I paid for 4K Video Downloader back in 2021. One-time purchase, lifetime license, done. Then in 2023 they switched to a subscription model and started pushing annual renewals. My “lifetime” license still works for now, but it stopped getting updates. New site support? Bug fixes? Those are for subscribers.
This is the pattern. A tool you paid for once starts charging yearly. And if you don’t pay, the app slowly rots until it can’t download from half the sites you use.
So I went looking for Mac video downloaders that still charge a single price. No annual fees, no “premium tier,” no subscriptions. Here’s what I found, what’s actually good, and what I’m using now.
Why one-time purchase matters for a video downloader
Video downloaders break constantly. Sites change their code, streams get re-encrypted, new DRM rolls out. The app needs regular updates to keep working.
With a subscription app, you’re renting access to those updates. Stop paying and you stop getting them. With a one-time purchase, the developer has to keep updating the app because their revenue comes from new customers, not from milking existing ones. Both models fund development, but only one lets you stop thinking about it after checkout.
There’s also the simpler argument: I don’t want another $5/month line item. I’ve got enough of those. A video downloader isn’t something I use eight hours a day. I use it a few times a week. That doesn’t justify a subscription.
The apps I tested
I spent a couple of weeks trying every Mac video downloader I could find that doesn’t charge monthly. Some of these have shifted their pricing recently, so I’ll note where things get murky.
StreamStow — $29
This is what I use. Full disclosure, it’s also the app behind this site, so take my recommendation with that context. But I genuinely switched to it from 4K Video Downloader and haven’t looked back.
StreamStow is a native macOS app with a built-in tabbed browser. You browse to a page, it detects videos automatically, and you pick which ones to download. No copying URLs, no pasting into a separate window. You just browse and click.
The feature that sold me is the Secure Vault. It’s an AES-256 encrypted folder that locks automatically when your Mac sleeps or you quit the app. When locked, the files don’t appear in Finder at all. You unlock with Touch ID. I keep training courses and personal content in there and never worry about someone seeing them during a screen share.
It supports 1000+ sites through yt-dlp under the hood, which is the same engine most downloaders use. $29 one-time, three free trial downloads before you buy.
Pros: Native Mac interface, built-in browser with auto-detection, encrypted vault with Touch ID, one-time purchase, active updates.
Cons: Mac only (no Windows version), newer app so it doesn’t have the brand recognition of older tools.
Downie — $19.99 (kind of)
Downie has been around for years and it’s a solid app. Native Mac design, good site support, handles playlists and batch downloads well. The UI is clean and it does what it says.
Here’s the catch: Downie’s pricing situation has gotten complicated. It used to be a straightforward purchase from the developer’s site. Now it’s primarily available through Setapp, which is a subscription service ($9.99/month for access to a bundle of Mac apps). You can still find standalone licenses, but the developer has been steering people toward Setapp for a while.
If you already pay for Setapp, Downie is included and it’s a good deal. If you don’t, you’re signing up for a subscription to get a “one-time purchase” app. That defeats the point.
Pros: Mature app, wide site support, nice interface, good playlist handling.
Cons: Increasingly tied to Setapp subscription, no built-in encryption or vault, standalone license harder to find.
4K Video Downloader — was $15, now subscription
I’m including this because it shows up on every “best downloader” list, and people should know what happened.
4K Video Downloader used to be the default recommendation. Cheap one-time license, decent interface, worked on Mac and Windows. Then they restructured. The app is now called 4K Video Downloader+ and runs on a subscription: roughly $15/year for personal use, more for the “pro” tier.
Existing lifetime license holders got grandfathered in, but those licenses don’t receive meaningful updates anymore. I noticed mine failing on several sites by mid-2024. The writing is on the wall.
The app itself still works fine if you’re paying. But this is a list of one-time purchase options, and 4K Video Downloader isn’t one anymore.
Pros: Established app, cross-platform, good format/quality selection.
Cons: Moved to subscription pricing, legacy licenses degrading, no Mac-native feel.
Pulltube — $14.99
Pulltube is a lightweight Mac app that focuses on simplicity. Paste a URL, pick your format, download. It can also extract just the audio from videos, which is handy if you’re grabbing music or podcast clips.
It’s genuinely one-time purchase, available on the Mac App Store. The interface is minimal, almost to a fault. There’s no built-in browser, no batch download queue to speak of, and site support is narrower than tools running yt-dlp. It works well for YouTube and a handful of other major sites, but I ran into dead ends on smaller platforms.
For $15, it’s fine if you only download from YouTube. But if you need broader site support or any kind of file management after downloading, you’ll outgrow it fast.
Pros: Cheap, simple, Mac App Store distribution, audio extraction.
Cons: Limited site support, no browser integration, no encryption or organization features, minimal batch support.
YTD Video Downloader — $9.99
YTD is the budget option. It works on Mac and Windows, handles the major sites, and costs under ten dollars for a one-time license.
I’ll be honest: it feels like a Windows app that got ported to Mac. The interface isn’t terrible, but it doesn’t follow macOS conventions. No native menus, no Touch ID, no system integration. It gets the job done in the most basic sense.
Site support is decent for the big platforms but spotty elsewhere. I had consistent issues with sites that use more modern streaming methods. Updates come, but slowly.
If you’re on a tight budget and just need to grab the occasional YouTube video, YTD works. For anything more, you’ll hit its limits quickly.
Pros: Cheap, cross-platform, simple to use.
Cons: Non-native Mac interface, limited site support, no security features, slow update cycle.
Quick comparison
| App | Price | One-time? | Mac native | Sites | Encrypted vault |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| StreamStow | $29 | Yes | Yes | 1000+ | Yes (AES-256 + Touch ID) |
| Downie | $19.99 | Complicated | Yes | 1000+ | No |
| 4K Video Downloader+ | ~$15/yr | No | No | 1000+ | No |
| Pulltube | $14.99 | Yes | Yes | Limited | No |
| YTD | $9.99 | Yes | No | Moderate | No |
My recommendation
StreamStow at $29. Not just because it’s ours, but because it’s the only app here that combines genuine one-time pricing, a native macOS interface, broad site support, and an encrypted vault with Touch ID.
If you don’t care about encryption and only download from YouTube, Pulltube at $15 is a reasonable budget pick. If you already have Setapp, grab Downie since it’s included. But if you want one app that handles everything — browsing, downloading, organizing, and securing your files — StreamStow is the one I’d buy.
Three free downloads to try it. No credit card for the trial. You’ll know within those three downloads if it fits how you work.
StreamStow is designed for downloading personal content, public domain videos, and creative commons media. Please respect copyright laws and platform terms of service.