Music is getting less expensive with each year. Today you don’t need to buy CDs or tracks on iTunes, Google Play or Amazon in order to listen to your favorite music. You may simply go to YouTube and use free tool for YouTube. Leaving aside the legal issue of this action, let’s examine in details which is the best MP3 downloader of 2018.
SEE ALSO: 10 Incredible MP3 Sites to Download Music From
1. Freemake Software for Youtube
Software for Youtube lets download thousands of MP3 music files from YouTube without visiting the video sharing giant. It’s a free program for Windows OS. In fact, the freeware works like a search engine where you can input your request and get a list of helpful results. The results are sorted by relevance, popularity, and collections. A collection might contain full albums and hot remixes. The free software also includes a player at the bottom of the program, so you can always listen to a record before clicking the trigger.
There are two ways to work with MP3 Boom:
- You use the search bar to find YouTube music inside the program;
- or you copy the URL of a music video from YouTube and paste it into the software;
Both methods will let you download the desired track. Still if you use the internal search, you also get other songs by an artist split into albums.
You are able to play and download specific MP3s one by one or in bulk using the Download all button. Underneath the player, you can see an orange toggle, if you click the toggle, you’ll open the settings tab. By default, everything is saved into Music folder onto your computer. But if you plan to use the albums feature, it’s better to check the free storage space on your PC and select another directory or drive, for example, it can be drive D, if you have it or cloud drive folder. Alternatively, you can later compress audio files to get more space on your hard drive or send them to DVD with this free burning software. By default, the software downloads tracks and albums in the best quality available.
All the tracks are downloaded in MP3 format in the highest quality possible (up to 320 kbps). Those files are ready to be transferred to any portable gadget. It’s necessary to notice the fast performance of the tool. Even if you plan to fill in your Walkman or iPod with fresh hundreds of singles, Freemake MP3 Boom does its job fast. You don’t have to wait all evening to get your files. After that, you can use Freemake movie converter to save your YouTube files onto a disk.
Pros:
- internal song search;
- bulk music downloads;
- full song preview;
- high-quality audio;
Cons:
- no queue;
- lack of auto-completion, and auto-correction of queries;
- download history is kept only for the current session;
2. MP3jam
Free MP3jam software for Windows is free MP3 downloader. It features inbuilt music search and accepts YouTube links as well. The software boasts of a proprietary ranging algorithm which filters and organizes search results from YouTube in such a way that most popular tracks are always on top. You may download a single track or a full album in MP3 audio format. The tool is lightweight and speedy. You can save full MP3 album in less than 1 minute.
A nice option of MP3jam is the support for hashtags. You may enter tags like #rock, #funny, #classical, #angry, #1980s, etc. and get the list of famous songs representing the genre, mood, epoch or style. The top genres and moods are listed right when you open the tool. It reminds Spotify a lot and enriches your discovery experience. So, if you need an inspiration, check hashtags and learn new songs, artists or genres.
SEE ALSO: List of Funny Hashtags to Boost Likes
The freeware has a simple player inside. You can play the tracks before, during or after downloading from the History tab and to make sure that you get an authentic version, not just a cover. Unfortunately, the available player can’t be called ideal for enthusiasts. There’s no equalizer, playlists, shuffle, control customization, amplifier, tags, or shortcuts. But it does all key things: play, pause, skip, next, volume adjustment. The tool will also indicate if you have already downloaded the exact track and want to do this once again. It seems to be a nice feature since it saves your PC storage, if you plan to use the app often.
Pros:
- powerful music search;
- advanced filtering and ranging;
- useful music player;
- history of download;
- hashtags support;
Cons:
- only 5 tracks are available for download per 25 minutes;
- full albums download requires 1 day ($0.95) or lifetime ($9.95) subscription.
3. Songr
Songr is freeware for Windows to search and download music. You may get if from Softonic. The tool has a bit utilitarian interface, still it works flawlessly.
Songr uses all the Web to search for music files. That’s why you may see different sites in the Search engine column. There are four types of search queries you may enter: a single song title, artist name, album or a part of lyrics. The tool will show you different MP3 track versions depending on the duration or bitrate.
You may proceed to iTunes, Amazon or other sites to legally buy cheap tracks. Still free download option is always available. You can listen to the song before copy and even read info about the artist. The More also offers you additional links to YouTube videos, concerts details, etc.
Pros:
- search by lyrics;
- no ads;
- music preview;
- different song versions available.
Cons:
- a bit complicated interface;
- rare updates.
SEE ALSO: 5 Simple Tools to Edit Audio Files Like a PRO
4. Free Music and Video Downloader
Free Music and Video Downloader is a tiny MP3 ripper. You may get it from SnapFiles for Windows. No installation is required: just open the ZIP file and run the EXE app.
The tool lets you save MP3s tracks from many online resources like Last.fm, Grooveshark, Sogou, SoundCloud and others. You may choose from which sites the app should take music.
The search bar accepts song title queries as well as artist or band’s names to bring you all possible music versions from different sites. To start capturing, just double click on the song line. There is an option of song preview before receiving.
The tool is also capable of downloading videos and TV streams to your laptop.
Pros:
- no ads;
- fast music search;
- music preview;
- numerous supported sites.
Cons:
- some of the declared music sources are no longer supported;
- poor interface;
- unfiltered search results;
- no full album downloads.
5. MP3 Rocket
MP3Rocket.me is a video to audio converter for Windows. Generally, it works only with YouTube as a source. But if you need music tracks under Creative Commons license, you may switch to the respective tab and get music from Jamendo, SoundCloud, ccMixter, etc. All the tracks are delivered in MP3 format and in 256 kbps quality. If you need better quality, you’ll have to purchase PRO version to access 320 kbps mode. Preview is available.
The tool also offers a good deal of additional options like sound recording, ringtone creation, FLV files conversion, radio streams, and even games, etc.
Pros:
- fast music search and download;
- direct transfer to iTunes;
- access to music under Creative Commons;
- music preview;
- downloads history.
Cons:
- adware alerts upon installation;
- no automatic MP3 export to iTunes;
- paid unlimited downloads.
6. FrostWire
FrostWire is a free p2p or “peer to peer” MP3 music grabber. Frostwire 4 and earlier used to have the same features as seized LimeWire app, but since 5th update FrostWire became a self-sufficient BitTorrent client for Windows PC (7, 8, 10), Apple Mac & Linux. Old FrostWire versions contained toolbars and were often flagged as a virus. In 2017 developers removed ads and now you can get most of this real music browser safely.
Here’s how to use Frostwire in 2018:
- Go to frostwire.com and get it;
- Launch the application;
- Enter your term in the upper search box;
- Wait for results and select something;
- Preview the track. If this button is not working, it means that the file playback isn’t supported yet.
- Click the Download button at the bottom of the program.
SEE ALSO: Convert AMR to MP3 free & fast
As you can see, you don’t need a Spotify recorder, FrostWire is an easy alternative to it. Besides, there is FrostWire Plus app for Android that you can install on your Samsung Galaxy, LG or HTC phone and listen to tunes on the way to school or to work.
Pros:
- quick cross-platform tool;
- no signup required;
- free HQ files, including lastest songs;
- import to iTunes
Cons:
- old-fashioned interface;
- p2p MP3 sources
What tools will also include to this list? Please share in the comments below.
