this didn't work for me. It downloaded the video but instead of getting a playable video I get a file called 'file' in my download folder.'
Solution A: Put an extension to the file name when it gives you 'Enter file name', like '.mp4' or '.avi'.
Solution B: Use a video converter to convert the file into '.mp4'.
# Problem 2:
'I could download some YouTube videos with VLC while others didn't work.'
Solution: Check if the video is tagged 'Age-restricted video (based on Community Guidelines)'. If that is the case, the video will NOT download using the established method due to YouTube policies. There is no way of getting rid of it. So try VLC alternatives.
# An Alternative to VLC for Downloading Web Video Including YouTube
The built-in download feature of VLC cannot go without drawbacks since it is not an expert in video download. Indeed, some videos are highly protected by their website program and prevented from grabbing by VLC. To solve such a problem, I suggest you to try some professional video downloader to download videos from popular websites for offline viewing.
VideoSolo Inovideo is one of the best video downloaders on the internet for grabbing YouTube videos. Aside from YouTube, it claims to support Facebook, Instagram, Dailymotion, Vimeo, SoundCloud, etc. With a clean and intuitive interface, VideoSolo Inovideo is very easy to use within just several clicks. Now it supports both Windows and Mac system. You can take a try with it from the button below.
Follow the steps below to grab videos from the Internet easily with VideoSolo Inovideo
# Step 1. Install and Open Inovideo
Get the installation package and follow the instruction to install the Inovideo on computer. Then open it.
How To Download Web Videos On Mac Download
# Step 2. Copy and Paste Video Link
How To Download Web Videos On Mac
Go to the page containing your loved video and copy the video link from the address bar above. Then head to the main interface of VideoSolo Inovideo to paste the video link into the search box. Press the “Analyze” button to the right of the box to interpret the video.
# Step 3. Choose Format and Download Video
From the pop-up window, deciding the output format and quality, then click the “Download” button. The program will immediately start to download the video. When the downloading process finished, you can switch to the “Finished” tab to find the downloaded video.
How Do I Download A Video From A Website On A Mac
Hope the above information can settle your problems when downloading videos with VLC on your Mac or Windows. If you are not so satisfied with VLC’s inherent download function, your best bet is to try VideoSolo Inovideo, which is quite easy and efficient to use.
Inovideo