Loom is a great tool for recording and sharing videos, but the platform has restrictions when it comes to downloading — especially if you’re not on a paid plan anymore.
You might have dozens or even hundreds of old recordings and realize you don’t have a way to save them locally (i did)
That’s frustrating, but it’s fixable. In this article, I’ll walk you through the exact process of detecting, inspecting, and downloading Loom videos using yt-dlp.
We’ll cover several different real-world scenarios you’ll encounter — from normal share links, to embeds, to videos with separate audio and video streams.

👉 Want the easy way?
Skip the terminal and use the Loom Video Downloader — a browser-based tool that lets you grab your Loom videos in just a couple of clicks.
Or check out the official repository: https://github.com/serpapps/loom-video-downlaoder
Before we dive in, let’s make sure you have the tools set up:
yt-dlp: The open-source command-line downloader we’ll use.
macOS:
brew install yt-dlp
Windows/Linux: download the binary from yt-dlp GitHub releases.
Browser DevTools: You’ll need to inspect the page source in Chrome, Firefox, or Safari to grab the actual Loom media URL.
Right-click → Inspect → use the Elements tab.
Search for loom.com to locate the video’s URL.
Once that’s set up, you’re ready to follow along.
This is the most common case: a Loom share page where the video is delivered as a raw .m3u8 stream but also has an MP4 transcoded version available.
Step 1 – Detect the URL
Open DevTools and search loom.com.
Copy the share link (e.g. https://www.loom.com/share/43d05f362f734614a2e81b4694a3a523).
Step 2 – Inspect formats
yt-dlp -F "https://www.loom.com/share/43d05f362f734614a2e81b4694a3a523"
You’ll see output showing http-transcoded mp4 alongside hls-raw.
Step 3 – Download
yt-dlp "https://www.loom.com/share/43d05f362f734614a2e81b4694a3a523"
Sometimes yt-dlp defaults to a .webm download (from http-raw), even though an MP4 version exists.
Step 1 – Detect URL Grab it from DevTools: https://www.loom.com/share/c43a642f815f4378b6f80a889bb73d8d
Step 2 – Run a basic download
yt-dlp "https://www.loom.com/share/c43a642f815f4378b6f80a889bb73d8d"
Result: You’ll get a .webm file.
If you prefer MP4, specify the format explicitly.
Step 1 – List formats
yt-dlp -F "https://www.loom.com/share/c43a642f815f4378b6f80a889bb73d8d"
Step 2 – Choose MP4
yt-dlp -f http-transcoded "https://www.loom.com/share/c43a642f815f4378b6f80a889bb73d8d"
Result: This downloads the MP4 version instead of WebM.
Some Loom videos include captions in multiple formats.
Step 1 – Check for subtitles
yt-dlp --list-subs "https://www.loom.com/share/9458bcbf79784162aa62ffb8dd66201b"
Output shows en.vtt.
Step 2 – Download with subs
yt-dlp --write-subs --sub-format vtt "https://www.loom.com/share/9458bcbf79784162aa62ffb8dd66201b"
Result: You’ll get both the MP4 video and a .vtt subtitle file.
Occasionally Loom delivers via an MPD manifest.
Step 1 – Grab the URL https://www.loom.com/share/24351eb8b317420289b158e4b7e96ff2
Step 2 – Download
yt-dlp "https://www.loom.com/share/24351eb8b317420289b158e4b7e96ff2"
Notes: This video also has no audio.
Some embeds separate the audio and video tracks — you’ll need to merge them.
Step 1 – Detect embed URL https://www.loom.com/embed/ddcf1c1ad21f451ea7468b1e33917e4e
Step 2 – Inspect formats Lists hls-raw-audio (audio only) and hls-raw-1500 (video only).
Step 3 – Download & merge
yt-dlp -f "bestvideo+bestaudio" "https://www.loom.com/embed/ddcf1c1ad21f451ea7468b1e33917e4e"
Notes: Always use the + operator to join separate streams.
💡 Tip: If dealing with embeds, subtitles, or audio/video splits feels too complicated, the Loom Video Downloader automates the entire process — no commands, no DevTools, just copy-paste your Loom link and download.
On Loom community pages, you’ll often see multiple resolutions.
Step 1 – Grab the embed URL https://www.loom.com/embed/2a742981490b4c649ce429d75f70fd73
Step 2 – List formats
yt-dlp -F "https://www.loom.com/embed/2a742981490b4c649ce429d75f70fd73"
Shows:
hls-raw-1500 → 720p
hls-raw-3200 → 1080p
Step 3 – Download default (720p)
yt-dlp "https://www.loom.com/embed/2a742981490b4c649ce429d75f70fd73"
Step 4 – Download 1080p specifically
yt-dlp -f hls-raw-3200 "https://www.loom.com/embed/2a742981490b4c649ce429d75f70fd73"
That’s seven concrete examples of downloading Loom videos under different conditions. The workflow is always the same:
Detect the Loom URL with DevTools.
Inspect formats with yt-dlp -F.
Extract/download with the right flags.
By practicing with these examples, you’ll be ready for nearly any variation Loom throws at you — whether it’s MP4 vs WebM, subtitles, split streams, or multiple resolutions.
⚡ Want to save time and skip the terminal? Use the Loom Video Downloader for one-click downloads of your Loom recordings.
👉 For the full command reference and raw steps, check out this companion gist:
How To Download Loom Videos For Free! 🚀 DL Without Subscription | ~10 Examples (.mp4, HLS, .m3u8) — STEP BY STEP
Here’s the full article again, now with a compact command cheat sheet section at the bottom in Markdown so you can copy/paste directly:
Click the image below to watch the video 👇

How to Download Loom Videos: A Complete Step-by-Step Guide (With Real Examples)
Loom is a great tool for recording and sharing videos, but the platform has restrictions when it comes to downloading — especially if you’re not on a paid plan anymore. You might have dozens or even hundreds of old recordings and realize you don’t have a way to save them locally.
That’s frustrating, but it’s fixable. In this article, I’ll walk you through the exact process of detecting, inspecting, and downloading Loom videos using yt-dlp. We’ll cover several different real-world scenarios you’ll encounter — from normal share links, to embeds, to videos with separate audio and video streams.
👉 Want the easy way? Skip the terminal and use the Loom Video Downloader — a browser-based tool that lets you grab your Loom videos in just a couple of clicks.
👉 For the full command reference and raw steps, check out this companion gist:
How To Download Loom Videos For Free! 🚀 DL Without Subscription | ~10 Examples (.mp4, HLS, .m3u8) — STEP BY STEP
Before we dive in, let’s make sure you have the tools set up:
yt-dlp: The open-source command-line downloader we’ll use.
macOS:
brew install yt-dlp
Windows/Linux: download the binary from yt-dlp GitHub releases.
Browser DevTools: You’ll need to inspect the page source in Chrome, Firefox, or Safari to grab the actual Loom media URL.
Right-click → Inspect → use the Elements tab.
Search for loom.com to locate the video’s URL.
Once that’s set up, you’re ready to follow along.
yt-dlp -F "https://www.loom.com/share/43d05f362f734614a2e81b4694a3a523" yt-dlp "https://www.loom.com/share/43d05f362f734614a2e81b4694a3a523"
Note: this video has no sound.
yt-dlp "https://www.loom.com/share/c43a642f815f4378b6f80a889bb73d8d"
Result: downloads .webm by default.
yt-dlp -F "https://www.loom.com/share/c43a642f815f4378b6f80a889bb73d8d" yt-dlp -f http-transcoded "https://www.loom.com/share/c43a642f815f4378b6f80a889bb73d8d"
yt-dlp --list-subs "https://www.loom.com/share/9458bcbf79784162aa62ffb8dd66201b" yt-dlp --write-subs --sub-format vtt "https://www.loom.com/share/9458bcbf79784162aa62ffb8dd66201b"
yt-dlp "https://www.loom.com/share/24351eb8b317420289b158e4b7e96ff2"
Note: no audio.
yt-dlp -f "bestvideo+bestaudio" "https://www.loom.com/embed/ddcf1c1ad21f451ea7468b1e33917e4e"
💡 Tip: If dealing with embeds, subtitles, or audio/video splits feels too complicated, the Loom Video Downloader automates the entire process — no commands, no DevTools, just copy-paste your Loom link and download.
yt-dlp -F "https://www.loom.com/embed/2a742981490b4c649ce429d75f70fd73" yt-dlp "https://www.loom.com/embed/2a742981490b4c649ce429d75f70fd73" yt-dlp -f hls-raw-3200 "https://www.loom.com/embed/2a742981490b4c649ce429d75f70fd73"
That’s seven concrete examples of downloading Loom videos under different conditions. The workflow is always the same:
Detect the Loom URL with DevTools.
Inspect formats with yt-dlp -F.
Extract/download with the right flags.
By practicing with these examples, you’ll be ready for nearly any variation Loom throws at you — whether it’s MP4 vs WebM, subtitles, split streams, or multiple resolutions.
⚡ Want to save time and skip the terminal? Use the Loom Video Downloader for one-click downloads of your Loom recordings.
ExampleScenarioCommand(s)1M3U8 raw w/ MP4 transcodedyt-dlp "https://www.loom.com/share/43d05f362f734614a2e81b4694a3a523"2WebM raw defaultyt-dlp "https://www.loom.com/share/c43a642f815f4378b6f80a889bb73d8d"3Force MP4 instead of WebMyt-dlp -f http-transcoded "https://www.loom.com/share/c43a642f815f4378b6f80a889bb73d8d"4With subtitlesyt-dlp --write-subs --sub-format vtt "https://www.loom.com/share/9458bcbf79784162aa62ffb8dd66201b"5MPD rawyt-dlp "https://www.loom.com/share/24351eb8b317420289b158e4b7e96ff2"6Split audio/videoyt-dlp -f "bestvideo+bestaudio" "https://www.loom.com/embed/ddcf1c1ad21f451ea7468b1e33917e4e"7Community page (1080p)yt-dlp -f hls-raw-3200 "https://www.loom.com/embed/2a742981490b4c649ce429d75f70fd73"
yt-dlp get file format info yt-dlp -F yt-dlp get subtitles info yt-dlp --list-subs yt-dlp get thumbnail info yt-dlp --list-thumbnails