How to Download All Files from an Internet Archive Item
When you open an item on archive.org, the download panel usually shows a few format options — PDF, EPUB, MP3, TORRENT. But underneath, most items contain far more files than what appears at first glance. A single scanned book might include the original scan images, a derived PDF, an EPUB, a plain text file, OCR data, a DjVu file, thumbnails, metadata XML files, and a torrent file. If you need everything — or need to choose precisely which files to grab — you need to look deeper than the default download panel.
What is inside an item?
Every item on archive.org is essentially a folder containing three categories of files. Original files are what the uploader submitted — the source material in its highest-quality form. Derivative files are generated automatically by the Archive's processing pipeline: format conversions, thumbnails, spectrograms, and compressed versions designed for broader compatibility. Metadata files describe the item itself — _meta.xml holds the title, date, description, and tags; _files.xml lists every file with checksums, sizes, and source designations; and _reviews.xml stores user reviews if any exist. To understand which file is the "real" one versus a generated copy, see How to Find Original Files on Internet Archive.
Method 1: Browser download
On any item page, look for Show All in the Download Options panel (sometimes labeled "SHOW ALL" or accessible via a link below the main format choices). This expands the full file listing. You can right-click individual files and save them one by one. At the bottom of the panel, some items offer an "all files" download link that bundles everything into a ZIP. This works well for small items, but for items with many files or large total size, the ZIP generation can fail or time out. If the ZIP does not work, switch to one of the methods below.
You can also navigate directly to the item's download directory by visiting archive.org/download/[identifier] in your browser. This gives you a plain file listing where you can click and save individual files.
Method 2: The ia command line tool
The ia tool is the cleanest way to download everything. Run: ia download [identifier] — replacing [identifier] with the item's identifier (the last part of its URL). This creates a local folder with the item's name and downloads every file into it. To download only specific formats, use the --format flag: ia download [identifier] --format='512Kb MPEG4'. To use filename patterns, use --glob: ia download [identifier] --glob='*.mp4'. You can exclude patterns too: ia download [identifier] --glob='*.mp4' --exclude='*512kb*'. Note that --format and --glob cannot be combined in the same command. To see what formats are available before downloading, run: ia metadata --formats [identifier]. For the full ia tool guide, see How to Use the IA Command Line Tool.
Method 3: wget
For a quick recursive download without installing the ia tool, wget works: wget -r -nH --cut-dirs=1 'https://archive.org/download/[identifier]/' — this mirrors the item's download directory into a local folder. The -nH flag removes the archive.org hostname from the directory structure, and --cut-dirs=1 strips the /download/ prefix so you get a clean folder named after the item.
Choosing what to download
Not every file in an item is useful for every purpose. If you are archiving for preservation, download everything — originals, derivatives, and metadata. If you just need the content to read, watch, or listen to, focus on the format you actually want (PDF for reading, MP3 for audio, MP4 for video) and skip the rest. Metadata files (_meta.xml, _files.xml) are small and worth grabbing if you plan to catalog or cite the item later, since they contain the authoritative record of what the item is and when it was captured.
For items with many derived files, the original is usually the highest-quality version. Derivatives exist for convenience — smaller file sizes, broader device compatibility — but if quality matters, go for the original. The _files.xml file tells you exactly which files are originals and which are derivatives.
Arkibber can help you evaluate items before downloading. Search for your topic, open promising items, and check what files and formats are available — so you know what you are getting into before you commit to a large download.
If you only need one file from an item using the simplest method, start with How to Download from Internet Archive.