Vimeo Downloader & Advanced Player API

The most advanced Node.js tool to download Vimeo videos, extract metadata, HLS/DASH streams, subtitles, and control the Vimeo Player API.

Whether you need to download private Vimeo videos, extract 1080p/4K MP4 links, or build a custom Vimeo Player controller, this library handles it all with a simple CLI and a powerful API.

🚀 Key Features

• 🔎 Auto-detects videos on any Vimeo page: Easily extracts video details from any Vimeo URL.
• 📺 Supports embedded players & showcases: Handles standard video URLs and embedded contexts via Referer support.
• ⬇️ Download in Full HD and up to 4K when available: Automatically selects the highest quality MP4 stream.
• 🖼 Thumbnail preview & video metadata extraction: Get full JSON details including duration, author, and thumbnails.
• ⚡ Fast & reliable downloads (no re-encoding): Direct stream downloading for maximum speed.
• 🛡 Privacy-first design (no tracking, no ads): Open source, clean code with no analytics or bloat.
• 🔄 Regular updates & community support: Actively maintained to adapt to Vimeo's changes.
• 🎮 Advanced Player Dashboard: Control the Vimeo Player API (Seek, Speed, Color) via a local interface.
• 📝 Subtitles & Captions: One-click extraction of .vtt subtitle files.

📦 Installation

Install globally to use the CLI, or locally for your project.

# Global installation for CLI usage
npm install -g vimeo

# Local installation for Node.js projects
npm install vimeo

💻 CLI Usage (Command Line Interface)

The vimeo-dl command is your all-in-one tool for interacting with Vimeo.

1. Download a Video

Automatically downloads the best quality available.

vimeo-dl https://vimeo.com/76979871

2. Choose Quality & Output

Select specific resolutions (e.g., 720p, 1080p) and custom save paths.

vimeo-dl https://vimeo.com/76979871 --quality 720p --output ./my-videos

3. Get Video Metadata (JSON)

Extract raw JSON data (URLs, HLS links, author info) for use in other scripts.

vimeo-dl https://vimeo.com/76979871 --info

4. Download Private Videos

If a video is restricted to a specific domain, provide the Referer header.

vimeo-dl https://vimeo.com/76979871 --referer "https://example.com/"

5. Launch Player Dashboard 🆕

Open a local control panel to test the Vimeo Player API (Seek, Speed, Color, Events). Now includes a download button!

vimeo-dl play https://vimeo.com/76979871

For private videos with referer:

vimeo-dl play https://vimeo.com/76979871 --referer "https://example.com/"

Player Features:

• Full Vimeo Player API control (play, pause, seek, speed, volume)
• Event logging and debugging
• Download button for direct browser downloads
• Responsive design with advanced controls

🛠️ Node.js API Usage

Integrate Vimeo downloading capabilities directly into your application.

Basic Metadata Extraction

const vimeo = require('vimeo');

async function getInfo() {
  const data = await vimeo("https://vimeo.com/76979871");
  console.log(data);
}
getInfo();

Advanced: Downloading & Streams

Access HLS streams, subtitles, and download files with progress tracking.

const { getVideoDetails, downloadFile } = require('vimeo');

async function processVideo() {
  try {
    // 1. Fetch Video Details
    const details = await getVideoDetails("https://vimeo.com/76979871", {
      referer: "https://my-protected-site.com/"
    });

    console.log(`Video Title: ${details.meta.title}`);
    console.log(`HLS Stream: ${details.hls ? details.hls.url : 'N/A'}`);

    // 2. List Available Subtitles
    if (details.subtitles.length > 0) {
      console.log('Subtitles found:', details.subtitles.map(s => s.lang));
    }

    // 3. Download the Best Quality MP4
    const bestFormat = details.formats[0]; // Formats are sorted by quality
    if (bestFormat) {
      console.log(`Downloading ${bestFormat.quality} (${bestFormat.width}x${bestFormat.height})...`);
      
      await downloadFile(bestFormat.url, `./${details.meta.id}.mp4`, (pct, downloaded, total) => {
        console.log(`Progress: ${pct.toFixed(1)}%`);
      });
      
      console.log('Download complete!');
    }
  } catch (error) {
    console.error('Error:', error.message);
  }
}

processVideo();

❓ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

How do I download private Vimeo videos?

Private videos often check the Referer header. You can bypass this by using the --referer flag in the CLI or the referer option in the API.

vimeo-dl https://vimeo.com/76979871 --referer "https://website-where-video-is-embedded.com"

Can I get the HLS (.m3u8) or DASH (.mpd) links?

Yes! Use the --info flag in the CLI or check the .hls and .dash properties in the API response. These are useful for playing videos in custom players (like Video.js or Hls.js).

Does this tool support 4K downloads?

Yes. If the video owner has uploaded a 4K version and Vimeo has processed it as a progressive MP4, it will be detected and prioritized as the best quality.

How can I extract Vimeo subtitles?

The API returns a subtitles array containing URLs to .vtt files for all available languages. You can fetch these URLs to save the subtitles/captions.

📄 License

This project is licensed under the ISC License.

Keywords: vimeo downloader, download vimeo videos, vimeo to mp4, vimeo private downloader, nodejs vimeo api, vimeo cli, save vimeo video, extract vimeo subtitles, m3u8 downloader