A download manager is a software program used to increase download speed. Download managers are special programs and browser extensions that help keep large downloads.
The download managers can prove its worth in dealing with software packages, large image and video files you need to work on, or batches of files that you need to get on your machine.
Every web browser has a basic download manager, but they don’t provide users with much to work with.
Downloading via a web browser usually means slower download times and limited options, and there’s always the risk of your download breaking at random times due to unfortunate events.
Various free download managers software comes with features that are nowhere to be found in the built-in download management components in web browsers.
For instance, scheduling file downloads, exporting download lists, and more.
Moreover, download managers also come with browser extensions to capture download links directly from web browsers. So, with all that said, here are some of the best download manager software.
If you are downloading several files, they can stall as a result of slower speeds, browser crashes, or PC shutdowns. When there are multiple large files, it can be time-consuming to pay close attention to each and every download.
It is way faster and more convenient to use a download manager since you can pause and restart your downloads anytime.
There are many free and paid Download Manager software programs available on the Internet. You can choose any one of them and enjoy downloading big files without any hassle.
In this post, we’re going to share some of the best file download manager software.
1. Internet Download Manager
Almost every one of you knows about the Internet Download Manager. The Internet Download Manager is undoubtedly the best Download Manager app for Windows.
I’ve been using the IDM for years, and it never disappointed me. The IDM can download the big files with ease, also you can use IDM to download a torrent and you can see the interactive progress bar of the download.
The IDM comes with the Pause and Resume option for most of the downloads. So, you can pause and resume the downloads as per convenience.
The IDM is not free-to-use software. It can be utilized as a Trial for 30 days, but later you’ve to pay a small amount for the lifetime license of this software. All I can say is that it is worth buying the Internet Download Manager.
2. Download Accelerator Plus
Who hasn’t heard the name of Download Accelerator Plus (DAP)? It has been around since the era of dial-up Internet and is instantly recognizable by its fiery flash symbol.
DAP also doubles as an FTP browser, video-to-MP3 converter, and DAP link-checker which helps you see what’s really behind the files.
DAP is freeware, though you can pay $24.95 for the DAP Premium lifetime license.
The DAP Premium version comes with some cool features like “trace cleaner” which completely removes all history of your downloads.
Another feature, “extreme acceleration,” drastically raises the download speed.
3. Ninja Download Manager
Ninja Download Manager is a relative newcomer to the downloading party, and it looks considerably more contemporary than its, er, contemporaries.
Its interface is simple and modern (if a little dark), and its accelerator can help you get your files 10 times faster.
It does this by splitting each file into chunks, then downloading each one using a different server connection, making downloads not only faster but also more reliable.
If you’re into music and movies you’ll be delighted by its sequential setting, which lets you begin playing a file while it’s still downloading.
There’s also a built-in video downloader with support for YouTube and Vimeo, and a video converter that changes the file format automatically once it’s finished downloading.
There are lots of fantastic options around, but if you love music, films, and TV then Ninja Download Manager is the tool for you.
Note that the link to download the free version of the Ninja Download Manager is at the very bottom of the developer’s homepage.
4. Free Download Manager
This free download manager is called…you guessed it, Free Download Manager (FDM). It can monitor and intercept downloads from web browsers, but can also work independently of them.
You can create batch downloads, download torrents, preview ZIP files before they’re downloaded, and even deselect files you don’t want from the compressed folder, download entire websites, resume broken downloads, download all links from the clipboard, and quickly control the bandwidth allocation for all downloads.
Downloads are performed in the order of how they’re listed in FDM, but you can move files up or down the list to set their priority.
In addition to the above, you can preview and convert audio and video files before they’re finished downloading, as well as set traffic limits and schedule downloads to occur on certain days only.
Free Download Manager runs on Windows, Linux, Mac, and Android. The browser integration works with Internet Explorer, Chrome, and Firefox.
5. JDownloader
JDownloader is one of the best download managers that you can get for your Windows PC. First of all, the download manager is open source and completely free to use.
Unlike the paid download managers which provide a free version that runs with ads, with JDownloader you get everything for free, that too without any ads.
Talking about its features, the downloader manager allows users to start, stop or pause downloads, set bandwidth limitations, auto-extract archives, and much more.
Some of my other favorite features of this app include multiple file downloads, support for popular content sites such as Vimeo and YouTube, add-on support, and more.
JDownloader is already a powerful download manager, however, it allows you to make it even more feature-rich and powerful by using a set of more than 300 plugins.
6. EagleGet Download Accelerator
The one featuring its minimalistic user interface is the download manager we know by the name EagleGet. You can customize the theme with solid colors or some custom image as the background.
There is a Video Sniffer tool that can be used to download videos for which a download link is not there.
After the downloads get completed, you can also configure the free download manager to check for malware using the installed AV software on your system.
The reason why EagleGet counts among the best download manager software for Windows is because of the ease of access it offers to the users. It isn’t bloated with features that are mostly of no use to everyday users.
7. Xtreme Download Manager
Another free and open-source option, Xtreme Download Manager works across both Windows and macOS (and Linux, if you’re using that).
Its interface is a little on the stark side, but the program comes packed with features—as well as letting you pause, resume, and schedule downloads, it can also save streaming videos straight from the web.
Add-ons are available for just about every browser out there (including Chrome, Firefox, and Edge), or you can use the tool as a standalone program.
Where multiple mirrors are available, Xtreme Download Manager takes advantage of them, and copied links pop up right in the program interface too. Comprehensive, powerful, and simple to use as well.
8. uGet
uGet is also an open-source download manager for Windows. It also has multi-threading downloading options., as well as the ability to pause and resume downloads.
You can also download multiple files using the batch download with the file queuing feature.
Just like Free Download Manager, uGet also has browser integration. One of the best features of uGet is its ability to automatically prompt for downloads using the clipboard manager.
There are multiple theme support and a clean and intuitive UI which gets the job done without hassle. The download speeds are awesome and uGet is one of our favorite download managers on this list.
9. GetGo Download Manager
GetGo Download Manager supports batch downloads as well as a floating dropbox for quickly downloading files via drag and drop.
You can paste links directly into the program or import an LST file containing all the download links.
Defining categories for where to place downloads is really easy because you can specify the exact file extensions that should be considered a particular category. Doing so will place executable files, for example, into a Software folder while MP4 and AVI files can be placed in a Videos folder.
GetGo Download Manager can store login credentials for downloading files from password-protected websites. It can also preview image files before downloading them, run downloads on a schedule, and capture videos from video-streaming websites.
Windows is the only operating system that GetGo Download Manager works on. It can be integrated with Firefox, Chrome, and Internet Explorer.
10. iDownload Manager
iDownload Manager is a very lightweight but powerful download manager for Windows which is also available on the Microsoft Store.
iDownload Manager also includes file splitting and multithreading options for faster downloading of huge files.
It also has modern features like bandwidth allocations, pausing and resuming of downloads and more.
It also brings in a file allocation system that lets you manage the location of your downloads effortlessly. iDownload Manager is completely free and you can download it from the Microsoft Store.
11. Free Rapid Downloader
The last download manager app for Windows on our list is the Free Rapid Downloader which is a fairly good download manager with all the important features.
It is an easy-to-use Java downloader that supports file downloads from Rapidshare, Youtube, Facebook, Picasa, and other file-sharing services, including the new ones like Mega.
The ability to download files from file-sharing services such as Rapidshare and Mega is one of the best features of this app.
Other features of the app include support for concurrent downloading from multiple services, downloading files using a proxy list, support for streaming videos or pictures, smart clipboard monitoring, and more.
If you download a ton of files from file-sharing websites, this is the best download manager for you.
12. FlashGet
FlashGet monitors downloads in Firefox and Internet Explorer, plus it can scan downloads with your antivirus program and can tell you how large a file is before you download it, which is really awesome.
Download files over the HTTP, FTP, BitTorrent, and other protocols with seamless integration into the one-for-all download button.
This means even if you add a torrent file or image/video file to be downloaded, you use the same button for it and FlashGet will immediately know how to handle the download.
This program also has a floating desktop button so you can toggle browser monitoring, pause/start downloads, and add new download links.
13. Gigaget
Another option is to use Gigaget. This download manager isn’t much different than the others above. It supports batch downloads, URL imports, a search tool, Drop Basket, download resume, etc.
Something I like about this program is that you can make the virus scanner only scan certain file types.
For instance, instead of having it scan even PNG or MP3 files, you can limit it to EXE and other potentially dangerous file formats.
Plus, the scanner can be any anti-malware program on your computer that’s capable of starting with parameters. Gigaget can also monitor and download Flash and other streaming content from your browsers.
14. Download Manager S3
There are tons of download manager extensions but very few give satisfactory results from a tidy status bar.
Download Manager S3 is currently the number-one-rated extension for Firefox and has a sizeable following among Chrome users as well.
Promising full control of your download history, the software allows you to transfer a huge range of file extensions, including torrents, without any trouble.
15. BitComet – free download manager
Talking about BitComet, you might have heard of it more when referring to torrent downloader software. But BitComet also comes with support for HTTP and FTP protocols, allowing it to act as a download manager.
It might not have a visual appearance as pleasing as other top download manager software, BitComet comes with all the essential file downloader features.
BitComet offers seamless integration with web browsers, remote file download, virus scan post download, download scheduling, etc.
Also, this downloader for PC comes with capabilities to resume downloads even if you restart your PC or use a different internet connection, similar to IDM and other apps.
