cobalt: Your Friendly Media Downloader for YouTube, TikTok, and More

Introduction

cobalt is an open-source, user-friendly media downloader that aims to make saving content from the web as simple and frustration-free as possible. Described as "the best way to save what you love," cobalt distinguishes itself by being friendly, efficient, and completely free of ads, trackers, paywalls, or other unnecessary complexities. Its core philosophy is simple: "paste the link, get the file, move on."

Built with Svelte, cobalt supports a wide array of popular platforms, including YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Twitter, Reddit, SoundCloud, Vimeo, and VK, allowing users to download videos, audio, and other media with ease.

Installation

While cobalt offers a public instance for immediate use, advanced users and developers might be interested in running their own instance. The project is structured as a monorepo, containing source code for its API, frontend, and related packages.

To set up and run your own cobalt instance, you can refer to the detailed documentation available in the repository:

• How to run a cobalt instance

This guide provides comprehensive steps for deploying and managing your personal cobalt server.

Examples

Using cobalt is incredibly straightforward. The primary method involves visiting the official web application, pasting the URL of the content you wish to download, and letting cobalt handle the rest. Whether it's a YouTube video, a TikTok clip, or an Instagram post, the process remains consistently simple:

1. Copy the link to the media you want to save.
2. Go to the cobalt.tools website.
3. Paste the link into the provided input field.
4. Click the download button to retrieve your file.

This direct approach ensures a quick and efficient user experience without any unnecessary steps.

Why Use cobalt?

There are several compelling reasons to choose cobalt for your media downloading needs:

• Simplicity and Efficiency: Designed for ease of use, cobalt offers a "paste link, get file" workflow that is quick and intuitive.
• Ad-Free and Privacy-Focused: It stands out by having no ads, trackers, or paywalls, prioritizing a clean and private user experience.
• Wide Platform Support: With support for numerous social media and video platforms, it's a versatile tool for various content types.
• Open Source: Being an open-source project licensed under AGPL-3.0, cobalt promotes transparency and community contributions.
• Ethical Stance: cobalt is explicitly designed as a tool for downloading publicly accessible content and takes zero liability for how users utilize the downloaded media. It is not intended for piracy and functions similarly to how content can be accessed via browser developer tools.

Links

Explore cobalt further through its official channels:

• GitHub Repository: https://github.com/imputnet/cobalt
• Official Website: https://cobalt.tools
• Community Discord: https://discord.gg/pQPt8HBUPu
• Twitter: https://x.com/justusecobalt
• Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/cobalt.tools