3 Best Ways to Free Download Documentary Films From YouTube on Mobile & Desktop

November 13, 2018

What is a documentary film?
Based on the facts, a documentary film offer a chance to provoke viewers' thought about real life. The core of the documentary film is facts. It is defined by the American film critic Pare Lorentz as "a factual film which is dramatic."
If you are a documentary film lover, you might want to download your favorite documentary sometimes but find no solution. Fortunately, this post aims to offer you professional solutions to download YouTube documentaries to MP4 online.

CONTENTS

Top Rated Documentaries on IMDB

#1. Planet Earth II (2016)

Rating: 9.5/10
Episodes: 6
Running Time: 6h
Narrator: David Attenborough
Reviews:
"It was nothing like a nature documentary, it was way beyond that..."
"At once awe-inspiring and terrifying!..."
"Yet another masterpiece from BBC Nature & David Attenborough..."
Trailer:

#2. Planet Earth (2006)

Rating: 9.4/10
Episodes: 11
Running Time: 8h 53min
Narrator: David Attenborough; Sigourney Weaver (US Version)
Reviews:
"A visually impressive and memorable look at the world that we live in..."
"Worth 11 out of 10..."
"In A Word: Amazing."
Trailer:

#3. Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey (2014 - )

Rating: 9.3/10
Episodes: 14
Running Time: 9h 17min
Host: Neil deGrasse Tyson
Reviews:
"This has an absolutely stunning, heartfelt, emotional introduction, and I only anticipate it getting better from here..."
"For a program that makes us feel so small, Cosmos has a lot of heart..."
"Excited after watching the first episode..."
Trailer:

#4. Blue Planet II (2017 - 2018 )

Rating: 9.3/10
Episodes: 7
Running Time: 7h
Narrator: David Attenborough
Reviews:
"A great reminding that we all live because of the oceans..."
"Blue is the new Blue..."
"Eye wide, mouth open, in awe..."
Trailer:

#5. Cosmos (1980)

Rating: 9.3/10
Episodes: 13
Running Time: 13h
Narrator: Carl Sagan
Reviews:
"Cosmos is, hands-down, the greatest educational series of all-time..."
"A plain, simple WOW just isn't good enough!!!..."
"A milestone in scientific educational fun and amusement: outstanding work of art..."

Some of you might really want to enjoy and download these amazing documentaries for offline playback. But, do you know how to make it? Move to the next part, you will find the answer.

Recommendation: VidPaw Video Online Downloader

VidPaw Downloader is a web-based online downloader, supporting downloading any online video & audio from over 1,000 video hosting sites like YouYube, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and so on. No personal information requires for registration. No software requires to take up the storage of your device. It's totally safe to use. Moreover, it's 100% free. What's more, in order to meet all users' needs, VidPaw provides several output formats and quality for users to choose.

Supported Output Video Formats	WEBM, 3GP, MP4
Supported Quality	144p, 240p, 360p, 720p, 1080p, 2K, 4K, 8K
Supported Output Audio Formats	M4A, WEBM
Supported Quality	64kbps, 96kbps, 128kbps, 256kbps, 320kbps

Let's move on and follow the reliable tutorial to download documentary films online from any sites.

Way 1. Free Download Documentaries in HD on PC

I have to say that downloading YouTube documentaries is very easy. Basically, you just need a few simple steps. Follow the tutorial and you will be able to master the method to download YouTube documentaries at once.

STEP 1. Copy the URL of the documentary you need.
STEP 2. Navigate to VidPaw on any browser like Chrome, Firefox, Safari.
STEP 3. Paste the documentary URL into the blank bar. Then, click "Start".

STEP 4. Choose a suitable output format and quality for your documentary.
STEP 5. Click on the "Download" button to finish download HD documentary on your PC.

Likewise, VidPaw also offers a powerful extension to help users download online videos. The VidPaw extension is compatible with the most popular browsers such as Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Microsoft Edge, etc. The installation of it is very easy as well.

STEP 1. According to your using browser, download and Install Tampermonkey extension for Stable Performance.

Google Chrome Tampermonkey
Mozilla Firefox Tampermonkey
Safari Tampermonkey
Microsoft Edge Tampermonkey

STEP 2. Click HERE to install VidPaw extension.
STEP 3. Refresh the video playing page.

After that, you will see a VidPaw icon near the video. Click on it, then, you can directly head to the downloading page of the video.

Way 2. Fastest Way to Download Documentaries from YouTube on Android

Of course, VidPaw also supports to free download YouTube documentaries on Android. Here I will show you a quick trick to get documentaries from YouTube easily.

STEP 1. Open a documentary on YouTube.
STEP 2. On the URL address, change "www" to "m". > Add "paw" after "youtube". For example, "www.youtube.com" > "m.youtubepaw.com". Then, the downloading page will be opened automatically.
STEP 3. Select an output format (MP4 is recommended) and output quality.
STEP 4. Click on the "Download" button.

Way 3. Online Convert YouTube Documentaries to MP4 on iPhone/iPad

To save YouTube documentary to iPhone, you might need a third-party app to make sure the downloading process is successfully and smoothly. Moreover, remember to copy the documentary URL beforehand.
Okay. Now, begin to download favorite documentary from YouTube to your iPhone.

STEP 1. Open Documents app. > built-in browser.
STEP 2. Go to VidPaw and paste the copied URL of the documentary into the blank bar.
STEP 3. After clicking the "Start" button, VidPaw will automatically detect the URL.
STEP 4. In the downloading page, click on the "Download" button for the documentary in HD with MP4 format.

It's not difficult to download a documentary on mobile and desktop, right? Only with a few simple steps, you can download favorite documentaries to MP4 online for free. If you want to download the audio file of the documentary, VidPaw also has the ability to make it. Let's have a try.

Published on November 13, 2018

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