---
title: Save a SoundCloud track to your computer
description: "Save soundcloud track to computer. Paste the track URL, pick Audio, and save audio MP3 or M4A with artwork to a folder on this computer."
url: https://keepcopy.app/blog/save-soundcloud-track-to-computer
updated: 2026-08-14T00:00:00.000Z
---

You wanted the **track**. The page has a waveform and no file. SoundCloud’s own download button appears only when the uploader turned it on. A converter you found in search takes the same link through someone else’s page.

**KeepCopy** is the local [desktop video downloader](/) for the soundtrack. To **save a SoundCloud track to your computer**, paste the **track** URL, open **Audio**, and save **audio MP3** or **audio M4A** to a folder on this computer. Artwork and tags go in the file when you want them. No cloud hop.

<h2 id="on-this-page" class="toc-heading">On this page</h2>

- [Paste the track URL, not the homepage](#paste-the-track-url-not-the-homepage)
- [How to save a SoundCloud track to your computer](#how-to-save-a-soundcloud-track-to-your-computer)
- [Audio, not a video preset](#audio-not-a-video-preset)
- [Artwork and tags on the track](#artwork-and-tags-on-the-track)
- [SoundCloud sets and playlists](#soundcloud-sets-and-playlists)
- [Why skip a web converter for a track](#why-skip-a-web-converter-for-a-track)
- [Micro-FAQ](#micro-faq)

<h2 id="paste-the-track-url-not-the-homepage">Paste the track URL, not the homepage</h2>

**Copy the address of the track you are playing.** It is a SoundCloud track page, not `soundcloud.com` and not a profile.

A search page, a likes list, or the site home is not a track. The app will say so. Embeds on other sites still need the SoundCloud track URL if that is the source you meant.

This page owns **save soundcloud track to computer**. The generic “any link, soundtrack only” write-up is [Download video as MP3 on the desktop](/blog/download-video-as-mp3-desktop). A YouTube soundtrack is [YouTube to MP3](/blog/youtube-to-mp3). Come back here when the link is SoundCloud.

<h2 id="how-to-save-a-soundcloud-track-to-your-computer">How to save a SoundCloud track to your computer</h2>

**Paste the track, choose Audio, set the folder in Settings.** You never type a format code. You never install a **package manager** to keep the sound.

### Step 1: Open KeepCopy

Launch KeepCopy on macOS, Windows, or Linux. First run installs and verifies the official **yt-dlp** release and **ffmpeg** on this computer.

<figure>
  <img
    src="/images/ui/first-launch-engine-install-800.webp"
    srcset="/images/ui/first-launch-engine-install-800.webp 800w, /images/ui/first-launch-engine-install-1200.webp 1200w, /images/ui/first-launch-engine-install.webp 1600w"
    sizes="(min-width: 720px) min(65ch, 92vw), 92vw"
    data-full-src="/images/ui/first-launch-engine-install.webp"
    alt="KeepCopy first-launch card listing ffmpeg and yt-dlp as not installed, with a Download and verify button"
    width="1600"
    height="1129"
    fetchpriority="high"
  />
</figure>

### Step 2: Paste the SoundCloud track URL

Drop in the track link. The app inspects it on this computer before anything is saved. You see a title and the options that actually apply.

<figure>
  <img
    src="/images/ui/first-launch-paste-link-field-no-dowloads-no-queue-800.webp"
    srcset="/images/ui/first-launch-paste-link-field-no-dowloads-no-queue-800.webp 800w, /images/ui/first-launch-paste-link-field-no-dowloads-no-queue-1200.webp 1200w, /images/ui/first-launch-paste-link-field-no-dowloads-no-queue.webp 1600w"
    sizes="(min-width: 720px) min(65ch, 92vw), 92vw"
    data-full-src="/images/ui/first-launch-paste-link-field-no-dowloads-no-queue.webp"
    alt="KeepCopy paste field with the placeholder Paste a video or playlist URL and an empty downloads list"
    width="1600"
    height="1129"
  />
</figure>

### Step 3: Open Audio

Choose the **Audio** recipe. It is the shortcut for **audio MP3** with artwork and tags.

Or pick **Audio only (MP3)** or **Audio only (M4A)** from the same list as the video presets. Those labels drop the picture on purpose. That is what you want for a track.

<figure>
  <img
    src="/images/ui/two-downloads-complete-1-audio-soundcloud-queued-800.webp"
    srcset="/images/ui/two-downloads-complete-1-audio-soundcloud-queued-800.webp 800w, /images/ui/two-downloads-complete-1-audio-soundcloud-queued-1200.webp 1200w, /images/ui/two-downloads-complete-1-audio-soundcloud-queued.webp 1600w"
    sizes="(min-width: 720px) min(65ch, 92vw), 92vw"
    data-full-src="/images/ui/two-downloads-complete-1-audio-soundcloud-queued.webp"
    alt="KeepCopy with a pasted SoundCloud URL, Download as set to Audio and Format set to MP3"
    width="1600"
    height="1047"
  />
</figure>

### Step 4: Save it to a folder

In Settings, set **Save files to** to a folder on this computer. The queue shows progress, cancel, retry, and **Show folder**. When it finishes, you have ordinary audio on disk.

<figure>
  <img
    src="/images/ui/settings-panel-800.webp"
    srcset="/images/ui/settings-panel-800.webp 800w, /images/ui/settings-panel-1200.webp 1200w, /images/ui/settings-panel.webp 1600w"
    sizes="(min-width: 720px) min(65ch, 92vw), 92vw"
    data-full-src="/images/ui/settings-panel.webp"
    alt="KeepCopy Settings panel with Save files to set to a folder on this computer"
    width="1600"
    height="1129"
  />
</figure>

Keep the track. [Paste a SoundCloud link in KeepCopy.](/#download)

<h2 id="audio-not-a-video-preset">Audio, not a video preset</h2>

**A 1080p label is the wrong row for a track.** Watch later and Best quality keep a picture. A SoundCloud page is the soundtrack.

**Audio** points at **audio MP3**, turns on **Embed thumbnail** and **Embed metadata**, and leaves captions off. You can still open **More options**. Nothing is a hidden second product.

**Download soundcloud to mp3** is that same picker. **Audio only (M4A)** is the other container in the list. One post covers both.

If the source has more than one soundtrack, **Audio language** can appear after inspect. Pick **(original)** or a listed language for this audio-only job. It will not invent a voice the host never offered.

<h2 id="artwork-and-tags-on-the-track">Artwork and tags on the track</h2>

**Audio writes cover art and title tags into the audio file.** That is the agitation for a track: you play it later without a generic filename.

In **More options**, under **Extras**:

- **Embed metadata** — write title and channel tags into the file.
- **Embed thumbnail** — store the cover image inside the audio. The UI calls this out as best for podcasts and audio.
- **Save thumbnail file** — keep a separate image next to the download when you want a sidecar.

Audio turns the first two on. You can change them. KeepCopy is not a media library. The tags live in the file. Your player reads them.

<h2 id="soundcloud-sets-and-playlists">SoundCloud sets and playlists</h2>

**A set URL is still select-then-save.** Inspect the list, pick the tracks you want, and queue those.

The app does not silently download every item. If you want three tracks from a set of forty, you pick those three. The full picker walkthrough is [Download selected videos from a playlist](/blog/download-selected-videos-from-playlist).

Each selected entry can use Audio or the same audio-only labels. The queue handles more than one job honestly — as jobs you started, not as a silent dump.

<h2 id="why-skip-a-web-converter-for-a-track">Why skip a web converter for a track</h2>

**A converter site is another hop for sound you already meant to keep locally.**

You paste the link, wait on a second page, and may not know where the work happened. **Browser extensions** add another trust surface for the same soundtrack.

KeepCopy is **local-first**. A pasted URL goes from this computer to SoundCloud — never through our servers. The desktop app sends **no telemetry** and does not create an account.

For the path of a pasted link, read [What stays on your computer](/blog/what-stays-on-your-computer). If inspect fails or the queue stops, see [Video download keeps failing](/blog/video-download-keeps-failing).

This is not a dedicated “remove soundtrack” product. It will not strip a file already on disk. More [workflow](/blog/category/workflow) notes live with this one. The paste-pick-save walkthrough is [yt-dlp without the terminal](/blog/yt-dlp-without-the-terminal).

<h2 id="micro-faq" class="faq-heading">Micro-FAQ</h2>

### How do I save a SoundCloud track to this computer?

Paste the track URL into KeepCopy, open the Audio recipe, pick audio MP3 or audio M4A, and set **Save files to** in Settings. The soundtrack lands there with artwork when you want it.

### Should I pick a video quality for a SoundCloud link?

No. Audio and the audio-only labels drop the picture on purpose. A 1080p preset is for a video you will watch, not a track.

### Does Audio strip audio from a file I already have?

No. Paste a SoundCloud track URL. KeepCopy saves audio from that source. It does not strip a soundtrack from a file already on disk.

### What if I pasted a SoundCloud set?

Inspect the list and select the entries you want. The app does not silently download every track in the set.

KeepCopy is a desktop video downloader. Paste a link, pick quality, and save the video to a folder on this computer.

[Coming soon](https://keepcopy.app/#download)