While surfing the Net, have you come across a video that you would love to download to your computer and would like to do it as fast as possible? Have you found some nice images and would like to download them but are annoyed at the idea of having to download them one by one? Don’t worry, I think I have just the thing for you. If you give me five minutes of your free time, I can show you those that in my humble opinion are the best programs for downloading currently on the market and which, in fact, you can use for the purpose in question.
There are both free and paid ones, both for Windows and macOS. In all cases they are quite simple to use, even by those who – a bit like you – do not consider themselves “geeks”. Clearly, it should be taken into account that the download speed is also related to the actual speed of surfing the Web offered by the Internet connection used. In other words, if your connection is not particularly “snappy” do not expect lightning fast downloads, but certainly faster than what would be possible acting “simply” from the browser.
Well? Why are you still standing there? Sit down comfortably in front of your trusty PC and start immediately to concentrate on reading everything reported below. I’m sure that at the end you’ll be happy and satisfied with what you’ve learned and, even, in case of need, you’ll be ready to provide useful advice to all your friends interested in the same topic. What do you say, shall we bet?
Warning: Unauthorized downloading of copyrighted content may be considered a crime. I have no intention of promoting piracy, this post has been published for illustrative purposes only and, therefore, I do not assume any responsibility for the use that will be made of the information in it.
JDownlaoder (Windows/MacOS/Linux)
JDownloader is a very popular free download manager designed to download files from hosting services, removing several small to large hassles from the user. It supports the use of premium accounts and allows you to download with free accounts without having to click on any buttons after the hosting sites countdown.
Its functionality can be expanded with free extensions, thanks to which it is also possible to bypass captcha (for a fee) and perform other functions that speed up and/or make downloads more convenient. It is available for all major operating systems, but to make it work you need to have Java software installed on your system (for more info on this, read my tutorial on the subject).
Are you asking how you can use it? I’ll tell you right now. First of all, go to the program’s website and click on the link related to the name of the operating system you are using.
Now, if you are using Windows, select the Download Installer for 32/64bit systems link and click Download. When the download is complete, launch the .exe file and click the Yes button. Wait a few seconds for the first files necessary for the software to work to be downloaded from the Internet and press the OK button, the Next button five times in a row, then the Skip button and the Finish button.
If you are using a Mac, click on the Download Installer Mac OS X Version 10.7 or higher link. When the download is complete, open the .dmg package and run the installation file of the program. In the window that appears on the screen, click the Open button, then the OK button and the Next button four times in a row. Wait until all the files necessary for the software to work are downloaded from the Internet and finish the setup by clicking on the Skip and Finish buttons.
Now that you see the JDownloader window on your screen, regardless of your operating system, right-click on it and select Add New Web Links… from the menu that appears. Then paste the link to the online file you want to download, indicate the output location and click the Continue button. Alternatively, copy the URL of the file to download directly from the browser window and wait for JDownloader to detect it automatically.
Then press the Play button at the top and wait for the download to start and finish. In the upper right corner you’ll find the download speed and at the bottom you’ll find the details of the selected file.
Additional buttons and items on the toolbar allow you to pause the download, resume it, access the program’s settings, etc. By right-clicking on the file names you can access further settings related to file management and downloading.
Additional buttons and items on the toolbar allow you to pause the download, resume it, access the program’s settings, etc. By right-clicking on the file names you can access further settings related to file management and downloading.
Free Download Manager (Windows/MacOS)
It supports HTTP, HTTPS and FTP protocols as well as downloading Flash videos from video sites, is able to resume interrupted downloads and allows you to check the reliability of downloaded files through ratings left by other users of the software. It is available for both Windows and macOS.
In order to use it, first of all, go to the program’s website and click on the Free Download button at the top to start downloading the software.
After the download is complete, if you are using Windows, open the .exe file and click on the Yes button. Then press the Next button four times in a row, the Install button and the Finish button. Then call the program by clicking on its shortcut that has been added to the Start menu.
If you’re using a Mac, open the .dmg package you just obtained and drag the Free Download Manager icon to the Applications folder of macOS. Then, right-click on it and choose the Open option twice in a row, in order to launch the software while circumventing the restrictions that Apple imposes on non-certified developers (this should only be done on first startup).
Now that you see the main window of the software, regardless of your operating system, paste the URL of the file you want to download and click the OK button or drag and drop the Torrent files you want to download into it. Then, choose the folder where you want to download the file, indicate the name you want to give it and whether you want to schedule the download or not, then click the Download button.
Once the download has started, you can keep track of its progress through the main Free Download Manager window. The buttons at the top allow you to pause or resume the download, trash specific files or open the output folder. The button with the three horizontal lines on the right side allows you to access the Free Download Manager settings.
Internet Download Manager (Windows)
Internet Download Manager is one of the best commercial download programs which supports all popular browsers: Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, etc. It promises to speed up downloads up to five times faster than the standard speed and incorporates a number of advanced features such as task scheduler, ZIP file preview, virus scanning and support for redirects, cookies and HTTP, HTTPS and FTP protocols.
The program is paid but is available in a free trial version (the one I used to write this step) that allows you to test its functionality for a period of 30 days. It is for Windows operating systems only.
To download the trial version of the program to your PC, go to the Internet Download Manager website and click on the Try Internet Download Manager for free button.
After the download is finished, open the .exe file and click the Yes button. Then click on the OK button to confirm the use of the Italian language, click on the Next button, check the I accept the terms of the license agreement box and click on the Next button three more times. Finish the setup by clicking the Done button.
Now that you see the program window on your desktop, click the New button at the top, paste the URL of the files you want to download into the new window and click the OK button. Alternatively, copy the link of your interest directly from the browser window (the program is able to automatically “pick up” the copy of the links in the clipboard). Indicate the reference category and the output folder and click on the Start Download button.
Through the main window of Internet Download Manager, you can then follow the progress of your downloads. The categories in the left sidebar make it easier to envy the download files that interest you, while the buttons and menus at the top allow you to manage the download process and the operation of the software in general.
FlashGet (Windows)
FlashGet is a powerful free download manager for Windows that can download files at high speed (6-10 times faster than standard downloads, according to official estimates) through HTTP,FTP,BT,MMS and RTSP protocols. It supports eMule networking and categorization of download files.
The built-in scanning feature allows you to test the security of files placed in the download queue using the antivirus installed on your PC. It is very fast and light on RAM, making it ideal even for PCs that are no longer top-of-the-line (or at least not very powerful).
To download it to your computer, go to the website of the program and click on the Download button, which is located under the heading Latest version FlashGet v x.x. Once the download is complete, open the .exe file and click on the Yes button. Then click on the Next button, then I Agree, Next twice and finally Finish.
Now that you see the program’s window on your desktop, indicate the folder where you want to save the downloaded files and click the OK button, then click the New task button in the upper left corner, paste the URL of the file you want to download into the window that opens and press the Download button to proceed.
If you want to download a Torrent file or another type of file, click on the arrow next to the New task button and select the option you prefer from the menu that opens. You can then follow the progress of the downloads through the main FlashGet window.
If you want, you can also filter the various files being downloaded, through the appropriate categories you find on the left. On the upper right, instead, there are menus to adjust the operation of the program and intervene on the various options available. The buttons on the toolbar instead allow you to stop and resume downloading and to sort the files to be downloaded according to specific criteria.
Maxel (macOS)
Do you own a Mac and the download programs I told you about at the beginning of this guide didn’t convince you in a particular way? Then turn to Maxel and you’ll see that you won’t regret it. It is a specific application for macOS thanks to which you can download files online at lightning speed and through a clear and simple interface.
The program acts by splitting the files to be downloaded into several parts, so as to maximize bandwidth and proceed with the download in a lightning fast manner. Unfortunately it is a commercial program, but you can download a free trial version (the one I used to write this step) to test its functionality.
To download Maxel on your Mac, connect to the program’s website and click on the Download Free Demo button and the Download button on the new page that opens.
Once the download is complete, extract the ZIP archive to any location and drag the program’s icon to your macOS Applications folder, then double-click on it and click on the Continue Demo button to confirm that you want to use the trial version of Maxel.
Now that you see the program’s window on the Desktop, click the Add URLs button at the top left to add the URL of the file you want to download, specify the output folder on the next screen and click the Add button. Then press the Start button in the upper left corner to start the download.
You can follow the progress of the download through the main window of Maxel. By clicking on the “i” button next to the name of each downloading file you can get detailed information about its downloading status, downloading speed, etc. If you want to quickly access a preview of the file, click on the Quick Look button at the top of the window and press the Remove button to delete it.
Other useful resources
None of the download programs I mentioned in the previous lines have convinced you in particular and you are looking for more alternatives? Well, if you need specific software for downloading Torrent files, then I can’t help but suggest that you read my article dedicated to BitTorrent programs, while if you’re looking for software dedicated exclusively to downloading videos you’d better read my post about software for downloading videos.
Are you looking for programs with which you can download audio files while surfing the Web? In this case, don’t miss the solutions I told you about in my guide on software for downloading music. For downloading images only, you can consider the ad hoc resources I mentioned in my article on how to download photos.