The Internet Archive (archive.org) is a non-profit digital library. Alongside its famous Wayback Machine it holds over a million live concert recordings, hundreds of thousands of 78 rpm records, classic films that have entered the public domain, old-time radio shows, audiobooks from LibriVox and much more — most of it free to download and reuse.
Step by step
- 1Find an item on archive.org and open its page. The address looks like archive.org/details/<item-name>.
- 2Copy that address and paste it into tools.zenwebx.com/internet-archive-downloader.
- 3Click Fetch. Every audio, video and image file in the item is listed with its name and size.
- 4Click Get next to the file you want, then Download.
Why use a downloader instead of the Archive's own page?
Archive.org shows every file in an item, including original uploads, several converted copies, thumbnails and metadata files — sometimes hundreds of entries. ZenTools picks the best format for each kind of media and hides the clutter, so an album shows up as a clean track list.
| Media | Format picked (best available first) |
|---|---|
| Video | H.264 MP4 → MPEG4 → 512 kbps MPEG4 |
| Audio | VBR MP3 → 320/128/64 kbps MP3 → FLAC → OGG |
| Images | JPG → PNG |
Great places to start
- Live Music Archive (etree) — hundreds of thousands of concert recordings shared with artists' permission.
- The Great 78 Project — digitised 78 rpm records from the early 1900s.
- Feature Films and Prelinger Archives — public-domain movies and vintage educational films.
- Old Time Radio — classic radio dramas and comedies.
- LibriVox — free public-domain audiobooks read by volunteers.
Is it legal?
Much of the Archive's audio and video collection is public domain or shared under Creative Commons licences, and is free to download. Each item page shows its licence — check it before reusing something commercially. Items in the lending library (marked "Borrow") cannot be downloaded at all; they're only available to borrow on archive.org.
Large films (1 GB+) download at the Archive's own speed, which can be slow. Keep the tab open until the progress bar finishes. If you only need a smaller copy, shrink it afterwards with the Video Compressor.
Support the Archive
The Internet Archive runs on donations. If you find something wonderful there, consider giving a few dollars at archive.org/donate so it stays free for everyone.
Download from the Internet Archive
Paste an archive.org item link and save music, films and images. Free, no account.
Open Internet Archive Downloader