When the course outlives the storefront

On Podia the creator decides whether you keep watching. There's no download button on lessons, and if the creator switches platforms or closes their storefront, the videos you bought access to are gone and only the receipt is left.

Podia Downloader gives you a local copy while your access is still active. Open a lesson on any Podia-powered site and it finds the video, however the storefront is branded and whichever video host the creator chose. Pick a quality, click download, and the lesson is saved as a clean MP4. For a full course, the batch queue lines up every lesson and fetches them in order, filed by course and lesson name.

Scope and limits

What it handles:

• Video lessons embedded in Podia courses and digital products
• Membership videos you currently have access to
• Multi-lesson courses through batch downloads
• Every Podia-powered domain, whatever the custom branding

What it leaves alone:

• PDFs, audio files and other digital downloads; use Podia's own buttons for those
• Content you haven't bought or don't have membership access to
• Checkout and storefront pages that contain no video

You have to be logged in with access to the content for anything to download.

Using it on a course

1. Install the extension and pin it to the toolbar so it's within reach.
2. Sign in to Podia and open a lesson page on a creator site where you've bought the course or hold a membership.
3. Click download to save the lesson you're on, or queue several lessons and let them download one after another.
4. Watch offline. Each video is stored at its original quality inside folders that follow the course layout, regardless of whether the creator's site is up.

Membership content works the same way: if your browser can play the video while you're logged in, the extension can see it.

Feature rundown

• Saves video lessons from any course or digital product hosted on Podia
• Works with Wistia, Vimeo and the other video hosts Podia creators embed
• Keeps the original resolution and audio, with no re-encoding
• A page scanner that recognises custom Podia storefronts and domains
• A batch queue for downloading several lessons in sequence
• Automatic retries when a connection is interrupted
• A progress bar showing speed and completion
• Files arranged automatically to mirror the course and lesson structure

Browsers, systems and privacy

It runs in Chrome, Firefox and Edge on Windows, macOS and Linux, and is available worldwide. Safari and mobile browsers are not supported; this is a desktop browser extension only.

Your Podia credentials are never stored, read or sent to an outside service. Processing happens locally in the browser, and the videos stay on your device.

• activeTab: lets the extension scan the Podia course page you're viewing for embedded video players and pull out the media addresses to download.
• downloads: saves the video files straight into the local folder you choose.
• storage: remembers your download preferences and the state of the batch queue between browser sessions.

FAQ

How can I tell that a creator's course site runs on Podia?

Many Podia storefronts show a little Podia badge, and their checkout pages are usually Podia-branded. You don't strictly need to check, though: when the extension spots Podia's page structure and a playable video, its download options appear.

Will it save videos from a Podia membership I belong to?

It will. Membership lessons are treated like course lessons, so any video that plays for you while logged in is available to save.

Can it fetch the PDFs or audio that come with a Podia product?

That's outside its scope; it only deals with video embedded in a course page. For PDFs, audio and similar files, Podia normally puts its own download button on the product page.

I've bought courses from several creators who use Podia. Does it work on all their sites?

Every one of them. Custom domains and branding don't matter, so lessons from each creator can be saved the same way.

Can the creator see that I downloaded their lessons?

Nothing unusual reaches Podia. The extension picks up video addresses from the lesson that has already loaded in your browser, so the traffic looks the same as you simply watching it.

Is this legal?

DISCLAIMER: We are not attorneys and do not offer legal advice. Laws vary by country and platform. For any legal question please consult a qualified legal professional.

We give you full control over download speeds because we believe users should decide how they use their software.

That said, here are a few widely accepted best practices for safe, responsible downloading:

• Only download content you created, own, or have explicit permission from the rights holder to access.

• Protect your personal data by respecting platform rules and rate limits with reasonable download speeds to avoid automated abuse systems putting your account at risk.

• Protect your privacy by using a reputable VPN for IP protection before initiating downloads — this is the VPN we recommend & use.