Tidal is one the popular streaming music services providing 110 million songs and 650,000 videos with Tidal Lossless, Tidal HiRes FLAC, Tidal MQA, and Tidal Dolby Atmos. Whether you are a casual listener or a dedicated music enthusiast, you can get an enjoyable music streaming experience on Tidal. Tidal also provides a downloading feature, but it is only available for premium subscribers. If you want to download Tidal music without limits, Tidal DL and Tidal GUI, the two different versions of Tidal-Media-Downloader, are excellent choices. In case you’re unfamiliar with the tool, this post provides a complete and detailed review of it for your reference. What’s more, we recommend the best alternative of Tidal GUI/DL. Now, dive into the following content to start your Tidal music journey with ease.

Part 1. Overview of Tidal GUI and Tidal DL
Tidal-GUI and Tidal-DL are 2 different versions of Tidal Media Downloader, which is a program offered by GitHub. This software is designed for interacting with Tidal, the high-fidelity music streaming service. It allows users to download content from Tidal on their devices.
What is Tidal GUI?
Basic Info:
- Address: https://github.com/yaronzz/Tidal-Media-Downloader-PRO?tab=readme-ov-file
- Price: Free
- Support OS: Windows Only
- Output Format: MP3
- Conversion Speed: 1X
- Output Quality: Normal, High, HiFi, Master

Tidal-GUI is a graphical user interface app that supports you in downloading music from Tidal to your computer locally. It is only compatible with Windows computers. With its help, you can download your favorite Tidal track, playlist, album, or video locally. More so, it will automatically add metadata to the song you download. Tidal-GUI is popular not only because it’s free and open-source, but also due to its user-friendly interface. The steps to use it are straightforward and simple. All you need is the URL link of the Tidal music you want to download. If you care about the music quality, you can download music in FLAC instead of MP3. Tidal-GUI supports downloading Tidal music in high quality.
-
Pros
- Free to use
- User-friendly UI design
- Allow batch download
- Add metadata to downloaded songs
- Allow users to choose video and music quality
-
Cons
- Need a Tidal subscription
- Fail to download sometimes
- Only available on Windows
- May not be available in some countries
What is Tidal DL?
Basic Info:
- Address: https://github.com/yaronzz/Tidal-Media-Downloader
- Price: Free
- Support OS: Windows, Mac, Linux, Android
- Output Format: MP3
- Conversion Speed: 1X
- Output Quality: Normal, High, HiFi, Master

Tidal-DL is another version of Tidal Media Downloader. It performs similar functions to Tidal-GUI, but it is compatible with more devices, including Windows, Linux, Mac, and Android. It is a command-line tool, which requires you to input commands to download Tidal music. Thus, you need some basic knowledge of Python and a pre-installed Python app. It also supports downloading high-fidelity music in FLAC. If you are familiar with command-line operations, you can download songs in batches and customize other advanced operations.
-
Pros
- Totally free
- Download Tidal music effectively
- Compatible with multiple devices
- Download songs in batches
-
Cons
- Need a Tidal subscription to use
- Requires Python installed
- Requires basic Python knowledge
- Not stable enough
- Not easy for beginners
Part 2. Is Tidal-DL and Tidal-GUI on GitHub Safe to Use?
Are you worried about the privacy concerns of Tidal DL and Tidal GUI on GitHub? The two versions of Tidal-Media-Downloader are available for installation on GitHub. Overall, the third-party program has all its privacy features in place. You should not face any security concerns when using the tool.
However, it is wise to remember that these are open-source software developed on GitHub. The safety and reliability of software can change over time. It is thus advisable to stay informed and exercise caution when using a third-party online tool.
What is the difference between Tidal-Media-Downloader and Tidal-Media-Downloader-PRO?
You can perceive the Tidal-Media-Downloader-PRO as an updated and promoted version of Tidal-Media-Downloader. It has fewer bugs and can perform smoothly. Currently, the Tidal-Media-Downloader repository only contains Tidal-DL. If you want to get Tidal-GUI, you should go to the page of Tidal-Media-Downloader-PRO.
Is it legal to download Tidal music via Tidal GUI and Tidal DL?
It is legal to use Tidal GUI or Tidal DL to download Tidal music on your device as long as you only download the music for personal and private use. You can not use this tool to distribute or pirate music.
Part 3. How to Use Tidal GUI Downloader [Windows]
If you want to know how to use Tidal-GUI to download Tidal music on GitHub, this part is for you. The following steps indicate how you can save audio and video files from Tidal to your computer using Tidal GUI:
How to Install Tidal-GUI on Windows
Step 1. Navigate to the Tidal-Media-Downloader-Pro page on GitHub and scroll down to find the "Releases" section.
Step 2. Tap the "tidal-gui" option to find the latest version of Tidal GUI.
Step 3. On the new page, go to "Assets", and click the "tidal-gui.exe" to install Tidal GUI on your Windows computer directly.

How to Use Tidal GUI to Download Tidal Music
Step 1. After launching the software, log in to your Tidal premium account on the program.

Step 2. Then, set the configurations according to your requirements. You can adjust various parameters such as audio or video quality, saving cover files, and more.

Step 3. Copy the URL to your Tidal playlists or tracks and paste them into the program. The software will download the selected tracks to your device.

Part 4. How to Use Tidal DL Downloader [Windows/Mac/Linux/Android]
If you prefer the control offered by a command-line interface, you can follow this part to install and use Tidal-DL to download Tidal songs and playlists to your computer.
How to Install Tidal DL on Mac/Windows/Linux/Android
Step 1. Before installing Tidal DL, ensure you have Python installed on your computer, as Tidal DL typically requires Python. You can download Python from Python's official website.
Step 2. Go to the Tidal-Media-Downloader page on GitHub to find the repository to install Tidal DL or visit the source where the Tidal DL package is hosted.
Step 3. You can download the latest release of Tidal DL based on your computer system by following these steps:
Windows: Click the "tidal-dl.exe" directly.
Linux: pip3 install tidal-dl --upgrade
macOS:
- brew install ffmpeg
- brew install python
- curl -O http://python-distribute.org/distribute_setup.py
- python distribute_setup.py
- curl -O https://raw.github.com/pypa/pip/master/contrib/get-pip.py
- python get-pip.py
- pip3 install --upgrade tidal-dl
- tidal-dl
Android: Install Termux from your Google Play Store. Open permission: termux-setup-storage. Then copy the following command prompts to install Python and tidal-dl on Android.
- pkg install python clang libjpeg-turbo ffmpeg zlib -y
- apt update
- apt upgrade
- pkg update
- pip3 install --upgrade pip
- pip3 install --upgrade tidal-dl
- tidal-dl
How to Use Tidal-DL on GitHub to Download Tidal Music

Step 1. Fire up the tidal-dl.exe from your computer and enter the Tidal username and password.
Step 2. Type '2' and click the 'Enter' from your keyboard. Now, you can set the config file, such as download path, audio quality, output format, save covers, etc.
Step 3. Copy and paste the Tidal track\video\album\playlist\artist URL to download Tidal music on Mac, Windows, Linux, or Android devices automatically.
Part 5. Best Alternative to Tidal GUI and Tidal DL
Tidal-GUI and Tidal-DL are excellent tools for downloading Tidal music with ease. However, they come with certain limitations. For instance, you must have a Tidal subscription to use them, and Tidal-DL’s command-line interface can be challenging for new users. Therefore, we recommend the best alternative to Tidal Media Downloader, which addresses all the limitations of Tidal-GUI and Tidal-DL, allowing you to download Tidal music freely and easily. This amazing tool is TunesMake Tidal Music Converter.
TunesMake Tidal Music Converter is a powerful and professional music downloader designed for all Tidal users. Whether you have a Tidal subscription or not, you can get this tool on your Windows or Mac computer with ease. Equipped with advanced decryption technology, TunesMake Tidal Music Converter has the ability to remove the DRM protection and download your favorite Tidal songs, playlists, albums, and podcasts as normal audio files in diverse formats, including MP3, FLAC, AAC, M4A, M4B, and WAV. As a result, you can now listen to the downloads on other players and devices without any limits. Audiophiles can also choose this tool with confidence because it smartly keeps the ID3 tags and original high sound quality to ensure your music experience.

TunesMake Tidal Music Converter –
Best Alternative to Tidal GUI/DL
- Download any Tidal content, including songs, albums, playlists, and artists
- Support exporting Tidal music to MP3, M4A, M4B, WAV, FLAC, and AIFF
- Preserve a whole set of ID3 tag information in the downloaded Tidal songs
- Handle the conversion of Tidal music up to 22× faster speed and in batch
Security Verified. 100% Clean & Safe.
Step 1
Enter music from Tidal to TunesMake Tidal Music Converter

Depending on the operating system of your computer, you can download the TunesMake program’s Windows version or Mac version in advance. Then, double-click its icon to launch it. At the same time, it will open the Tidal web player on the interface automatically. Next, you can sign in to your account and find the track you want to download. To add it to the TunesMake program, you just need to drag and drop it into the Add icon.
Step 2
Configure music output settings

Once you add all the Tidal songs you like, you can click the menu icon at the top right corner. Then, tap Preferences to enter the Convert tab. Here you can select one output format according to your need. Other settings like channel, sample rate, and bit rate are all changeable. You can customize them as you wish. When it is finished, click OK to save your changes.
Step 3
Download Tidal music without hassle

Now everything is ready. You just need to click the Convert button and the TunesMake program will begin downloading your Tidal songs automatically. The time it consumes depends on how many tracks you add. Once done, you can enjoy the DRM-free Tidal music on your computer or other devices as you wish. To find its location on the local folder of your computer, you need to click the Converted icon.
Part 6. Detailed Comparison: Tidal GUI/DL vs TunesMake Tidal Music Converter
The table below is a detailed comparison between Tidal Media Downloader and TunesMake Tidal Music Converter. If you hesitate on which tool to choose, it can give you a reference.
Tidal-GUI/Tidal-DL | TunesMake Tidal Music Converter | |
Compatible System | Windows, Mac, Linux, and Android | Windows and Mac |
Download Content | Tidal songs, playlists, albums, and videos | Tidal tracks, playlists, albums, podcasts, and audiobooks |
Output Format | MP3 and FLAC | MP3, FLAC, AAC, M4A, M4B, and WAV. |
Download Speed | 1x | 5x |
Music Quality | Lossy | Lossless |
ID3 Tags | ✔ | ✔ |
Batch Download | ✔ | ✔ |
Customize Settings | ✔ | ✔ |
Easy to Use | ✘ | ✔ |
Tidal Subscription | ✔ | ✘ |
Rating | ⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
Part 7. In Conclusion
Tidal GUI and Tidal DL are 2 versions of Tidal Media Downloader in GitHub. It has the ability to help you remove DRM protection and download the Tidal music you like locally. It is effective but also has some limitations. If you are seeking a method to enjoy Tidal music offline without any limits, Tidal GUI’s best alternative – TunesMake Tidal Music Converter is absolutely worth trying. It won’t let you down. Now, download it and start your unlimited Tidal music journey.
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