MediaHuman YouTube Downloader is a long-running freeware app with a paid Premium tier at $29.99 (one-time). It runs on Windows 7–11, macOS 10.12–26 (M1–M5), and Ubuntu 20.04+, and supports playlist + channel monitoring with iTunes/Music.app integration. Arroxy is a free, MIT-licensed open-source desktop GUI built on yt-dlp. Both target the same job. This post compares them feature-by-feature.
TL;DR
- Pick Arroxy if you want an MIT-licensed open-source app, built-in SponsorBlock, Winget/Scoop/Homebrew Cask install, and the yt-dlp engine’s 2000+ sites.
- Pick MediaHuman if you want iTunes/Music.app library integration, channel/playlist monitoring with auto-download of new uploads, or you already use the app and its free tier covers your workload.
- Both are free at the entry tier. MediaHuman sells a $29.99 Premium license; Arroxy has no paid tier.
Definition blocks
MediaHuman YouTube Downloader — Proprietary commercial app from MediaHuman. Free tier available; Premium $29.99 one-time. Cross-platform: Windows 7/8/8.1/10/11 (32 + 64-bit), macOS 10.12 through 26.0 (Apple Silicon M1–M5), Ubuntu 20.04+. Current version 3.9.21, updated June 12, 2026. Sites covered: YouTube, Facebook, Vimeo, Dailymotion, Twitch, Reddit, Vevo, SoundCloud, TikTok, Likee, BitChute, Brandnewtube, Odysee, Brighteon, Rumble, Tubi, Bilibili, Kick, and “a lot of other sites” per the official site. Resolutions up to 4K + 8K with audio. MP3 audio extraction with automatic ID3 tag detection. Playlist/channel monitoring, iTunes/Music.app integration, clipboard monitoring, 39+ UI languages. Distributed direct from mediahuman.com.
Arroxy — Free, MIT-licensed open-source desktop app from antonio-orionus. No paid tier, no bundled offers, no paid feature gates. Available on Windows 10/11, macOS 11+ (Apple Silicon + Intel), and Linux (AppImage, Flatpak, tar.gz). Distributed via Winget, Scoop, Homebrew Cask, AppImage, Flatpak, and GitHub Releases. Built on yt-dlp, auto-fetched at runtime. 21 UI languages. Optional SponsorBlock chapters or trims for local copies.
Feature-by-feature
| Feature | Arroxy | MediaHuman (Free) | MediaHuman Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | Free, forever | Free, with limits | $29.99 one-time |
| License | MIT (open source) | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| Source on GitHub | Yes, full repo | No | No |
| Platforms | Windows + macOS + Linux | Same | Same |
| Apple Silicon native | Yes | Yes (M1–M5) | Yes (M1–M5) |
| Engine | yt-dlp (auto-fetched at runtime) | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| Site coverage | 2000+ via yt-dlp | ~20+ named sites per official copy | Same as free |
| YouTube 4K / HDR / high frame rate | Yes (where source provides) | 4K + 8K with audio per vendor copy | Same |
| Playlists | Yes, unlimited | Yes; verify free-tier limits | Yes |
| Channel monitoring (auto-download new uploads) | Not yet (roadmap) | Yes | Yes, unlimited |
| Audio extraction | MP3, M4A/AAC, Opus, WAV | MP3 with ID3 tags | MP3 + extended formats |
| iTunes / Music.app library integration | No | Yes | Yes |
| Clipboard monitoring | Yes (Settings → Advanced) | Yes | Yes |
| Subtitle download (sidecar + embed) | Yes | Limited | Limited |
| SponsorBlock at download time | Yes | No | No |
| Winget package | Yes (AntonioOrionus.Arroxy) | Not on Winget per official site | Not on Winget |
| Scoop bucket | Yes | No | No |
| Homebrew Cask | Yes | No | No |
| Telemetry | Anonymous aggregate OpenPanel; opt-out; no URLs/titles/paths | Check vendor policy | Check vendor policy |
| Languages (i18n) | 21 | 39+ | 39+ |
Pricing
MediaHuman’s Premium tier is $29.99 one-time. The free tier covers the basic flow (paste a URL, pick quality, save). Check the current MediaHuman page for the exact 2026 feature gates before quoting limits.
Arroxy is $0. No tier, no upsell. Parallel downloads are configurable in Settings -> Downloads, and there is no product-tier unlock for playlist or channel batches.
The unique-to-MediaHuman thing your $29.99 actually buys: iTunes/Music.app integration. If you’re using MediaHuman as the “fill my Apple Music library with audio rips” tool and the iTunes auto-add matters, that’s the case where Premium is doing something Arroxy doesn’t.
Site coverage
MediaHuman’s official site lists ~20 named sources by name and adds “a lot of other sites.” It’s a curated set, well-maintained for the platforms most users actually download from.
Arroxy delegates to yt-dlp. The supportedsites.md lists 2000+ extractors and is updated weekly by a 200-person maintainer community. For the headline sites (YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook, SoundCloud, Twitch) both apps work. For the long tail (niche fansubbed sites, smaller European broadcasters, archive.org, regional streaming services), yt-dlp’s reach is wider by an order of magnitude.
When to pick which
Pick Arroxy if: you want MIT-licensed open source, built-in SponsorBlock, Winget/Scoop/Homebrew install (one-line winget install AntonioOrionus.Arroxy), the yt-dlp engine’s 2000+ sites, or a Linux build that’s more than “Ubuntu 20.04+” (Arroxy ships AppImage + Flatpak + tar.gz).
Pick MediaHuman if: you want iTunes/Music.app library auto-add, you want channel monitoring with new-upload detection (Arroxy’s roadmap item), you specifically want 39+ UI languages including some that Arroxy doesn’t ship, or the free tier’s caps don’t bite for your usage and “if it ain’t broke” applies.
How to switch from MediaHuman to Arroxy
There’s no library format to migrate. The switch:
- Install Arroxy.
- Reproduce MediaHuman’s default folder. MediaHuman defaults to
~/Music/Videosor a configurable subfolder. Arroxy lets you pick any folder per session or set a default in Settings → General. - Enable clipboard monitoring. Settings → Advanced → “Watch clipboard for YouTube links.” Matches MediaHuman’s clipboard-monitor flow.
- Replace channel monitoring with a re-run. Arroxy doesn’t yet auto-detect new uploads on a subscribed channel. Workaround: bookmark the channel URL, run it manually on whatever cadence MediaHuman was running it. Date-range filters are on Arroxy’s roadmap and will make the re-run skip already-downloaded entries.
Limitations to know
Arroxy doesn’t ship channel monitoring (the “auto-download new uploads from this channel” feature). Today you re-run the channel URL when you want fresh entries. The roadmap has scheduled downloads + date-range filters as the closest workaround. Arroxy also doesn’t have iTunes/Music.app library integration — if you batch-rip podcasts into Apple Music, that’s MediaHuman-only.
MediaHuman is closed source, so you can’t audit or fork. SponsorBlock is not a feature — sponsor cuts require a separate tool. Free-tier caps (parallelism, some bitrates) are documented but liable to change; verify on the official page before deciding. Not on Winget, Scoop, or Homebrew Cask, so on Windows the install path is “download the EXE.”
What users say
MediaHuman’s official page gives it a clear niche: playlist/channel monitoring, automatic iTunes/Music.app export, clipboard monitoring, 4K/8K downloads with audio, and 39+ UI languages. Arroxy does not try to copy the Apple Music library workflow. It wins on open source, SponsorBlock, package-manager installs, and yt-dlp’s long-tail site coverage.
The common Arroxy fit cases are users who want source they can audit, SponsorBlock, Winget install on Windows, or yt-dlp’s wider site coverage for long-tail sources MediaHuman doesn’t list by name.
FAQ
Is MediaHuman YouTube Downloader free?
Yes, there is a free tier. Premium is $29.99 one-time and adds paid features. Check the official site for the current 2026 feature gate before quoting limits.
Is there a free open-source alternative to MediaHuman?
Arroxy is the closest match: free, MIT-licensed, cross-platform (Windows + macOS + Linux), built on yt-dlp. Other open-source options include the yt-dlp CLI directly, Tartube, and Parabolic.
Can I install MediaHuman via Winget?
Not at the time of writing — MediaHuman’s official site distributes a direct EXE installer. Arroxy is on Winget as AntonioOrionus.Arroxy, on Scoop via the antonio-orionus/scoop-bucket, and on Homebrew Cask via antonio-orionus/arroxy.
Does Arroxy auto-download new uploads from a YouTube channel?
Not yet. That’s on the roadmap. Today: re-run the channel URL when you want new entries. yt-dlp’s archive file feature (which Arroxy uses under the hood) skips entries already downloaded.
Does either app support SponsorBlock?
Arroxy supports SponsorBlock at download time. MediaHuman does not advertise built-in SponsorBlock support on its product page.
Methodology
Data compiled 2026-05-19 and refreshed 2026-06-15 from mediahuman.com/youtube-downloader and direct install testing on Windows 11, macOS 14 (Apple Silicon), and Ubuntu 24.04. Arroxy claims pulled from the project README. If anything has drifted, please open a GitHub issue — Antonio Orionus, maintainer of Arroxy, refreshes these posts on report.