YouTube Shorts have quickly become the most addictive format on the platform, serving up bite-sized comedy, viral dance challenges, cooking recipes, and tech tips in seconds. But unlike normal YouTube videos, the YouTube app makes it tricky to save these vertical clips directly to your phone's camera roll for offline viewing or resharing. In this guide, you will learn how to download any YouTube Short in high-definition MP4 format with full audio on iPhone, Android, and PC.
Table of Contents
1. How YouTube Shorts URLs Work
Standard YouTube video links typically use the traditional format: youtube.com/watch?v=VIDEO_ID or youtu.be/VIDEO_ID. Shorts, however, use a modern vertical URL route: youtube.com/shorts/VIDEO_ID.
Some older, outdated converter tools break when given a /shorts/ URL because their parsers only recognize standard watch links. At Y2Mate Original YouTube Shorts Downloader, our engine is built with universal regex parsers that instantly extract the 11-character video ID from any Shorts link, embed URL, or mobile share snippet.
2. How to Copy a Shorts Link Correctly
Whether on a phone or desktop computer, copying the link takes less than five seconds:
- In the YouTube Mobile App: While watching the Short, look on the right side of the screen and tap the Share icon (the curved arrow) → Tap "Copy Link".
- On Desktop Browser: Simply copy the link directly from your browser's address bar at the top, or right-click the video and select "Copy video URL".
3. Downloading Shorts on iPhone & iPad (To Camera Roll)
To save the vertical Short directly into your iPhone's native Photos app:
- Open Safari on your iPhone and go to Y2Mate Original Shorts Downloader.
- Tap the Paste button to paste your copied Shorts URL, then tap Start.
- In the formats table, tap Download next to the 720p or 1080p MP4 resolution.
- Safari will display a confirmation: "Do you want to download this video?" Tap Download.
- Once downloaded, open the Files app → go to Downloads → tap the video → tap the Share button (bottom-left) → select "Save Video".
The Short is now saved in your Camera Roll, ready to be sent on WhatsApp, iMessage, or imported into your video editor!
4. Downloading Shorts on Android (To Gallery)
Android allows direct saving into your file system with fewer steps:
- Open Chrome and visit Y2Mate Original.
- Paste your Shorts link and tap Start.
- Tap Download on your preferred MP4 resolution.
- Chrome will instantly download the file. Swipe down from your notification shade to view the completed file, or open your phone's Gallery app → Albums → Download.
Save Trending Shorts in Seconds
Extract vertical 9:16 Shorts in Full HD with crystal-clear audio and zero watermarks.
Download YouTube Shorts →5. Downloading Shorts on Windows PC & Mac
On a desktop or laptop computer, open any browser (Chrome, Edge, Safari, Firefox), navigate to our downloader, paste the Short URL, and click Download. The file will save directly into your PC's Downloads folder in standard .mp4 format, compatible with VLC, Windows Media Player, QuickTime, Premiere Pro, and DaVinci Resolve.