Movie trailers are a great way to get a taste for the latest flick, from the big Hollywood trailers to the smaller indie trailers. Some trailers are so impressive in their own right that you might want to download them.
If so, we’ve got you covered. We’re going to show you how to download movie trailers for free directly to your computer.
How to Download Free Movie Trailers
There are different ways to download free movie trailers online to your computer. Here are the best methods.
Download Free Movie Trailers From HD-Trailers
One of the best places to download free movie trailers from is HD-Trailers.net.
This site sources trailers from iTunes Movie Trailers and Yahoo Movies Trailers. Both of these are great sites for high-definition trailers, especially iTunes as it has a clean interface and offers multiple resolutions. However, it isn’t as simple to download trailers from these sites as it is from HD-Trailers.
The front page of HD-Trailers lists the newest trailers, the top box office movies, and movies opening this week (this category doesn’t appear to be updated though, so you can ignore it).
If you don’t immediately see the movie that you want to download the trailer for, use the search box at the top.
Each movie page displays the poster and a brief description. You will see the trailer’s links beneath this. Some movies get multiple full-length trailers, alongside other trailer formats like “sneak peek” and “teaser”.
HD-Trailers lists these trailers in date order and in multiple resolutions (which determines the image quality). 480p is the lowest resolution and 1080p is the highest. The higher the resolution, the larger the file size.
Click the resolution you want and the trailer will play. Under the trailer is a Download link. You might be able to click this to initiate the download. However, your browser might just open the trailer in a new tab.
If this happens, right click the Download link and click Save Link As… Choose where you store the trailer, then click Save to begin the download.
Download Free Movie Trailers From YouTube
Chances are whatever movie trailer you want, whether it’s for a new or old release, will be available on YouTube. There are lots of channels on YouTube dedicated to uploading movie trailers, such as:
Individual studios will also upload trailers to their channels. That includes the likes of Netflix, Warner Bros. Pictures, and 20th Century Studios.
Of course, rather than going to specific channels, you can also just search for the trailers you need.
YouTube doesn’t offer an inbuilt way to download videos. As such, you will need to use a third-party tool. Handily, there are lots of great YouTube downloaders.
One of the best is 4K Video Downloader, which is free and available on Windows, Mac, and Linux. You simply plug the YouTube video URL into the program and it downloads it to your computer. It even supports playlists and subtitles.
While other programs might download at a low resolution or be riddled with adverts, 4K Video Downloader is simple and efficient. There’s no better way to download movie trailers from YouTube.
Download Free Movie Trailers from Internet Archive
If you are looking to download some more obscure movie trailers, you might find what you need at Internet Archive. Thousands of trailers are stored here, most from the 20th century.
The pane on the left helps you sort the trailers through categories like Year, Topics & Subjects, and Collection. You can also use the search at the top, though note that sometimes the trailers are unhelpfully named as they are user uploaded.
When you find a trailer you want, click the tile to visit its respective page. The trailer can be played at the top of the page. Beneath that, look for the Download options box. Here you can download the trailer, often in multiple formats like MOV or WMV.
How to Play Downloaded Movie Trailers
Once you download the movie trailer, you’ll want to play it. Your computer has a video player by default. Windows uses the Films & TV app, while for Mac it’s QuickTime Player.
However, there are alternative media players for Windows and better media players for Mac.
The best for both operating systems is VLC Media Player. This is a free, open-source, cross-platform media player that supports a huge variety of video formats. Also, VLC is packed full of handy features.
Since the movie trailers you download might be in different file formats, VLC is so useful because it will play most things you chuck at it. You won’t need to mess around with codec downloads too.
How to Convert Downloaded Movie Trailers to Different File Formats
The movie trailers you download will come in different video formats. Examples include MP4, WMV, FLV, and AVI.
As mentioned above, VLC will handle most video formats. However, you might want to convert the trailers into a different file format. This is vital if you want to transfer the trailer to a device that doesn’t support the video’s format natively (this is likely to happen on a Smart TV, for example).
If this is the case, don’t worry. It’s easy to convert your downloaded movie trailer into a different file format. All you need is a video conversion tool.
In fact, you can also use VLC to convert the media file.
Open VLC and go to Media > Convert/Save. Click Add to select the trailer, then click Convert/Save. Specify the Profile (the output format) and the Destination file. When ready, click Start.
Another great choice is WinFF. This is a simple and free tool that can convert videos in bulk into many formats.
With the program open, click Add to select the trailer, choose your Convert to and Preset formats, then specify the Output Folder. When ready, click Convert.
Find a Movie Worth Watching
Now you know how easy it is to download movie trailers for free, you can build your own collection of your favorite trailers.
Trailers also make for a good way to decide what movie to see next. If you need a bit more help, here are some other great ways to find a movie to watch.
Read the full article: 3 Free Ways to Download HD Movie Trailers Online
