How to download YouTube video thumbnails in HD (with or without tool)

YouTube video thumbnails are the small preview images shown. There may be times when saving a YouTube video’s thumbnail image to use elsewhere is helpful. This guide outlines a few processes to download YouTube thumbnails.

Option 1: Online thumbnail downloader site

You can easily download YT thumbnails in different sizes from high-quality to lowest using this tool.

1. Copy and paste the YouTube video link with the thumbnail you want into the online YouTube thumbnail downloader’s search tool (https://y2img.xyz/download).
2. Press enter or click the magnifying glass icon. This makes the thumbnail viewable.
3. Pick the thumbnail size you want to download and click the “Save” key underneath the thumbnail picture.
4. Decide on saving the thumbnail picture file as a JPG, PNG, GIF, or other image format.
5. Download the image file to your computer system.

Option 2: Downloading YouTube thumbnail without any tool

1. Find the unique ID of the video that you want to download the thumbnail of. It is the text after the “v=” part in the video link. For example, for the video link (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5DlpONIW5M), the unique ID is E5DlpONIW5M.
2. Use the video’s unique ID in this custom link: https://img.youtube.com/vi/ID/maxresdefault.jpg.
3. Replace ID with the unique ID of your video. For the above video, the link will be https://img.youtube.com/vi/E5DlpONIW5M/maxresdefault.jpg.
4. Open this link in a new tab in your web browser. You will see a large-sized version of the video’s thumbnail.
5. Right-click the image and select “Save Image As” to download the thumbnail to your device in HD.

This method works on both desktop and mobile devices. However, before you download a thumbnail, make sure you are not violating any legal or ethical rules, such as using copyrighted work for commercial purposes. Always follow the rules.