TL;DR
Officially, you cannot download Disney Plus movies or shows on a Mac. Section 1️⃣ explains the official policy and using AirPlay from an iPhone, neither of which saves an actual video file directly to Mac. Section 2️⃣ details a full review of available software. After testing KeepStreams, Kigo, and Movpilot, I found KeepStreams for Disney Plus to be the most stable and reliable tool for downloading Disney Plus seasons on a Mac.
I spend a fair amount of time in hotels with Wi-Fi that seems powered by a hamster on a wheel. My iPhone has my entire offline queue for Shōgun and The Mandalorian ready to go. My MacBook? It’s a glorified streaming box, entirely dependent on that hamster.
Many of our readers ask the same question: "Can you download Disney Plus movies on a MacBook?" The short answer is no, but the long answer involves workarounds. This article explains the official workarounds (like AirPlay) and explores the use of third-party downloaders, including their features and potential risks.
Why You Can't Download from Disney+ on Mac？
Steve's Key Point
Q: Why is there no Disney Plus app for Mac?
A: Disney has not developed or released an official app for the macOS platform. To download content, you must use an iPhone, iPad, Android device, or a Windows 10/11 computer.
It's the most common question we get on this topic, and the answer is frustratingly simple: there is no "Disney Plus mac app" because Disney has not released one.
The company's development focus has been on two primary areas: mobile (iOS/Android) and the living room (Smart TVs, Fire TV, consoles). The desktop experience, for Mac users, is limited to streaming through a web browser.
It's a stated policy. According to the official Disney+ Help Center article:
Official Workarounds to Watch Offline on a Mac
Steve's Key Point
The only official method is to download the movie to your iPhone or iPad, then use AirPlay to stream the downloaded content to your Mac. The "Add to Dock" feature is just a website shortcut and does not support offline downloads.
If you want to stay entirely within Disney's ecosystem, you have two options. Be warned: only one of them truly works for offline viewing.
Using AirPlay from an iOS Device
This is the only official method to watch downloaded content on your Mac's screen. It requires you to own both a Mac and an iPhone or iPad, but it works reliably without an active internet connection (once the file is downloaded to your mobile device).
- On your iPhone or iPad, open the Disney+ app.
- Find the show or movie you want and tap the Download icon.
- Once downloaded, ensure your Mac and iOS device are on the same local Wi-Fi network (or connected via Bluetooth).
- Play the downloaded title on your iPhone/iPad and tap the AirPlay icon.
- Select your MacBook from the list of devices.
The video will now play on your Mac's screen, streamed directly from your phone. It's clumsy, but it's 100% official.
The "Add to Dock" (PWA) Method (Not Offline)
You may see articles suggesting you "install" the Disney+ app on Mac using Safari. This is misleading.
This method involves opening Disney+ in Safari, going to File > Add to Dock, and creating a Progressive Web App (PWA). This adds a Disney+ icon to your dock, and it opens in its own window. However, it is not an app. It is simply a bookmark to the website. It does not download movies for offline viewing and still requires a full-time internet connection.
Third-Party Solution: KeepStreams for Disney Plus
With those disclaimers understood, I tested several of these tools to see if they deliver on their promises. One of the prominent names in this space is KeepStreams. The tool is designed to do exactly what we've been discussing: download Disney Plus movies on a Mac.
How KeepStreams Works?
The process is straightforward. The app functions as a specialized, built-in browser.
Step 1
Download and install the software on your PC.
I can confirm KeepStreams for Disney Plus is compatible with older macOS versions and the latest macOS Sequoia (15.0). It is also optimized for Apple Silicon (M1, M2, M3, and M4 chips).
Step 2
Launch KeepStreams and find Disney Plus at the VIP Services.
Step 3
Login to your Disney+ account and play the video you want to download.
Step 4
A prompt appears asking for video quality and audio tracks. Click on "Download Now".
The downloaded Disney Plus file is saved to your hard drive as a standard MP4 file, which can be played in QuickTime or VLC.
If you want to free up your Disney Plus download storage, just click the icon ☴ and navigate to Settings > Preferences > General > Download Directory.
How KeepStreams Compares?
I didn't just look at one tool. To provide context, I ran KeepStreams against two other popular competitors in this space: Kigo Disney+ Video Downloader and Movpilot Disney+ Video Downloader. From my testing, all three were able to download content. The differences came down to interface and reliability.
| Criteria | KeepStreams | Kigo | Movpilot |
| Interface & Ease of Use | Excellent: Clean, modern, and feels native to macOS. | Good: A bit dated, but perfectly functional. | Average: Cluttered. Feels more like a Windows port. |
| Batch Stability (10 Ep.) | Excellent: No failures. Completed the entire job. | Poor: Failed on 1 of 10 episodes. Required a restart. | Good: No failures. |
| Resource Impact (CPU) | Low: Minimal impact. Fans stayed quiet. | Low: Similar to KeepStreams. | High: Noticeably higher CPU usage; fans spun up. |
| Download Speed | Fast | Fast | Very Fast |
| Apple Silicon (M-Series) | Yes (Native) | Yes (Native) | Yes (Native) |
| *I used my primary work machine: a 14-inch MacBook Pro (M3 Pro, 18GB RAM) running macOS Sequoia. | |||
KeepStreams felt the most stable and "Mac-like" of the group. Movpilot was the fastest, but its interface was cluttered. Kigo is a long-standing option but felt less reliable in my batch test.
Disney+ is a service that allows users to stream popular content owned by Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, and other Disney properties. The streaming service offers a wide range of entertainment, including exclusive movies, new films and series, documentaries, original content, and more.
Disney+ app provides an official download service. But sometimes when you download Disney+ videos, you may find your device is easy to run out of its storage. How? To ensure the best quality of the downloads, Disney+ has to sacrifice the local storage of your device. But don't worry! You can change the download location as you like.
So Can you change Disney Plus download location on Andoird phone/iPhone and PC? How to change download location on Disney Plus? What to do when the Disney Plus download location greyed out? Read on to find the answers.
Where are My Disney Plus Downloads Stored?
If you want to find the Disney Plus downloads stored on your mobile device, it's possible only for Android devices. But if you're using an iPhone or iPad, you are not allowed to see where downloaded movies are saved.
For Android users, you can find the location of your downloaded Disney+ movies by following these steps:
Step 1. Open the Disney+ app.
Step2. Select the "Profile icon" in the lower right corner and click "App Settings".
Step3. In the App Settings. You will see the download location (internal storage or external storage).
Disney+ movies can be downloaded from a single account to up to 10 devices. Most downloaded movies can be viewed for the duration of your subscription. However, some movies may have a limited viewing period after download.
Note: If you can't find a downloaded movie on Disney+, check if the viewing period has ended.
How to Change Download Location on Disney Plus?
The problem of "not being able to download due to lack of space" often occurs on mobile devices, but on Android devices, this problem can be solved by changing the destination to an SD card. Follow these steps to free up the internal storage of your device:
Step 1: Make sure that the SD card is placed in the device you are currently using.
Step 2. Open the App Settings as previously described.
Step 3. Tickle the External storage option to change the download location.
But you should be aware that even if you can download Disney Plus shows to SD card, you can't get access to them directly because of the DRM protection. Namely, you can only play the downloads in the official Disney+ app with its built-in browser.
Why is my Disney+ download location grayed out?
When you find the icon of the download location grayed out in the Disney+ app, it means that Disney banned you from changing the output location on your device. You may be using a iOS device.
FAQs
Q1. Is it legal to download Disney Plus videos using a third-party tool?
A1. It is not "illegal" in a criminal sense for personal use in most regions.
Q2. Will my Disney+ account get banned for using a downloader?
A2. It is a rare but possible risk. These tools work by mimicking a web browser, so they are hard to detect.
Q3. What is the official way to watch Disney+ offline on a Mac?
A3. The only official way is to download the content to an iPhone or iPad and use AirPlay to stream it to your MacBook.
Q4. Does the Safari "Add to Dock" feature download movies for offline viewing?
A4. No. This feature simply creates a bookmark that looks like an app. It is 100% reliant on an internet connection and has no offline capabilities.
Q5. Can I use an Android emulator like BlueStacks to download Disney+ on Mac?
A5. Technically, yes. You could run an emulator, install the Android Disney+ app, and download content within that virtual environment. From my experience, this is a terrible user experience. It's slow, buggy, and drains battery life, not a practical solution.
Q6. Does KeepStreams remove ads from the Disney+ (With Ads) plan downloads?
A6. Yes, according to my tests and the company's claims, the software downloads the ad-free video stream even if you are on the "With Ads" plan.
Conclusion
In this article, we introduce how to change the download location of Disney Plus on mobile devices and PC. We also explain why is the Disney Plus download location greyed out and how to fix it: By downloading Disney+ videos in MP4/MKV format, you can change the download location as you prefer.
To do it, the versatile tool KeepStreams for Disney Plus is highly recommended. With this reliable software, you can shake off the DRM protection of Disney Plus downloads and free up the device storage to the fullest extent.
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