Download YouTube Shorts as MP4 on Phone or PC (Free)

Shorts tend to get made in a hurry. You film on your phone, trim it in the app, post it, and three months later the original is gone from your camera roll. If you want that clip back, maybe to post it as an Instagram Reel or keep it in an archive, you can download YouTube Shorts straight from the link without hunting for the source file. This guide walks through it on a phone and on a computer, plus what to watch for when you reuse a Short somewhere else.

Which Shorts you can reasonably download

Before the how-to, the who. The cases that make sense are:

Shorts on your own channel, where you lost or never kept the original.
Shorts made by a collaborator or client who has said yes. A written message is enough and saves arguments later.
Shorts released under a Creative Commons licence, used the way the licence allows.

Saving a stranger's Short to re-post on your account is not on that list, and it is the fastest way to collect copyright strikes.

What a YouTube Shorts link looks like

Shorts links come in a few shapes, and all of them carry the same 11-character video ID:

youtube.com/shorts/ followed by the ID. This is what you see in a desktop browser.
youtu.be/ followed by the ID. The short form some share menus produce.
m.youtube.com/shorts/ followed by the ID, from a mobile browser.

Links copied from the app often end with ?si= and a string of characters. That is a share tracking tag. You can leave it or delete everything from the question mark onwards; the video ID is what matters. If a Shorts link ever gets rejected, try the same ID in the youtube.com/watch?v= format, since it points to the same video.

Copying the link in the YouTube app

While the Short is playing, tap the Share arrow in the column of buttons on the right, then Copy link. On some phones the share sheet opens first; Copy link is usually the first option.

Copying the link on a computer

Open the Short and copy the address bar. If you are in YouTube Studio looking at your own uploads, open the Short's details page and use the video link shown on the right.

How to download YouTube Shorts step by step

Copy the Short's link using one of the methods above.
Open the Online Toolsz video downloader in any browser.
Paste the link and press Get Video Info.
Check the card: thumbnail, title, your channel name and a short duration. If the platform badge says YouTube, you are on the right video.
Pick Fast download if the quality in brackets looks good, or Download MP4 video (high quality) if it doesn't.
Wait for the browser to finish saving, then find the file in Downloads (computer and Android) or in the Files app (iPhone).

Picking the right button for a Short

Shorts are vertical and usually brief, so the files are small and the choice is mostly about sharpness.

Fast download (quality) takes a ready-made MP4 directly from YouTube's servers. For many recent Shorts that is perfectly watchable. For some, especially older uploads, the only combined file YouTube keeps is low resolution, and the label will say so.
Download MP4 video (high quality) asks our server for the best version available and prepares one MP4 with picture and sound together. Use it when you plan to re-upload, because platforms compress again and you want to start from the cleanest copy.
Download audio (M4A) is handy if the Short is a voiceover or a song you recorded and you only need the sound.

For a deeper look at the formats, read YouTube to MP4 or audio only.

Reusing your Shorts as Reels or TikTok drafts

This is the most common reason creators download their own Shorts, and a few habits make it go smoothly:

Upload as a draft first. Watch it in the other app before posting. Cropping and safe zones differ, so captions near the edges can end up hidden behind buttons.
Re-add the music inside the new app. If your Short used a track from YouTube's audio library, that permission belongs to YouTube. Choosing a licensed sound in the destination app is safer than carrying the old one over.
Remove YouTube-specific calls to action. "Subscribe for part two" reads oddly on another platform.
Keep originals next time. A downloaded copy has already been compressed once. Exporting from your editing app and storing that file gives you the best version to work with.

If you are pulling down many of your own uploads for safekeeping, our guide on backing up your own YouTube videos covers YouTube Studio's own options too. And if TikTok is your next stop, the TikTok download guide explains the reverse trip.

Saving Shorts on iPhone and Android

iPhone: in Safari, confirm the download when asked. The file goes to Files, in the Downloads folder. Open it, tap the Share icon and choose Save Video to put it in Photos, where Instagram and TikTok can see it.

Android: Chrome stores the MP4 in Downloads. Gallery or Photos usually lists it under a Downloads album. If it doesn't appear, open your file manager, find the file and open it once.

Common problems and how to fix them

You pasted a channel's Shorts tab. A link like youtube.com/@name/shorts is a list, not a video. Open the individual Short and copy that link.
The Short is private or members-only. These cannot be downloaded through the tool. If it is yours, make it public briefly or use YouTube Studio.
Age-restricted Shorts fail. They need a signed-in account, which the tool never uses.
The quality label says 360p. Switch to Download MP4 video (high quality).
The download stalls. Refresh the page, paste the link again and retry. A second attempt often works.

Limitations to keep in mind

One Short per link: there is no bulk download for a whole channel. Captions are not included as a separate file. Resolution can't go above what YouTube stores for that Short, and there is no 4K promise. Live streams are not supported. To fetch file details, your link is processed by our server and download service; no YouTube login is ever requested.

Copyright and fair use, briefly

Download your own Shorts, Shorts you have permission to use, or Creative Commons and public-domain material. Respect YouTube's terms and the creator's copyright, don't re-upload someone else's Short as your own, and credit people when you share their work. This is a practical guide, not legal advice.

Working with other platforms as well? The online video downloader guide for all platforms lists what works where.

FAQ

Can I download YouTube Shorts on my phone without an app?

Yes. The downloader runs in Safari, Chrome or any other mobile browser, with no install or sign-in.

Why does my Short download in low quality?

The Fast download button can only use the combined file YouTube already has, which is sometimes low resolution. The high-quality MP4 button asks the server for a better version.

Is the downloaded Short the same as my original file?

No. It is the version YouTube serves after its own compression. Your original export from the camera or editor is always better if you still have it.

Can I download all Shorts from a channel?

No. The tool handles one video per link.

Can I save just the sound from a Short?

Yes. Choose the audio button and you will usually get an M4A file.